Australia in a nutshell (Apr. 24/09 - Bateman's Bay, Australia, mileage 170km)

As in most any national capital city, Canberra has a big museum that houses exhibits pertaining to virtually every aspect of the country's history, geography, and industry. We wanted to wander around for a few hours to learn more about the country we've been exploring for the last month, especially since we'll be leaving in a few days. The museum is located out on a peninsula on the lake, overlooking Capital Hill and the golden trees bordering the water. The main area we were interested in was about the Aboriginal peoples' history and how the human rights issues of the recent decades evolved and played out. The museum did a good job at portraying their race as they have lived for thousands of years before the arrival of the European settlers, right up to video footage of the government's apology to them several years ago (for separating families and causing widespread grief). Other interesting displays included colonization, early transportation, the mining industry, endemic wildlife, famous Australians' stories, native artwork, ceremonial costumes... the list goes on. It filled in a lot of the blanks we had been curious about and painted a well rounded picture of what Australia is all about.

Before making a run for the coast, we wanted to get ourselves to a high spot for a view down over Capital Hill and the geometrically laid out lines of Canberra. We ended up at Australia's War Memorial, and had a long view down Anzac Promenade to Parliament House and the hills beyond. It just so happens that tomorrow is Anzac Day, which is celebrated much like how Remembrance Day is at home. Seeing as this is the central war memorial in the nation's capital, it will obviously be the focus of big ceremonies taking place tomorrow morning. As a result, rows of bleachers and fencing were in place, security people were keeping a lookout, floral wreaths were being delivered in the back door, and tv cameras were already in place. There weren't too many people around, so it was actually a great time to visit. The grounds displayed a collection of tanks, guns, plaques, and commemorative statues relevant to many aspects of war, and inside the imposing granite building was a reflecting pool and walls covered with the names of those Australians who have died while serving their country. Much like the day we visited Westminster Abbey in London on Remembrance Day, it was moving to see all the poppies in place and to watch the people paying respects to their family members whose names were on the wall.

With only two days left with our van, we wanted to spend them at the coast, partially to get away from the frigid temperatures of the high country! So we ended up taking the same highway to Bateman's Bay that we came down a week ago, which puts us at a good spot to start back up the coast tomorrow. I don't think either of us could ever get tired of hearing the waves crashing ashore as you fall asleep...