Trifter

“Canberra: Australia’s Futuristic Wonder Capital,” is third in a series of articles on Australian Capital Cities from smallest in population to greatest. 

“BORING!”, “CLINICAL!” “DULL!” I hear people scream whenever Canberra, Australia’s Capital, comes up in conversation. This point of view is from people who have just breezed through that city. If they had stayed for a while in Canberra they would, in fact, find a very, very exciting place with lots of things to do.

Let Me Explain… 

Government and politics run Canberra. Most of the population are public servants therefor the whole reason for its’ existence is to run the nation. If brash free enterprise is your thing then perhaps a holiday in Dubai would suit you better. Visiting Canberra with an open mind is best because you won’t feel you have to leave. If you can, try and get to know locals, as they have all the tricks for an optimal visit.  The residents of Canberra are spoilt – two universities, stunning art and wondrous architecture - are theirs.  Spoil yourself, then, by being open-minded and tarrying a tad in Canberra.

Canberra City Centre  Image Credit

Why Canberra?

For anyone visiting Australia, the nation’s capital is important for several reasons. It holds the Nation’s main organs – the Parliament, the National Library and the Supreme Court. All these straddle a beautiful lake with a giant fountain that never stops spouting  And, if you love art, then the National gallery is there, filled with exceptional paintings and rare object d’art, and is seen as one of the finest galleries in the world. A pure, futuristic vision of the 21st Century calls you from Canberra. 

Here’s a secret. If you are planning a holiday Downunder then plan to start it in Canberra. The reason is because Canberra is well-resourced, central to both Melbourne and Sydney and just breathes!  It is an excellent start to any Australian experience being the only capital city that is truly Australian as it was built after the Federation of States in 1901. Canberra was born on January 1, 1911, so she is also one of the world’s youngest wonder-cities.

Image Credit

Where the Hell Is It? 

Canberra is a smooth four hour, 170 mile drive, South-West from Central Sydney along expressways that cut through amazing gorges and eucalyptus forests.  The experience of driving there is well worth it. If you leave Sydney in the morning you will be in Canberra for lunch. Canberra is just the right distance from Sydney making for a most enjoyable drive.  If you prefer the train, then the trip to Canberra from Sydney’s Central Station is just four hours, rolling through the most pretty countryside you will ever see. Travelling to Canberra by train from Sydney is highly recommended. Some also prefer going to Canberra by bus with an organised tour. Or alternatively, demand a free flight from Sydney to Canberra, when booking your Australian adventure, as travel agents are happy to oblige. However you choose to arrive in this futuristic city you will not be let down.

Lake Burley Griffin with the National Library in the Background Image Credit

Did You Realise?

1. Canberra is Australia’s largest inland city with 340 thousand
2. It takes ten minutes to drive from the city’s outskirts to its’ centre
3. Is highly sought as a posting for foreign diplomats
4. “Canberra,” means, “Meeting Place”; the area has been used as a gathering place for eons

Book Me A Trip! 

Canberra, or the Australian Capital Territory ( ACT ), is a great side-trip from Sydney.  It has the National Museum, the National Art Gallery and scores of art communities tucked away in its’ surrounds.  South of the city is a National Park filled with ancient rock art, mysterious etchings of the Ngunnawal people from this place. Everything in Canberra is in easy reach, as the Burley Griffins foresaw, in their futuristic vision for Australia’s National Capital.

Parklands of Canberra in Fall Image Credit

Is There Anything For Me To Do There? 

Besides the National monuments, Canberra boasts a Zoo, A Dino Museum and miles of cycleways.  If you want a unique and awesome vacation then bring your bicycle. Cycling Canberra is pure adventure - the cycleways of Canberra are a futuristic wonder of the world. 

If you loath fitness then lounge in Canberra’s many restaurants and travel to the vineyards around the city.  Canberra wines have been winning awards of late – so, if art and cycling aren’t your thing - then food and wines abound. Or, you may just prefer to drive and drive and…drive! Motoring enthusiasts will discover a wonderful Nirvana in Canberra’s endless space-age roads.

Something to do in Canberra; visit the National Museum of Australia Image Credit

The Curious Contemporary Case of the Canberra Kangaroo Cull 

A recent true story about Canberra’s Kangaroos in killer’s sights

In Belconnan, to the North of Canberra’s Civic Centre is a disused navy transmission station now surrounded by quiet suburban streets. It has been closed for years since a telco tower was built on Black Mountain for that purpose.  The Department of Defence regards this station as important, though, and has kept it fenced-off for several decades although it is no longer in use. Kangaroos hop fences and a few breeding pairs had managed, in 2005, to find their way into the ”secure,” station. This fenced area covers about fifty square kilometers. There is just enough disused land here for a family ( pod ) of Kangaroos to set up home and breed a happy family of little joeys ( baby Kangaroos ).

By Valentine’s Day 2008 the numbers of Kangaroos inside the old  radio station had increased. The station is just the right size and covered in sweet grass, perfect for breeding. By now there were way too many “Roos - they were fast becoming a nightmare. 

The authorities had to act. What were they to do with a pod of four hundred kangaroos right in the heart of leafy Canberra? The Government decided to cull ( shoot ) them. Local residents got wind of the Department”s dangerous plans for the kangaroos. Surely not a mass cull, not of wee bonny joeys!? 

Something had to be done.  The first solution – shoot them all.  After all, Canberra is home to “Roo hunters, it is no foreign sport around this city. Culling is legal – but these kangas were different – they were on display. A misfired shot could ricochet into the surrounding neighbourhood. The second solution? Tranquilize them. Haul the lot out of the city by truck.  This second solution was safe but costly.

A culler’s eye view of the problem Image Credit  

Meanwhile, Green activists from the suburbs blockaded the station.  At its’ entrance they set up camp erecting signs, “Don’t Shoot the Roos.”  The city burghers couldn’t cull them now! Canberra’s Suburban Greenies then went on a global march begging Sir Paul McCartney and Viva! Animal Rights Group, in the United Kingdom, to defend them. By April, 2008, it went global. The Defence Department was on the horns of a dilemma.  What could they do with so many “Roos attracting international boos?

Images flashed of a pod at the mercy of gubernatorial gunmen.  Environmentalists decried the cruelty. The demon-government was scolded. The Kangaroos simply stared blankly back at it all, through the lens of the TV, unfazed. But their cud-chewing days were numbered.

Finally, by June 2008, the Department of Defense took the costly but tranquil solution. A contract was tendered for the tranquilizing, transporting and euthanizing of the hoppers.  A team of vets swept the station with tranquilizer darts. All the sleepy Kangaroos and Joeys were then loaded into trucks and driven out of Canberra.  There graves awaited them and a final dose of euthanizing medicine administered to each “Roo.  They were then buried in an unmarked spot far from the prying media.  Now the radio station is clear of any kangaroos and Canberra’s Kangaroo case has closed quietly. 

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