So Much To Do in Australia's Capital

We've had a fantastic 4 weeks in Canberra, and still haven't managed to see and do everything. One highlight of course has to be the reason for the city's existence - Parliament House. At this time of year the pollies are off on their annual holidays, but the building is still open to visitors. The iconic flag pole is visible from almost anywhere in Canberra, and the inside of the building is just as striking as the outside. Unlike Old Parliament House you can't actually sit in the chamber, but the current House of Representatives is a lot more modern and recognisably Australian, with a much less ornate (and more tasteful) Speaker's chair. But you don't want to be fooled into thinking that we the Australian people scrimped in the building's construction - the foyer contains more marble than you would have thought possible in one building.

The High Court is also currently in recess, but the lovely building is open to visitors, although we had to leave our water bottle at the front security desk. Who knows what it might have contained! The 'Treasures Gallery' at the National Library lived up to its name, with fascinating exhibits such as original 17th century Dutch maps (showing just tiny fragments of the Australian coastline), Captain Cook's log from his Endeavour voyage and the original manuscript of Waltzing Matilda. The Mint provided several hours entertainment watching the production of coins, alas no free samples on the tour.

One of the few places we had to pay for a tour was the Australian Institute of Sport, but the obvious disinterest of the 'guide', who was presumably fulfilling one of his duties as a resident athlete (in his case an AFL footballer, not what we would consider a good use of our tax money), and the limited access to the actual training facilities, made this a lowlight of our Canberra experience. More interesting were several CSIRO facilities, including the telescopes at Mt Stromlo that were burnt out 10 years ago and the 'Deep Space Complex' at Tidbinbilla, providing services to NASA monitoring various missions to Mars and beyond.

The ACT doesn't just provide indoor interest, we had 4 days bush walking in Namadgi National Park, and played golf at 8 different golf courses. All in all, we have thoroughly enjoyed our 4 weeks in Australia's Capital Territory,and could easily spend more time in a future visit.

Australian War Memorial

We've spent nearly 2 full days at the Australian War Memorial, and even then we probably missed at least half of what there is to see. It is the most amazing place, with displays ranging from vast quantities of memorabilia, to interactive displays, videos, photos, paintings, dioramas, sound and light shows ...... probably every form of display available to the modern curator, and possibly several more that no one else has thought of. It covers every conflict that Australians have been involved in, from pre Boer War before we were even an independent nation through both World Wars to the latest peace keeping missions.

 

The heart of the memorial contains the galleries with panels recording the name of every Australian who has died in conflict, surrounding the memorial pool and eternal flame, and leading to the shrine building holding the tomb of the unknown soldier. It is all incredibly affecting, and at the close of each day when the last post is played it would be a hard heart indeed who didn't reflect on the heroism of the countless soldiers commemorated here and the glory and futility of war.

Surviving a Heat Wave in the Caravan

Like most of the rest of Australia, the weather in Canberra has been very hot this summer. In the three weeks we have been here, there have been only 6 days with a maximum under 30 degrees, and Christmas Day has been the only day with a maximum under 20. To cope with these temperatures in the van we need to be proactive with opening and closing windows, air vents and curtains, in order to maximise the breeze and minimise the sun. Although our site here has very little shade, the van is oriented basically east-west, which means at least we don't get much direct sun onto the windows. However, no matter how careful we are it isn't easy to keep the inside of the van cool, particularly on the days that have been in the high 30s.

The first time we turned the air-conditioner on after we first got the van it made a terrible racket.  Ever since we have tried to avoid using it whenever possible, for both our own comfort and that of others who are parked nearby. About 18 months ago, several years after we set off on our around Australia adventure, a neighbour remarked that it sounded like there was something loose in the airconditioner cowling. Sure enough, inspection revealed a missing screw, which explained the terrible rattling. Such a simple fix! We still avoid using the air conditioner when we can, as we much prefer natural ventilation, but at least we now have that option when the heat becomes unbearable, as has happened quite a few times in the past couple of weeks. At least being such a small area it cools down reasonably quickly, and once the outside air has cooled down to a reasonable temperature we can once again open all the windows and let the breezes through.

In contrast to the days here, most night in Canberra have been quite reasonable sleeping temperature, and we have slept under the doona for all except a few nights. However, there have been a couple of times when the night has been so warm as to make sleeping uncomfortable. Even with our quieter air conditioner we do not like to sleep with it on, so we have a tiny fan that years ago cost us $10 in Bunnings (the caravanner's friend) that clips on to a shelf above the bed. It's remarkably effective, the only drawback is that as the switch is on John's side of the bed if Wendy wakes up too cold and wants it switched off she either has to get up and walk around the bed or nudge John until he wakes up enough up to turn it off. Guess which option she usually selects?

Festive Season in the Australian Capital Territory

Christmas in Canberra has proved to be a quite different proposition from last year in Armidale. The weather has been fine and hot, which is just as well as we have been bowled over by the number of things to do here. As if all the things related to Canberra's status as the national capital aren't enough, the 'city in the bush' is within easy access of several national parks with lots of walking tracks and lookouts. We've made a list of the things we want to do in the ACT and it has quite a few more entries than we have days here, so it is going to be a very busy time!

Christmas Day itself was a very relaxing affair. We took advantage of being in a city to go out to one of the big-name hotels for a lovely buffet lunch, including lots of seafood as well as the classic roast meats and heaps of desserts. Luckily the local cab service was still running as the buffet also included Australian sparkling and table wine, it was no wonder that the hotel had tables over their entire foyer and not just the normal restaurant area.

We're way too busy to spend too much time celebrating the festive season. One of our first stops was the National Capital Exhibition, giving a fascinating history of the search for the site of a capital for the new nation after Federation in 1901, the international design competition for the city, and the subsequent slow progress in actual construction. In fact, 2013 is Canberra's centenary year, as the first foundation stone was laid in March 1913.

Another day was spent at the National Archives. We had expected to spend maybe an hour here, but ended up taking over 4 hours to check out the displays, and could be there still if we hadn't been kicked out at closing time! On display is only a tiny fraction of the millions of documents, photos, videos and data files stored at the archives, but each of them provides a fascinating glimpse into the nation's history. One of the files contained an extract of the documents generated when NASA asked if the prime minister wished to include a message to be deposited by the Apollo 11 astronauts on the moon: after a huge amount of backwards and forwards of suggestions, edits and alterations, the final message bore little resemblance to the wording that had been bandied around for most of the document trail.

The Parliament House building was opened in 1927, at which time the national parliament moved from Melbourne where it had been meeting since Federation. As the number of parliamentarians (and their staff members) grew, Parliament House had more and more trouble coping, until finally a brand new building was opened in 1988. We had intended 'doing' both the old and new Parliament Houses in the one day, but once again underestimated how much there was to see and ended up spending so much time in Old Parliament House that we still haven't got to the new one. The photos here show the House of Representatives, including the original Speaker's chair, a gift from Britain, and the Prime Minister's office, set up as it was when used by Bob Hawke, its last occupant. There were so many other things to see, including the Senate chamber, the tiny rabbit warren of the press gallery and countless displays about prime ministers, opposition leaders, speakers, parliamentary whips and almost anyone and anything else that had anything to do with parliament over the years. Even the outside of the building is steeped in history, we stood on the stairs where Gough Whitlam made his famous 'nothing will save the Governor-General' speech and could easily picture ourselves mobbed by reporters.

We've also managed to squeeze in the National Portrait Gallery (including the massive official portrait of the Queen in her diamond jubilee year) and a cruise around Lake Burley Griffin.

For a change of pace, the other day we headed out of the city to Namadgi National Park and did a 9km walk around old pastoral areas, complete with huts, bits of fencing and other farming remnants dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

One of the attractive things about Canberra from the tourist point of view is that everything we have done so far has been free, apart from the lake cruise and a nominal $2 entry fee into Old Parliament House. No wonder we want to cram as much into our visit here as possible!