In the gentle dawn, happy birthday Canberra.

Canberra is 103 years old in March 2016 ….a young city just finding its place in the world.

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There are many birthday celebrations through the month of March, and one of the biggest events is ”Balloons Afloat”

Here we are at dawn waiting for the giant balloons to fill with air and be fired up into the sky..

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Some balloons are taking off without any trouble, but there is not much wind this morning…

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….and some of the cuter ones are having trouble floating off.

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and some stayed up just long enough to give the kids a thrill…

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Looking at all the families around enjoying this early morning start to Canberra day I can’t help thinking of all the turmoil in the world at the moment, and yet, how much ordinary people all over the world really just want to be able to live peacefully with their families and communities.

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The dawn on the lake is very gentle this morning, as the poet Mary Oliver says ” softest of mornings, hello.”

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We are off to our favourite little café in the city for breakfast. This café has a healthy herb garden and even a pumpkin vine heading out and over to the road. You can’t trust a pumpkin to behave well in a garden bed, never mind a city bed!

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I think the Chicago planners, Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony would have been happy to see a garden in the city, that was part of their dream.

What great good fortune to live in a peaceful city.

Happy birthday Canberra!