We began our day with a short bus trip to Mount Ainslie. The weather here was clear, but a bit chilly. We were able to overlook the coolness in the air due to the breath-taking view of Canberra. Mount Ainslie gives you the perfect view of the entire city of Canberra.
While atop Mount Ainslie, we learned about The Griffin Plan. This was a plan created by Walter Burley Griffin, an American who grew up in Chicago, that actually won the international competition of setting up the city of Canberra. Canberra is set up in a triangular manor, allowing one point for commerce and business, another point for the residential area, and the final point for parliament and other government buildings.
After spending some time on Mount Ainslie, we rode in the coach over to the Australian Parliament House. A nice Australian man named Michael gave us a tour of the premises. He was full of interesting facts about the Australian government. A few of the facts I found most interesting were the information about the emblem of the Australian Parliament (shown below); it features a kangaroo and an emu. This is because not only are these animals native to Australia, they also cannot walk backward; this is just like the Australian government, always progressing and never retreating.
One interesting fact concerning the creation of the Parliament House is the Aboriginal painting in the front of the building. It is a dot painting of a circle, which represents a watering hole or meeting place. This makes sense because the Parliament House is a meeting place for government officials. Also the beautiful marble in the foyer came from Italy, the black stone came from Belgium, and the rose marble came from Portugal. In addition, this building was built between 1980-1988 and it is meant to last for 200 years. In addition, this magnificent structure cost $1.1 billion.
During our tour we had the opportunity to actually sit in the House of Representatives and Senate to see what it looked like. We also learned a little bit about the Australian system of government. This includes a House of Representatives and Senate just like the United States, with representatives elected by population and senators elected in equal representation numbers (six senators per state, two senators per territory). Something that is a little different for the United States' voting system is that in Australia, voting is compulsory. Citizens that do not vote must pay a fee as a penalty. Also Australia is governed by the governor-general, unlike the president in the United States.
From the Parliament House, we went to the National Gallery. Here we were shown several different pieces of Aboriginal art. We were able to see the different styles that Aboriginals used and some of their most famous pieces. One piece that our tour guide stressed a lot and that I also enjoyed seeing was what liked like a forest of poles. These poles were actually used in Aboriginal burial ceremonies. The bones of a passed loved one are placed in the hollowed out pole and placed in a sort of cemetery. One aspect that was really stressed about the Aboriginal art was the identity that it gave to the people. This art was not only a way of expressing themselves, but also a way to share their dreaming stories and legends between generations.
After the National Gallery, we headed to the U.S. Embassy. Here we were able to speak with two men, one who deals with the policies and laws of Australia and another who deals with the culture of Australia. These men were able to enlighten us and share some details about their duties and responsibilities. After this briefing, we were given a short tour of the grounds. A few fascinating facts that I learned were that the U.S. Embassy covers nine acres, Eleanor Roosevelt started the tradition of planting trees, and Jackie Chan spent the night at the Ambassador's house.
Finally, we needed our day with a tour of the Australian War Museum. While here Lauren, our guide, shed a lot of light about the Australians' involvement in World War I and II. It was interesting to hear this because I never really learned just how involved the Australians were. The war museum had several different exhibits that were about several different topics dealing with war. Despite the various pieces available, I think my favorite was the John Simpson piece. Simpson was a British soldier that was a member of the Australian armed services. He was sent to war in Turkey. Wishing he was on his way to England, he planned on jumping ship. He ended up making it to Turkey, but dying only three weeks after his arrival. The controversy surrounding this exhibit comes from the fact that Simpson has many supporters stating that he should be awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest honor of courage and bravery awarded to service members. He has not yet received the honor, but there are still many individuals that believe that he is deserving and are pushing forward to help him earn that prestigious honor.
Overall we had a very busy day, so picking out something that I noticed today that nobody else did seemed a little easier. Today, I noticed that the "Caution: Wet Floor" signs in the U.S. Embassy security/check-in building were neon pink rather than the traditional bold yellow. Also the new word that I learned today is peak hour. This simply means rush hour, and I learned it from our coach driver Wayne.
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