Where in Canberra am I?

Since I have been sick at home with the flu I have been unable to go out on any new suburban adventure. I am hoping to go exploring again on Sunday.

But in the meantime, I have been looking through the 1000+ photos that I have already taken across Canberra, and thought I might put up a few extra photos that didn't make it to blog-world.

If you can tell me where I took the photo you get a prize! Well not really but I will be suitably impressed :)
Hint: you should all be able to get at least one right :p

Suburb # 24 Cook

There has been so much going on lately that it has been difficult to find time for some suburban adventures, but I managed to fit in a short trip to Cook on the weekend. This turned out to be much more of an adventure than I expected - with lots of surprising aspects to this suburb.

It is the first suburb that I have visited that is named after two people - so I suppose it had to be good!
First of all, it is named after Captain James Cook who a few of you might know of :p. But it is also named after Sir Joseph Cook, the sixth Prime Minister of Australia (for only 15 months). Sir Cook gets points for calling a double dissolution election rather than just threatening to, and being a member of an unusual number of political parties...but not for defending the White Australia Policy when representing Australia at the Paris Peace Conference after the war. The streets in Cook are named after notable women from Australian history.

There turned out to be so many things to take photos of in Cook that I have found it very difficult to choose which ones to upload....I must admit I was quite surprised. I am normally somewhat  prejudiced about Belconnnen (as I have to work here), but I could even see myself living here sometime when I get stick of the hipsters in Braddon :p

Unlike some of the newer suburbs in Belconnen, there is definitely a sense of history in Cook. Particularly interesting was a series of heritage cottages on the 'Hillview' property at the back of Cook. This includes 'Rosebud Cottage' - a heritage property from the 1860s, which I have since discovered you can actually stay in as a B&B.

There is also a sun dial hidden away in a back street that tells pretty good time!

There are also newer flashes of colour to experience...

As well as many gorgeous views - even all the way to Woden!...and some unexpected natural beauty.

But also still some classic Canberra views...

And some unexpected surprises....at one point a family also drove past me on their tractor! Its definitely 'the bush capital' at Cook, particularly up the back of the suburb near Mt Painter or near the horse paddocks.

Plus I can't resist including this photo of a nice old man who decided he wanted to pose for one of my photos :) I have certainly met some interesting folk as part of this project!

Suburb # 23 Acton

Well what can I say Acton? you let me down. I love you but you are the only suburb so far to not have a street sign. Are you too cool to conform? Bad form....

But yeah so we visited Acton on a very lovely Sunday afternoon last week. For non-Canberrites, this is basically a suburb right next to civic on the lake. It is perhaps less of a suburb and more the campus of the ANU - but the National Film and Sound Archive, the CSIRO, the National Museum and some beautiful parks are located here. Oddly though New Action is not here...

The suburb is named after one of the original homesteads in Canberra which was called 'Acton' and located near the current National Museum. It was in this area that people working to develop the capital lived - with some of these areas now actually under Lake Burley Griffin. Anyway, as there was no Acton sign...this was the best we could do....[If anyone sees one please let me know!]

I could really fill a whole blog with photos just of this suburb as there are some quite beautiful spots particularly at the bottom of the ANU closer to the lake, but I will try and restrain myself.

There are certainly a number of historical buildings in the area...including Old Canberra House, Constable's cottage and University House - though I am afraid University House does not remind me of disneyland as an architecture critic apparently remarked when it was built.

But also lots of new architecture and sculpture...

Personally I think the ANU campus is just gorgeous - leafy and peaceful - I wish I had studied here for my undergraduate degree (mind you they are such word count nazis that I may never have passed....).

There were still some expected, very Canberra features of this suburb....

But also some more unusual and unexpected sights.

Suburb # 22 Fyshwick

So I went to Fyshwick with my mother on the weekend to take photos, which sounds all sorts of wrong! But bad jokes aside, with my mum as a special guest for my next suburban adventure, I set out on Sunday to try and find some less well known 'features' of Fyshwick - the suburb famous nationwide for strip clubs, porn and fireworks, which I can never spell correctly.

Fyshwick is named after Sir Philip Fysh (fillet of fish?). A Tasmanian politician involved in federation - so I am sure Jay has something nasty to say about him - but he had an awesome beard, was Postmaster General in 1903 and was made a Knight Comander of the Order of St Michael and and St George (i.e. KCMG as opposed to KPMG) in 1896, so perhaps he can't be all bad? :p

The streets in Fyshwick are named after Australia's industrial towns and regions. There was an internment camp built here in 1918 for German an Austrian nationals.

What can I say...Fsyhwick is a pretty odd place that I have always felt doesn't quite know what it is trying to be. It has a railway line through the middle, a treatment plant, porn shops, brothels, more rug shops than you can possibly count, the amazing Fsyhwick markets (aka GF bread heaven), hardware shops, an animal hospital....and that is the stuff I knew about before the weekend. As you will see below, I found some quite surprising unexpected things - as well as things old, new and quite beautiful.

The not so olde Canberra times....

The newer spirit of Fyshwick...

But even here the expected view of telstra tower is not far away...

A particularly interesting and unexpected find was, however, the Jerrabombera Wetlands where I had never been before. I recommend a wander around here and a visit to one of the 'birds hides' so you can pretend to be a real bird nerd.

It really is quite beautiful in parts. I am now determined to ride a bike around this section of the lake which I haven't done before.

This bus stop had more of the known  features of Fyshwick though...

And I can't finish this post with at least some photos from the markets...

P.S. Remarkably I did not buy a macaron...what is happening to me...