There's never any threads about moving there or anything? Particularly with it being the capital and all!

Am I missing something?

Not many people seem to emigrate there - one reason being an awful lot of the jobs are Federal Govt, and require citizenship,

There we go! Easily answered!

To be honest iv never heard anything about there ever. What's it like? Just a normal capital city??

We have friends (who work for said federal government) who live just outside so we go there quite often (packing as we speak for a weekend there).. I think it's quite a pretty, very green place, especially for a capital city. It always seems dead quiet though, lol (on a weekend.. haven't been through the week. Friends report that a traffic jam consists of 3 cars, a kangaroo and a dog)

Wouldn't want to live there though.

Makes Perth look like a really happening place then, eh?

Wouldn't go that far

There seem to be far more migrants to Canberra on another expat board than there appear to be on here. Nothing wrong with it at all - there is plenty to do and see if you go looking for it. Very good facilities, views of the bush from everywhere in town, all the national buildings, lots of public servants in two income families because the cost of housing is horrific, 4 definite seasons, short drive from beach and snow fields, not too far from Sydney if you fancy the really big smoke. Kangaroos in the suburbs too!

There are actually traffic jams - having been caught on Northborne Ave more than once where it took half an hour to do a couple of miles (always when in a hurry - Sod's law!) and you dont want to use the Parkway at rush hour if you can possibly help it.

It's a planned city, more Welwyn Garden City on steroids than your average capital. Here's a bit from wiki:

The site of Canberra was selected for the location of the nation's capital in 1908 as a compromise between rivals Sydney and Melbourne, Australia's two largest cities. It is unusual among Australian cities, being an entirely planned city. Following an international contest for the city's design, a blueprint by the Chicago architects Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin was selected and construction commenced in 1913.[5] The Griffins' plan featured geometric motifs such as circles, hexagons and triangles, and was centred around axes aligned with significant topographical landmarks in the Australian Capital Territory.

The city's design was heavily influenced by the garden city movement and incorporates significant areas of natural vegetation that have earned Canberra the title of the "bush capital". The growth and development of Canberra were hindered by the World Wars and the Great Depression, which exacerbated a series of planning disputes and the ineffectiveness of a sequence of bodies that were to oversee the development of the city. The national capital emerged as a thriving city after World War II, as Prime Minister Robert Menzies championed its development and the National Capital Development Commission was formed with executive powers. Although the Australian Capital Territory is now self-governing, the federal government retains some influence through the National Capital Authority.

I don't need to visit now. Thanks

Welwyn Garden City



Canberra



I rest my case . . .

Well, anyone can cut and paste from WIKI, why not just put in a link.

Also, the truth is:

- The Yass-Canberra "area" (quite large) was chosen for the capital in 1908
- Scrivener surveyed this area and chose the location of what is now the ACT in 1909
- Burley-Griffin won the competition to design the capital in 1912
- Lady Denman offically named the capital as "Canberra" in 1913 (According to Bill Bryson she pronounced it, quote wrongly, as Can-BERRA, but see below*)
- Continuing the theme of speech impediments, the government didn't sit there until Parliament House was officially opened by Stuttering Bertie and the Queen Mum in 1927

And how do I know this? Mostly I think from going to see an exhibition at Old Parliament House, when I lived in Canberra.

Of course, had I been in Sydney I would have been down the pub.

Yes, it is quite dull.

*Edit - if you're interested in history, here's some comprehensive footage of the naming day in 1913
Canberra Naming Day ABC Programme

This programme suggests no one knew for sure if it was pronounced CAN-berra or Can-BERRA, so it was decided that however Lady Denman pronounced it would be the way forward - and she said CAN-berra.

We went for a weekend couple of weeks ago. I am not sure if we even saw any other people other than in the hotel.

Dull. I wouldn't live there.

It might be the capital but it has about 8% of the population of Sydney or Melbourne.

I love it here. There also seem to be an increasing number of poms here, working for the large US IT service providers, contracted to Federal Government. All it takes is a citizenship waiver sponsored by the agency and you can be put forward for security clearance. IMHO the poms are the cheap labour, the Aussies want a kings ransom or to FIFO from Sydney (or both)!!

Last time I was there the lake was dry. WGC not Canberra