More balloons...

I enjoyed the hot-air balloons so much that I woke up at 5.40am (!) last Friday to watch over twenty take off from the lawns of Old Parliament House.

There were four special balloons - Darth Vader and Mister Bup (the turtle) from Belgium and a peacock and Simba the Lion from the Netherlands.

I never knew such events or balloons existed before this. It was fun but walking back to work, I couldn't help wondering at the absurdity of it all... Whose creative idea was this?

I personally find Canberra a mix of 'provincial sophistication'. Being the eighth largest city in Australia barely diminishes its sense of self-importance.

Life in Canberra is slow, quiet and comfortable. One could easily grow complacent here without realising it...