Places In Canberra: The Australian-American Memorial

One of the featured monuments of Canberra is the Australian-American Memorial:

The memorial is a very recognizable site in Canberra and can easily be seen from the Australian Parliament House in the center of the city. The pillar of the monument stands a total height of 79km and capped with an eagle. The locals in Canberra refer to the memorial as “Bugs Bunny” because the eagle when viewed from the side does in fact look like the famous cartoon rabbit.

The memorial is surrounded by green grass and at the very base of the memorial is a plaque in remembrance to the assistance given to Australia from the United States during World War II:

For those not familiar with the war, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii in 1941, the United States deployed thousands of troops to Australia to fight the Japanese. By this time the Japanese had been regularly bombing Australia and conducting submarine attacks on the Australian ports. The alliance between the US and Australia was able to defeat the Japanese in the South Pacific and turn the tide of the war.

View of the memorial from the Parliament House.

In the opposite direction from the memorial you have a wonderful view of the Parliament House and Great Dividing Range in the distance:

Behind the memorial are buildings that house the offices of the Australian Defence Forces. These offices are the equivalent of America’s Pentagon. However, in Canberra you would never notice the importance of these buildings because there is no security in sight and you could literally walk into the building if you wanted to. For someone who has been to the Pentagon I can tell you that security in the US is much more stringent. It is kind of nice to be somewhere, where you don’t have to constantly wonder when the terrorist are going to strike next. Hopefully I don’t jinx myself by saying that, but anyway here is a picture of the ADF building:

The memorial is only interesting if you are an American because there is really not much to see here. I was in and out here in about 15 minutes before heading over to the Australian War Memorial. Now that is a must see attraction for everyone coming to Canberra.

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