In Canberra and Tuross with no internet access

We have had no internet access since we left Sydney and what we had there was less than satisfactory as we were allowed 20 minutes and it could take the guts of that to access emails and then we would be disconnected in the middle of writing an email. Jim got really angry but to no avail! Lois and Fred only have dial up in Canberra and no computer access in Tuross. Finally we have found the library in Moruya but have not brought the notepad or the memory stick so no photos (John, Conor and Kadi!) - we can certainly promise them when we get home, probably after Christmas!! Hopefully I will not have forgotten what our present favourite nephew taught me - thank you John for the great time we had. It was wonderful to have a guide and somebody to pinch food from.

We landed in Canberra on Tuesday where we were met by Lois and Fred and where we picked up a Hyundai Getz. Lois and Fred live in Wynter Place, Hughes - if that means anything to you John. we have been getting royal treatment here - the kind suitable to Kings! On Wednesday, Fred drove us to Mount Ainslie for a view of Canberra. We could see the River Molonglo and the lake created by damming the river, the War Memorial and the sweep of Anzac Parade up to Old Parliament Building and, behind it, New Parliament Building. In the background is the Brindabella Mountains. It is a very beautiful view and very impressive! We followed that with a trip to Canberra Art Gallery where we confined ourselves to the section of Aboriginal Art - absolutely fantastic! The entrance to the Gallery has been redesigned recently and a main feature in the entrance is 200 burial poles given by the Aboriginal people for the bicentenary of Canberra - it was unbelievably beautiful! It ia an Aboriginal Memorial, each pole representing the life of an Aborigine who had dies defending his land against the settlers and each one representing 1 year of colonisation. Unfortunately we weren'y able to take photos as it was not allowed - I can hear some people saying it would make no difference anyway but be patient! We also visited Old Parliament House and then the Library.

Thursday was also full of culture as we spent ages in the War Memorial. We also drove to Mount Stromlo Observatory, part of Australia's National University Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics. This was destroyed in the firestorm of 18th January 2003.

Friday we drove to Lois and Fred's holiday home in Tuross. This is an absolutely beautiful location with lots of lovely walks along the Pacific Ocean/Tasman Sea. We have a week here and hope the weather will be kind to us - some rumblings of thunder storms so I plan to avoid sudden movement that can result in limb breakage!

Lois and Fred have now returned to Canberra and have left us to our own devices. We will miss the laughs and fun we have had but plan to just enjoy the area and leave the culture to our visit to Melbourne where we will be next Sunday and Monday.