Canberra

I have been dipping into this book in preparation for a visit to Canberra next week. It’s a mine of information about out of the way places to visit. It’s also full of surprising stories. Like, whatever happened to the Canadian flagpole?
 
Canberra was chosen as the site of the national capital in 1908, a compromise between the rival ambitions of Sydney and Melbourne. It was named in 1913. Among the suggestions for a name for the new city were ‘Cookaburra’, Sydmeladperbrisho’ and ‘Kangaremu’. Fortunately more sober counsels prevailed and ‘Canberra’ was chosen. The name is said to mean ‘Meeting Place’ in the language of the Ngunnawal people. (A more colourful theory is that it refers to a woman’s cleavage, reflecting its position between two mountains.)