Places to Visit in Canberra

Canberra, which is located southwest of Sydney, is actually the capital of Australia.  It's not as famous as Sydney or Melbourne, and most tourist packages don't include Canberra as a destination.  When we were looking for a place to visit outside of Sydney, my nephew was really against going there, indicating there was nothing much to do and that it was so small.  Apparently, he'd been there numerous times already as that's where they always took their visitors to.  However, since there was nowhere else to go to, we decided to go ahead with the trip.  Sorry, nephew!

It was a three-hour ride from Sydney to Canberra.  Although it was a foggy autumn day, the ride itself was interesting.  The scenery was so nice with all the trees showing off their autumn colors.

Too bad,  I couldn't get any decent photos because the car was moving so fast, and this was the best I could do.

We stopped over at Grandma's at the Farm inside Fedra Olive Grove for some delicious pies

and to see their olive tree farm.

The owner's dog provided the entertainment by playing catch with us.  He was so good at it!

Finally, we reached our destination, Canberra Carotel Motel, which was really nice and clean,

and there were plenty of these birds called Galah outside our accommodation.  They were really noisy in the early morning, but the sound wasn't annoying.

The next day, the first place we visited was the Australian War Memorial.  It has an extensive archive of Australia's participation in World War I and II, and the memorial was built to commemorate the Australians who died in war.

There are several tanks like this outside the building.

This is the first thing you'll see once you get inside.  All the names of the countries which were involved in the war are listed on the walls.

My son especially loved the aircraft collection, which was very well-maintained.

In this art gallery, visitors bought red flowers to honor the soldiers who died in battle.

Next stop was the Parliament House.  There was nothing much to do or see at the Parliament House, but a visit to Canberra wouldn't have been complete without it.  It is where the members of the Parliament of Australia meet to pass legislation.

The top floor offers a nice view

and an opportunity to take a photo with this big flagpole structure.

The Great Hall is, as the name says, just a huge hall for holding special functions.

The green chamber is where the House of Representatives convene, and the red one is for the Senate.

 

Aside from an art gallery of portraits and photographs of famous people who've visited the Parliament House, that's just about it for this tourist attraction.  Still worth a visit for a first-timer like me.

Third stop was the Australian Botanic Gardens.  It was opened by the Prince and Princess of Wales in 1985; that would be Prince Charles and Princess Diana.

We went to the Visitor Centre for information regarding free guided tours and for some souvenir items like banksia scent pods, handmade soap, and books.  After following the guide for a tour, we decided to walk around the garden on our own and left the group since the guide was taking his time explaining about each and every plant and our time was simply limited.

On we walked to the Rock Garden, the nearest area to the Visitor Centre,

where we saw these Australian wildflowers called banksia, which looked like corn and were so pretty!

You can guess the name of this tree by its shape - the bottle tree!

There was a rain forest gully which we didn't get to go to because it rained, and our walk was cut short.  We had to seek shelter back at the Visitor Centre.  Guess this wasn't really the day to visit the garden.  So my tip to you is check the weather before going.

As a consolation to my nephew who didn't want to go to Canberra at all, plus my son would love it too, we let them have a spin at Power Kart Raceway.  The frown on their faces was instantly wiped away!  

This is the price list for juniors and adults.  Junior is for ages 6 to 12 with a minimum height requirement of 124 cm.  Since it was their first time to go there, we had to get the starter pack for $35 (adult).  It costs $30 for juniors.

There's also a track for the little ones from 4 to 7 years of age which costs $8 for five minutes of driving time.

Here's part of the race track

and the karts.

They would do an orientation first regarding safety measures and procedures before they would let people in the driving area.  There's a variety of helmets with different sizes to choose from.  Remember, if you have eyeglasses on, remove them first.  My son broke his when he tried to put the helmet on with his eyeglasses (yes, he's just a kid).  If you can't see without eyeglasses, better wear contact lenses.

The race is good for 14 laps, and it automatically stops when the person in first place finishes all 14 laps.  It probably ran for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Compared to other raceways, this one is affordable and worthwhile.  The kids had a great time, and the adults had fun watching them too!

And this is it for our Canberra overnight trip.  I would definitely go back again if given the opportunity..

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