A Slice of Canberra

I don't treat this blog as a Diary. Perhaps there are people who are interested in my daily life, but the Blog's "mission statement" is "Intermittent postings from Canberra, Australia on Software Development, Space, Politics, and Interesting URLs. And of course, Brains...".

So file this one under "Canberra, Australia".

Today we attended a Church fete.

The denomination was Presbyterian, not that that matters very much: my wife and son are Catholic, and I'm Agnostic with a tendency to commit Buddhism.

The Canberra City Pipes and Drums played "leaving Rhu Vaternish", "Amazing Grace", "Waltzing Matilda", "Scottish Soldier" and "Bound for South Australia" - then did some Jazz Improvisation on "A Londonderry Air" and various Irish jigs and reels.

Food consumed by us included Vietnamese Spring Rolls, Szechuan Spring Rolls, Mango and Strawberry/Apple Ice Cream, Hot Dogs, Chocolate Milkshakes, Steak Sandwiches, and Singapore Noodles (with Indonesian chilli Ketjap and Japanese Shoyu).

We managed to pick up some great mixed-citrus marmalade, but missed out on the Dundee cake.

Andrew had a great time at the 9-hole Novelty Golf green, playing several rounds. He spent too long there, the Jumping Castle was packed away before he got to it. Oh well, next year.

Despite it being late March, and thus into Autumn, it was a fine, sunny day. A bit too sunny, every child was wearing a hat due to UV from the depleted Ozone layer. Andrew's was a Soviet-pattern tropical Giggle Hat I picked up from a Russki deserter in Bremen, Germany around 1990, made in Tashkent.

That's a slice of life in March 2004, here in Australia. I suppose some would call it "Multiculturalism", but to us it's just... normal. The way we are.