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Upon leaving Sydney, I traveled to Canberra, the
national capital. It is a city that is widely disliked by Aussies because they
say it is sterile and impersonal. It was designed by a man from Oak Park,
Illinois, named Walter Burley Griffin. He was a disciple of Frank Lloyd
Wright's. The artificial lake which is the center point of Canberra was named
after him. The city itself is a large, spaced out city, making it hard to do a
walking tour in, but I did it anyway, and after walking for 9 miles just to see
the sights, I can see why people discourage you from doing walking tours there.
Most cities have parks in them, this is a park with a city inside of it. I
visited on a Sunday and was surprised to find the city almost deserted. Even
Australia's Prime minister doesn't like living there, he commutes 4 hours drive
from Sydney. One side of the Lake contains the governmental buildings, including
the Old Parliament house, the national courts and the New Parliament house. The
New Parliament house is the home to most of the government. and it built into
the side of a hill. They have even landscaped the roof with grass, so you can
walk up on top and enjoy a view of Canberra from there. I found it quite
interesting to walk up on the main government building, but that's a very Aussie
thing. This side of the lake also is home to Embassies from around the world,
and they are all built in a style native to the country they represent. For
example the Thai embassy looks like a collection a pagodas, and the US embassy
is built in the style of an old Southern Mansion. This is a really nice touch.
On the other side of the lake is the business and residential areas, which were
quite abandoned on the weekend. My favorite part of Canberra was the long,
handsome boulevard called ANZAC parade. ANZAC stands for Australia and New
Zealand Army Corps, and the street is lined with monuments to the Australians
who have fought in the wars that they have participated in. The crowning
monument is the ANZAC monument at the end of the street at the base of Mount
Ainslie, dedicated to all the fighting forces of the two countries. |
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