The time has come,' the Walrus said, 'To talk of many things'

I decided that I was not going to spend the Australia Day long weekend on the couch or in front of the computer.

I had not been to Canberra for many years, so decided I would head down there, catch up with some friends and do some touristy stuff.

My intention was to leave at sparrow fart on Saturday morning… I left at 10am… typical me!

I doof doofed all the way to Canberra and went directly to the Mint. Unfortunately the mint is half way through a 2 year refurbishment process, so there was not alot to see, however it was still interesting and I picked up a few trinkets to go with my coin collection. I look forward to going back when the refurbishment has been completed.

Coins purchased at the Royal Australian Mint

From the Mint I took myself the 50 odd km’s to the Deep Space Complex at Tidbinbilla. They have a nice cafe there, so I did partake in lasagne & chips with a milkshake. If you’re into space type stuff, (which I am), you’ll find this place very interesting. There is a full size replica of the Mars Rovers (they are MUCH bigger that I thought), a piece of moon rock and numerous other bits and pieces to do with space and space travel. Very interesting, very informative. I really enjoyed it. Was worth the drive.

It was then time to head to my friends place at Murrenbateman. Det & Hemmi where kind enough to offer me a meal & room for the night, for which I am very grateful.

We chatted for hours, looked at pics of our holidays to Tassie, watched a movie and just generally caught up. I had not seem them for a while… I enjoyed there company very much.

Next morning I said my goodbyes to Det & Hemmi and made my way back to Canberra. First stop was Black Mountain Tower. It’s only $7.50 to get to the top, which I though was a very reasonable price. The view is great from up there, I especially liked the outdoor viewing area. However the facilities leave alot to be desired. The so called cafe was not so good. The range of food was dreadful and over priced. Everything was pre-made, but it was lunch time, I was Hungary, so I had to eat. The only main dish was a pasta and lamb thing in a spicy sauce. I reckon it was left overs from the ala cart restaurant up stairs. It was in the fridge in chinese take away containers and they just heated it up in the microwave… and charge you $14.00. Tasted ok, but nothing to write home about.

Black Mountain Tower, Canberra.

View of Canberra from Black Mountain Tower

From Black Mountain I headed across to Mount Ainslie, for the view over the War Memorial to the Parliament. I would have liked to shake the hand of Walter Burley Griffin… superb work. If you ever have the opportunity, read up on how Canberra came to be… it is a fascinating story.

View from Mount Ainslie.

I had about an hour to kill before going to the Australia Day Concert on the lawns of Parliament House, so I went for a drive, dont really know where I went, but I know I ended up at a shopping centre in Canberra city, where I got some supplies for the evening at the concert.

…to be continued