For good reason there are very strict rules as to what development and what retail activity is permitted on the shoreline of Lake Burley Griffin. This has resulted in very little development and, in the main, a totally unspoilt shoreline. All good.
Continue reading “Dom’s Coffee Bar: “Coffee by the Lake – Southside””
Enlighten is one thing I look forward to every year in Canberra and while the same buildings are lit up every year, beautifully I might add, the event has grown to be much more than this over the many years it has now been taking place. Leaving aside the fact that I live in Canberra, I think Enlighten is streets ahead of the much newer equivalent event in Sydney, Vivid. Don’t get me wrong I love Sydney’s offering too, particularly the way the Opera House is lit up (see my Sydney Vivid review for more detail on that event) but the compactness of the Canberra show makes it a winner for me. Continue reading “Enlighten – 2016”
There are two ways to enjoy hot air balloons in Canberra – one – take a ride in one, and two – stand or sit and watch them.
Every year in March/April Canberra hosts a ‘balloon spectacular’ lasting a couple of weeks. Continue reading “Balloon Spectacular – 2016”
There are not many statues of Queen Elizabeth II around the world. If Wikipedia is to be believed (2015) – nine, and two of these are in Australia. One is in Brisbane and is rather unique in that it is the only statue in the world of the Queen holding a handbag. The other one is here in Parliament House or rather on a Terrace outside the main building (accessed from within the building). Continue reading “The Queen in Parliament – Well a Sort Of!”
The most notable document you will find in Parliament House is from a time when Australia was unknown to the rest of the world. It is one of four surviving originals of the 1297 Inspeximus issue of Magna Carta. The other surviving originals can be found in the National Archives, London, in the Guild Hall of the City of London and in the National Archives in Washington DC. Continue reading “See the Magna Carta in Parliament House”
The State of Victoria’s Aboriginal Protection Act 1869 included the earliest legislation authorising the removal of children from Aboriginal parents. Other states and territories soon followed suit.
These rather odd, by today’s standards, Acts were motivated by various things including a desire to protect children from neglect and abuse, a belief that Aboriginal people would die out given a significant decline in their numbers post contact with white people and the belief that full-blooded Aboriginal people resented miscegenation and the mixed-race children fathered and abandoned by white men. Continue reading “‘Sorry’ – A Parliamentary Apology”
When you enter the Great Hall at Parliament House your eyes will be immediately drawn, hopefully not in the “Oh my god, what’s that” sort of way, to the massive tapestry covering most of the back wall of the Hall. Continue reading “The Great Hall Tapestry – Parliament House”
For me this is one of the most architecturally interesting and satisfying buildings not only in Australia but in the world and is certainly a major contrast to the previous building – Old Parliament House – which was only ever intended to be a temporary home for the Australian Parliament, albeit a temporary home that lasted 61 years. It would be quite unfair to compare the two buildings. Continue reading “Parliament House – Canberra”
The Canberra Centenary Trail was launched in 2013, Canberra’s centenary year. In the main it linked pre-existing walks, paths, fire trails, etc though around 20-30kms of the trail is along new paths, mainly along the Northern section. Walk it all or any part of it, you won’t be disappointed. Continue reading “Walk around Canberra – Centenary Trail”
Annually, for the two weeks prior to Canberra Day in early March, the public buildings in the Parliamentary Triangle become canvases and turn into illuminated public artworks. The National Library, Questacon (Science Museum), the National Portrait Gallery, the National Art Gallery, Old Parliament House and Parliament House are all lit up via projected images in an event called Enlighten. Even the water feature on the avenue up to the High Court bust into flames in 2014. Continue reading “Canberra becomes Enlightened”
The Rambling Wombat 