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Australian War Memorial

To mark Remembrance Day we have a post about the Australian War Memorial [^]  in Canberra. The Memorial is a commemoration of the Australians who have died while at war and like the Auckland War Memorial Museum [^], is both a memorial and a museum. The AWM is dedicated to helping us understand the impact of war on Australian society, and to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

Australian War Memorial

This is one of the places that was on our must-do list for Canberra. I would recommend one of the guided tours if you are on a tight timetable – it ensures that you get a another view of the Memorial. Paul, our guide for about two hours was fantastic, and spent the time emphasising the very real personal cost borne by our soldiers and their families in past conflicts and today.

It is important for us to remember that the people in the armed forces serve their country. Regardless of our own thoughts about our nation’s military involvement, we need to remember that the service personnel are there doing the bidding of the government that we elected; their duty. Today is a time for Remembrance. A time to honour the sacrifices that have been made in the name of our country. The sacrifices made by the dead and the survivors, and the cost to their families.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning,

We will remember them.

Laurence Binyon’s “For the Fallen”

Unusual London Spots

The “Tired of London, Tired of Life [^]” Blog is all about the variety that can be found in London.  The title of the blog comes from Dr Samuel Johnson’s [^] “When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life…for there is in London all that life can afford.”

Open Tower Bridge

Any blog that can veer between the magnificent glass and ironwork of Paddington Station [^] to a knitting shop [^] in a few days does a good job of illustrating Dr Johnsons view. Sure not every place is going to be your cup of tea, but you may just find something interesting that you wouldn’t have known about or considered.

This one is going into my feedreader so that I can keep an eye open for new places to visit on our next trip to the UK.

Spring Has Sprung

Melbourne’s weather is doing what it does best; changes every five minutes. But there have been a few warm days now and a fair bit of rain, which is a relief given that we are in a 12-year long drought [^].

Strathbogie Lamb

This little lamb was only a few days old in April, and had been left to have a sleep my mum. This presented a wonderful opportunity to creep up and get a few close-ups.  Once used for photographic purposes a family reunion was swiftly organised.

Spring and lambs are two things that go hand in hand, even though here in Victoria lambing mostly happens in April and May (Autumn).

Huntsman – 8-Legged Nightmare?

They are Australian, brown, hairy, and live in trees, but you don’t find tourists queuing up for a cuddle. We uncovered this huntsman [^] under the bark of a dead tree while cleaning up fallen timber on the farm a few weeks ago.

CannibalRabbit goes eye-eye with a huntsman

I can see why some people would be afraid of a spider that can have a leg-span of up to 15cm. The good news is their bite rarely causes anything more than localised pain and swelling.

Whacked-Out Wallabies

The BBC has a story about wallabies causing crop circles [^] in Tasmania’s opium poppy fields. Apparently the wallabies get into the fields and sample the produce. Under the influence they then bounce around in circles until they crash – result, natural crop circles.

Tasmania Poppy Field - Scottsdale Jan 1998

Northern Tasmania is one of the few places in world that poppies are legally-grown, with Australia producing around half of the world’s total output. The highly regulated opium poppies are used in the commercial production of codeine and morphine [^].

The above photo is a poppy field waiting to be harvested, taken near Scottsdale [^] during the CannibalRabbits Tour of Tasmania in January 1998. Yes, there is just a a normal farm fence, about waist-high, separating the field from the road – and a scary “Keep Out” sign!