this year.

With my time in Australia quickly coming to an end it seemed that I should tick a few more ‘to do’s’ off the list. With that in mind 4 of us hired a car and set out for a day in Canberra. Canberra is less than 3h Southwest from Wollongong, so leaving a little short of 9am got us to Canberra just shy of noon. Had we taken the faster route to the expressway we may have shaved a few minutes off. The interesting thing is how close Canberra could be if not for the escarpment one has to traverse to get to the Hume highway. It takes the better part of an hour and a half to reach the Hume from Wollongong thanks to winding roads and a precarious trip up the Macquarie Pass, a really fun road that winds up the escarpment. I am still in shock when I see transport trucks making their way up an down this pass as some of the corners are literal switch-backs and they need to make 20 point turns.

It has been overcast and raining here for the past 2 weeks, with everyday providing a forecast of ‘chance of rain’, however we managed to find a day where the clouds were kept at bay in Canberra. The blue sky was out and it was nice. Canberra, which is aboriginal for ‘Meeting Place’ is a planned city and home to the Australian Government in a geographic compromise between Sydney and Melbourne. It was designed by Walter Burley Griffin who’s design was selected in an international contest. It is a peculiar feeling city which can probably be chalked up to the fact that it was forced into creation. People live there because it’s a city instead of the other way around. My traveling companions said it felt like it was built with Sim City.

Our first stop was Parliament House on/in Capitol Hill. A new building having only been completed in 1988, Parliament House is a testament ot the Australian spirit. An expansive and highly accessible building, it is built into the hill instead of on it because they did not want the imagery to be government above the people. Housed within are the House of Representative, the Senate as well as the Great Hall and numerous offices and meeting rooms. The House of Representatives and the Senate look pretty much like what you’d see in Ottawa, though they have their own colour scheme and modified protocols, though they are based on the Westminster system.

After Parliament House we stopped for a bite to eat downtown at Mooseheads, a pretty solid pub and affordable food. I had a giant burger for $10. With stomachs full we headed over the the National Museum of Australia, an amazing building with interactive and eye catching exhibits. This is how museums should be now a day to entice customers. The museum tells the story of Australia and it’s many different people. As the city shuts down at 5pm we did not have time to visit any of the other sights, with the other main attraction in Canberra being the world class Australian War Memorial.

A solid day and a solid trip. Petrol for the day came out to $60, which was almost a full tank in the Camry We hired.

I made a nacho dip during my last week of prac for the staff room to say thanks for everything. We had some good eats that day. There is a potluck tonight and I thought I’d pull it out again, but I wanted to check with the master on my design parameters. He set me straight with this informative diagram.

You’d be hard pressed to find a more beautiful barrel than this.

An interesting Google Map that shows current news on the oil spill in San Fransisco Harbour. It’s creations like this map that make news events much more accessible and interesting.

View Larger Map

I had the opportunity to see Xavier Rudd one last time while in Australia, and this time it was a 10min walk from my house at the Regent Theatre. As mentioned previously you can see Xavier for $25 in Toronto, but end up paying $50 in Australia, but there is something about seeing an artist in their home country with their home fans. The energy is electric.

Canadian boy Jeremy Fisher was the opener and he threw down a solid set as a one man band. The audience gave him a warm welcome and a number of people showed up early for the set. The Regent Theatre is assigned seats, and there is a 10m gap between the front row and the stage. I ended up with 3rd row seats. Xavier took the stage about 9pm and about 14 seconds into the set people started making there way up to the 10m gap to dance and groove. Not one to be left straining for a good view I also bolted up to the section and was essentially on the stage. The security staff tried to get us to sit down, but no one was having it and they gave up promptly. Xavier rocked us for a sold 2.5h and everyone was grateful. There was only two losers at the show: one who yelled out an uncalled for remark aimed at Xavier which got him promptly booed and removed from the venue, and a second fellow who insisted on climbing onto the stage and fighting with the security staff when they tried to remove him.

Xavier never ceases to impress with his musical jam interludes and heartfelt songs. He sings for the rights of all people, with a strong emphasis on the Aboriginal community of Australia. He ended the night with Bob Marley’s Redemption Song sung with slightly modified lyrics to highlight the recent injustices in the Northern Territory and the continuing struggle with reconciliation.