TheRamblingWombat Canberra

Remembering Workplace Losses

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Without in anyway wanting to take from the reason for this memorial, it is, for me, one of the least aesthetically pleasing of Canberra’s many memorials. While it is a very smart and inspired design to appreciate it fully one would really need to see it from above. Additionally, its location (deliberate though it is), tucked away from the lakeside and close to the busy Morshead Drive means that you are unlikely to stumble across it walking around the lake. It took me, a very frequent visitor to the area, over three years to happen upon it. Continue reading “Remembering Workplace Losses” →

TheRamblingWombat Canberra

Boxing Day Tragedy

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On 26 December, 2004 (Boxing Day) a 9.1 magnitude earthquake off the tip of Indonesia’s Aceh province unleashed a most extraordinary and devastating tsunami which soon hit the beaches of 14 countries around the Indian Ocean on its westerly path. Fortuitously the tsunami, one of the most horrific natural disasters in recorded history, did not hit Australia – one of the closest land masses to the earthquake’s epicentre. Continue reading “Boxing Day Tragedy” →

TheRamblingWombat Canberra

HMAS Canberra Memorial – Sunk in Service

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This memorial, located about 50m from the National Carillon and easily recognised as you walk along the northern shore of the central basin of Lake Burley Griffin is a five tonne anchor and chain of the type typically carried by a naval cruiser like the HMAS Canberra which it commemorates. The base of the memorial is in the shape of a ship. Continue reading “HMAS Canberra Memorial – Sunk in Service” →

TheRamblingWombat Canberra

Blundells Cottage – Step Back To The 1860s

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This cottage, now located in Commonwealth Park, was constructed as a home for Duntroon Estate workers in the 1860s and as such predates Canberra’s selection as the National Capital. It has been home to three families – the Ginns, Blundells and the Oldfields. The Blundell family, after which it is named, occupied it for 60 years (1874-1933). Continue reading “Blundells Cottage – Step Back To The 1860s” →

TheRamblingWombat Canberra

Reflections on the Lake

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On a nice calm day, of which we have many in Canberra, with the right cloud conditions you can see some wonderful reflections on Lake Burley Griffin as you walk along the northern shoreline of the central basin, as I did last weekend. While I am far from a skilled photographer and use a relatively simple point and click camera I hope the photos attached create a favourable impression. Continue reading “Reflections on the Lake” →

TheRamblingWombat Canberra

Sir Robert Menzies Goes For a Walk

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The Australian Capital Territory Government has, of late, taken the view that the citizenry of Canberra needs more art and culture. This has, to a large degree, manifested itself in a plethora of new statutory most of which is lacking in any sort of taste, art or culture or whatsoever. The shot-gun approach however does mean that a least a few of the new statues will hit the mark. The subject of this review, Sir Robert Menzies’ statue, is one of those which certainly hits the mark for me. Continue reading “Sir Robert Menzies Goes For a Walk” →