canberra

Canberra, ACT
as seen from Mt. Ainslie
Sunday December 19, 1999

The Carillon was a gift from England on Canberra' s 50th anniversary. It sets on Aspen Island and has recitals programmed during the day. The bells were playing part of the time I was there and I managed to record them with my minicam. Now I can relive that part of my trip over and over sound for sound. It seemed fitting so close to Christmas to enjoy a 53 bell recital.

This is the old and new parliment houses. From this advantage of the Mt.Ainslie exposure I could see and appreciate the architectural design that blended the new building into the hill as the roof is grassed over to preserve the shape of the original hill. Again it seemed to be a pattern of not disturbing the settings that were there all along but to make the best of them to enhance what you are adding. The cleanliness of the city and the well groomed lawns were also appreciated from this view. I'm glad they decided to locate the capital territory in NSW this way I was able to make it a part of my Australian holiday. It was so green and well planned in design., once I actually started to understand the round about things it started getting easier. I was just happy I wasn't driving.

The Captain Cook Memorial Water Jet was extremely visable even from a distance as it spurts it's column of water into the air.It was built in 1970 to commemorate the bicentenary of Captain Cooks visit to Australia. Later in the day the wind had picked and was blowing the water over the bridge *s* The spray of water looked like an ocean spray whipping over the top of our car. It was great. : )

In this over view you can see how the Parliment buildings line up with the Anzac Parade and the Australian War Memorial which has the domed roof at the bottom. Anzac Parade while not really a part of the Memorial but naturally relate to and compliment the commemorative spirit. The memorials on both sides of the parade represent various service groups or campaigns. Many of the battles that were hard fought I had never been educated on until now. Brian was more than happy to enlighten me as military history is within his areas of interest. I don't think I have ever tried to learn so much in so little time as I did during this visit.*s* I watched videos before arriving in preparation for understanding... but it only showed me how much I still had to learn.

Hall of Memory

The Hall of Memory houses many things, not all tangible. Brian had tried to explain it to me before I had arrived in Australia but it was something that I needed to see firsthand before I could begin to understand. Remembrance... the definintion of Australia so much so that they have it as their colour.. green for Rosemary..."There's Rosemary, that's for remembrance..." Ophelia, in Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act V, Scene 5. .. gold is for the Golden Wattle which is their national floral emblem. While Waltzing Matilda is not the national anthem it is one of the most patriotic songs. The Australian War Memorial is like a physical expression of the idea shared by all the Australians which is that those who have died in a war should be remembered. Australians and others can come here and reflect on the death and suffering and try to understand how wars have occurred and then how they affected those involved with them. The museum that is under the memorial has every war depicted, the battles in pictures and reproductions... actual relics of war, from uniforms and weapons to personal keepsakes, that explain to their loved ones what they were enduring and why. The Pool of Reflection in front and the Eternal Flame... a visual place to take a moment of silent gratitude for your fallen heroes.

Along the sides of the Pool of Reflection in the picture above you can see the cloisters that house the Roll of Honour. In the picture to the left is role call for those that lost their lives in overseas war, they are listed without rank or decoration , I think that is what is so unique as I have seen many memorials this is the only one to name all the dead... not just a portion from one war or conflict but all. Walking thru the cloister I heard one man in a hushed voice reply to the wall... "I would gladly trade places with any one of you blokes. " That is the kind of respect that I haven't seen at other memorials in other countries and that is what I think Brian had tried to explain to me. It's the way they feel and remember things. The tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier is housed within the Hall of Memory. The soldier is one of 46,000 who perished on the western front between 1916 and 1918. The unidentified remains are symbolic now as one among 102,000 who have died in war. I didn't photograph the actual grave in the centre of the memorial as it seemed to me while it is a public monument it was a private one as well. The words that the Memorials founder Charles Bean are well spoken when he stated " Here is their spirit, in the heart of the land they loved; and here we guard the record which they themselves made."