A Canberra Caress

I just came back from a trip down under. I was in Canberra for the first few days, then went on to Sydney for the remaining days. I remember being in Canberra long time ago the first time I went to Australia way back in 1989. My uncle and aunt brought us and his family for a day trip to Canberra and I remember seeing the Parliament House and some other places which I have no impression now.

 

This trip to Canberra is taken when I am now an adult, so there are more places I am able to plan on my own. So my first (second actually) day in Canberra, I went to a farm on the outskirts of the Capital Territories near towards the New South Wales border, then went on to a miniature garden village and a historical village. The next day would be the day where I got to explore Canberra more thoroughly, and we even went to some small towns of New South Wales!

 

One thing about Canberra is that the best attractions are free and around the same area, like the Parliament House, War Memorial, National Library, Film and Sound Archive, etc. These attractions are situated on both sides of Lake Burley Griffin, and all within walking distance, or just a few bus stops away. But because we had a car, we were able to drive up to Mount Ainslie for a paranomic view of how Walter Burley Griffin planned the whole area. The night view up Mount Ainslie was spectacular indeed!

 

First, we dropped by Australian National University, then stopped at a burger place that serves gigantic burgers for lunch at the Canberra Glassworks.

 Part of the Australian National University

 

 Canberra Glassworks

After lunch, we started driving. Initially we wanted to drive somewhere but got lost and ended up in a nature reserve somewhere. So we turned back and started exploring Canberra Airport because Canberra did not have an airport until recently.

 Statue outside Canberra Airport

 

 

Since there was still time, we then went to a town on the border of ACT and New South Wales called Quenbeyan. Quenbeyan is interesting enough due to the little village houses, a lake with swans and a bridge, and a modern shopping mall.

 



 Swans swimming in the lake at Quenbeyan

 The bridge at Quenbeyan lake

 Riverside Mall at Quenbeyan

 

One of the old buildings at Quenbeyan

 

After concluding our walk around the Riverside Mall of Quenbeyan, we went back to Canberra to see the new Parliament House, War Memorial, Lake Burley Griffin, and finished off the day with a trip up Mount Ainslie to see the view of Canberra and night view.

 



 A statue outside one of the buildings in Canberra

 

 The poles outside the Parliament House

 

 The new Parliament House

 

 View of the Old Parliament House with the War Memorial in the background

 

 International flag display at Commonwealth Park

 

 Lake Burley Griffin with Mount Ainslie in the background

 

 With the National Carillon in the background

 The National Museum at the other side of the lake

 

 The bridge separating the two sides

 

 The waterfront side

 

 The National Carillon on Aspen Island

 

 Blundells Cottage, the oldest cottage in the ACT

 

 Telstra Tower on Black Mountain in the background

 

 Driving along the bridge that separates the two sides

 

 The Australian War Memorial

 

 From a straight line, view of the two Parliament Houses from the War Memorial

 

 View of Canberra from Mount Ainslie

 

 Can even see wild kangaroos on Mount Ainslie

 

I would say Canberra is a nice place to go to if you are for peace and quiet, because there is really nothing much there and most places close by five in the evening. But one thing good is that there are not that many distractions, hence a quiet place to study. If you are the kind who prefers a more hip place, then I would suggest Sydney as there are more places to see and it is a nicer place to live in. But that is just my personal preference. It really depends on what one likes and prefers.