Canberra Times

There is something quite exciting about getting to know a new city. My experiences here in Canberra have been slightly different from my other moves. Instead of relying on my parents and sibling, I have been trying to find things on my own. The skills I learned in girl guides all those years ago are finally being put to use, and have definitely come in handy. Maps for bike routes, transit routes, campus paths, and the various suburbs all have their own unique qualities, and trying to figure out how they all fit together in the circular mess that is Canberra has been challenging. Instead of traffic lights, one finds roundabout after roundabout. Suburbs are separated by green spaces and parks, and there is no such thing as a city grid. All of this leads to mass confusion for me, and after a month, my directionally challenged brain is beginning to create its own map of this city. 

  Biking seems to be a crucial part of life in Canberra, and bike trails and lanes can be found all over the city. I plan on biking to uni for most of the year. Maybe I'll become one of those crazy cyclists who bikes in snowy Edmonton when its -30...or...maybe not. From my suburb,  I can bike to one of the nicest fresh foods markets in the city. Belconnen Market has nearly everything you could want to please your stomach. There are several butcher shops, a bakery, fresh fruit and veg stands, a really neat fish market, asian grocers, delicatessens, and 2 liquor stores all within the same parking lot. Its pretty sweet, and I have to stop myself from taking home giant seedless watermelons each time I bike there. Its about 10 minutes away from where I live, which makes me a very happy girl.

My suburb is built around a hill, the top of which is actually park land. Running or biking up there has proved tough for a girl who has been living on the prairies most of her life, but the view is definitely worth the effort. Taking advantage of a beautiful summer's day, I took my camera up to the top to take some pictures of my surroundings. Suddenly I heard a rustling in the grass, which I was sure was going to be some horrible snake rushing over to bite me so I would die up on top of that hill (I guess I should mention that I'm terrified of getting bitten by snakes and spiders). Instead, I was really surprised to see a family of 4 roos hopping about 15 feet away from me. I couldn't believe that I was in the middle of a city and seeing kangaroos so close to my backyard. I thought that was only something that would happen in the country! I think the green spaces in between the suburbs have allowed for a really nice mix of wildlife and city life. As I walked down the hill, I found I was being watched by a big male kangaroo. When I first came to Australia, the kangaroos reminded me of Samuel L. Jackson because of their tendency to stare you down. They gave me the impression of saying, "What you lookin' at?" as they gathered in their mob. In fact they still do, which I find very intimidating. I left Samuel on the path and arrived back at my house to find a cockatoo eating something in the neighbour's tree. I love nature!

Today's adventure involved public transit and enrolling to ANU. I have to say that I was really quite proud of myself for not ending up in the other end of the city, lost and confused. I managed to get my timings right, got on the right bus, and made it to my uni within 20 minutes. I did, however, get off the bus in the completely wrong location. I managed to remember that the theme for o-week was born in the 80s, explaining the loud Madonna music playing in the distance that meant other students, and people who could tell me where to go. I was right! I then proceeded to stand in lines for 3 and a half hours to register for my classes. Standing in lines for hours makes a person want to make friends with those standing around them. I have never appreciated friendly strangers more than I did today. Not only did conversations keep me occupied, I learned that Syria is a good place to visit if you want to learn a culture through its people, and that nannying in France can be a really good experience. So there you have it, I met people, don't know their names, will likely never see them again,  but am truly grateful for their company.

The bits of Canberra that I've seen and experienced so far have left me quite happy with where I am right now, and how things are coming together. Hopefully I won't get too lost in the weeks to come, and that my lecturers will understand when the day comes where I'll walk into class soaking wet with some horrible story involving rain, the wrong bus, the wrong bus stop, and being the foolish Canadian who thought she knew where she was going.