morning platypus search and Canberra (Australia part 28)

The alarm clock rang at 5:30 am today because we wanted to make a stop in Dalgety on our way from Thredbo to Canberra to observe platypuses there.

Since we were on the road so early, we also saw some other animals along the way: emus, wallabies, and kangaroos were running along the road. Some kangaroos even jumped across the road or along it, so we had to follow them for a moment.

The brochure from the Monaro tourist board claimed that you had a good chance of seeing platypuses at the river in Dalgety in the morning or evening. That's why we even skipped breakfast before departure and only took some bread with us to see some of these shy animals.

We patiently waited at the river and were even directed to a better spot by a local. Unfortunately, in the end, it was more of a river observation than a platypus observation because none of the advertised animals wanted to show up.

So we continued to Canberra without seeing any platypuses, where we first visited the Parliament, which is located on Capital Hill.

Most parts of the interior were freely accessible. However, we also participated in a 'behind the scenes' tour, where we could see areas of the building that are normally not accessible to the public.

Afterwards, we went to the old Parliament building, which is only 500 m away, and was replaced by the newer one in 1988 because it had become too small.

There was a large exhibition about Australian democracy. In addition, some former offices and private rooms with old furnishings were accessible. So we also saw the pink chairs that were specially purchased for the Queen's visit when she stayed in the old Parliament building.

Before we drove to Sydney the next morning, we stopped at the Telstra Tower, where you can enjoy a view of Canberra from an observation deck. The capital city was surprisingly green from above.

Then we continued to Sydney, which would have also liked to become the capital city. Since the residents of Sydney could not agree with those of Melbourne on which city should have this honor, Canberra was newly built as the capital city between the two competitors.