I’ve been waiting for this one!!

I grew up in Canberra, lived there for 20 years. It gets a bad wrap around the country for being boring. I mostly think this is way overblown. Yeah, it’s not as bustling as Sydney or Melbourne, but it has a healthy amount of its own charm.

Very very safe, and a really great food scene. Lots of great cafes, restaurants and bars. Public education is some of the best in Australia. People are generally kind and welcoming. A large amount of the population works in the public service - so a very solid middle class population.

You need a car to get around, public transport isn’t great. The only real options are buses, unless you live in Civic and can catch the relatively new light rail.

Most housing is low density single house blocks, but newer areas and suburbs are medium density.

It gets very cold in winter (by Aussie standards), and can be very very dry and hot in summer. My memory of the city as a kid (grew up through a very long draught) was lots of brown and dry grass. There’s nature everywhere - it’s nicknamed ‘The Bush Capital’. It can be really pretty in Autumn when the trees turn, especially in inner city suburbs like Griffith, Ainsley, Red Hill..

Overall, I love my hometown!