Many service centres along the Hume Highway on the drive from Canberra to Melbourne provide a vast array of fast-food options. But small towns and villages off the highway have much to offer travellers, including the chance to stretch their legs and take in local attractions and learn a little more of an area’s history. … Read more.
Category: Contemporary Canberra Page 4 of 6
Life in Canberra
Canberra Friends of Dili (CFD) recently farewelled the retiring Ambassador to Australia, Abel Guterres, at the Timor Leste Embassy in Deakin. For many years, Abel and his wife, Ana, have worked tirelessly to assist people in Timor Leste, and with their support, Canberra Friends of Dili have held regular fund-raising events, including that to establish and provide ongoing assistance to the Permatil School Garden in Bidau-Masau. … Read more.
Speaking recently with ANU historian, Christine Wallace, one of the founders of the Women’s Electoral Lobby (WEL) in Australia, Iola Mathews, shared her experiences of the heady days of second-wave feminism which saw immense changes at home and work for Australian women. A one-time journalist with The Age, in 1984 Iola was recruited by then Australian Council of Trade Unions’ (ACTU) President, Bill Kelty, to help bring women’s issues into the mainstream under the Prices and Incomes Accord between the ACTU and the newly-elected Hawke-Keating government. … Read more.
The recent Design Canberra Festival (designcanberrafestival.com.au/events/), saw renowned Australian and internationally-renowned architect, John Andrews AO, discuss many aspects of modern architecture with author-comedian, Tim Ross (from the ABC’s award-winning Streets of Your Town series). After completing a Masters in the 1950s at Harvard University, John designed various acclaimed buildings across North America, such as the CN Tower, Scarborough College at Toronto University and Gund Hall at Harvard. … Read more.
Canberra is renowned for its laid-back and country-like lifestyle which also has the sophistication of quality hotels and restaurants, as well as excellent learning centres, schools and tertiary institutions, and national institutions including Parliament House and the National Gallery of Australia. Among Canberra’s sought-after suburbs are those in Weston Creek. Established in 1968 and named after Captain Edward Weston from Sydney’s Hyde Park Convict Barracks, this precinct is often dubbed by residents as ‘a well-kept secret’, with well-priced housing, in a compact setting of undulating hills and wide-open green spaces. … Read more.
In his memoir, A Very Great City One Day, well-known Canberra architect, Roger Pegrum, intersperses stories of his family background and personal, academic and professional life, tracing times from his arrival in Canberra as a 10-year-old with his twin brother, Tony (who also became an architect). The family settled into the new Canberra suburb of Narrabundah. … Read more.
Fish is a speciality of Weston Creek’s BYO Croatian restaurant, Maestral. And with exquisitely-prepared food, generous servings, friendly staff and low corkage charges, it’s not surprising that it attracts diners from interstate as well as the ACT. Set among a coterie of eateries overlooking Trenerry Square carpark, Maestral’s extensive menu includes fish stew/soup, seafood platters, reef and beef steak (with prawns), scallops, lemon sole, cod, sardines, along with various accompaniments. … Read more.
Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) Secretary, Sally McManus’s book, On Fairness, was launched in Canberra by welfare advocate, Dr John Falzon, and Sally outlined the work and achievements of the ACTU and union movement, and acknowledged earlier generations of Australians in securing the employment and social programs enjoyed today. … Read more.
Distinguished Canberra journalist, Paul Bongiorno, recently presented his views on democracy in Australia in a lecture entitled, Mediating democracy: journalism in the post truth age. This was part of the Forum Series: Whither Democracy, chaired by Emeritus Professor, John Warhurst AO, at Christians for an Ethical Society, Barton (www.ces.org.au). … Read more.
Located 80 km north west of Canberra, Wee Jasper (pop 100) boasts a variety of attractions, including camping and recreational reserves – perfect of course for adventurers and outdoor people wanting to explore nearby caves such as Careys Caves (which has seven chambers of crystal formation) – www.weejaspercaves.com/. Set among a mix of broad acre and grazing properties, Wee Jasper’s other attractions include heritage-listed sites such as the Wee Jasper Bridge over the Goodradigbee River. … Read more.