Day Twenty - Jugiong to Canberra

As we had arrived just on dark yesterday, we spent a little time this morning exploring the park we had camped behind. The girls played on the playground then we wandered over to look at a windmill placed as a memorial, before walking over an arched bridge to an old traction engine.

 Across the road was a little fruit and vegie shop so we picked up an assortment of fruit to have after dinner tonight. 

Our destination today was Canberra and we arrived just before lunchtime. On entering Canberra we spotted the National Dinosaur Museum and made a stop there. The front garden area was filled with dinosaurs so wandered through before going inside. After viewing the displays in the foyer, we decided that we had been spoiled during our previous dinosaur experiences and this one would be a little disappointing in comparison. The decision was made to just look at the displays in the shop area which was quite extensive. 

From there we headed straight to the campground to secure a spot and offload the van to make navigation through city streets easier. We are camped at Cotter Campground on the banks of the Murrumbidgee... again. We can't seem to stay away from this river! It is out of town about 15-20 minutes, a little past the Stromlo Observatory. Once again, we have a beautiful view from our van. Sadly, we can only stay tonight as our time away is quickly running out. 

Parliament House was our main attraction this afternoon. We walked up from Old Parliament House and the kids were most impressed with the view. Emily was excited to see the model she made for her Government project last year come alive in front of her. 

We had, by chance, arrived 15 minutes before the final guided tour of the day, which we joined. It was fortunate, as we were given access to parts of the House of Representatives and the Senate that were not open to the public. Our guide was very informative and the hour long tour went quickly. Unfortunately, we couldn't go in to the Great Hall as they were preparing for the royal visit tomorrow ( we weren't even aware they were heading this way). One door was open so we managed to sneak a peek at the massive tapestry from afar. After the tour, we caught the lift up to the roof to get the full effect of the view through to the Australian War Memorial. A truly beautiful part of the city. 

Sarah had a roll down the grassy slope and we all stood considering the size of the flagpole and flag. According to our guide, the flag is almost the same size as our house!

We left Parliament House just before it closed and found our way to the War Memorial. We knew we were too late in the day to go through but managed to explore the outside and look through the closed gates. The view back to Parliament House was popular for photos. 

The War Memorial forecourt had been set up with hundreds of chairs. We assume it was either for the Royal visit tomorrow or ANZAC day or both. We're hoping to visit a couple more places tomorrow morning before heading North for our home run. Fingers are crossed we don't have too much disruption from William and Kate's visit.