Something I have been meaning to do since Pippa and I first came to Canberra was visit the New Parliament House. It is on the classic school trip itinerary, but it has been a few years since I was at school.

As yesterday was a pleasant day and the weather was fine, if a little cool, I decided to fulfil this 'to do list' item.

It was actually not a bad day. I parked under neither but made a point of coming up from the car park outside the building. You enter through security similar to that of an airport. After being irradiated and scanned, stripped of all metal items and removing my phone, wallet and ball point pens, I was allowed to enter the hallowed halls of Parliament House.

It was easier for Julia; she just knocked Kev off the podium. Anyway, the main hall is all marble and designed to look like a gum tree forest. This theme continues throughout the building. It is like we have no other variety of trees in Australia, but that is probably true.

Through the foyer to the Great Hall and the famous Tapestry designed by Arthur Boyd based on the ...you guessed it....gum tree forests of SE Australia where he lived at the time. All credit though it is a fantastic piece of art and at the sheer size it is breathtaking.

After the Great Hall I made my way up stairs to the 2nd floor where the 'wings' to the House of Reps and the Senate are. First on the left was the House of Reps. All gum tree green decor, the Senate on the right was red, sort of oozing sap red. However the demand to have your photo taken from the viewing gallery was high so I did not stay long in each wing.

I was actually more impressed by the portrait collection of previous Prime Ministers. Some really caught the personality of the sitter. Gough Whitlam looked p**sed off, but he was sacked from the job by the Governor General. Malcolm Fraser looked smug, but he got Gough's job after the sacking. Harold Holt was staring into the distance, perhaps he should have been staring harder at the 'Do Not Swim Today' sign at Cheviot Beach near Portsea.

I went up the lift to the roof and a walked around on top of the building. It is built under the hill so that parliament is never higher than the people. That is the architectural significance of the building. I prefer the old parliament that had only one external door so politicians had to face their constituents every time they arrived and left the building.

But there were some good photo ops from here, but the quality of the photos is poor as I did not have my camera and they were all taken on my phone. I got close to the huge aluminium flag pole that rises up over the people, so much for the under the hill theory, and the glass pyramid in the style of the Louvre, only crappy.

Back down the lift and around to the Magna Carta exhibition. It was a bit of a surprise draw card for me and though small, it was an interesting exhibit. Thought the most interesting and informative exhibit was the diagram of how a Bill is eventually passed through parliament. First read, second read, committee, debate, re read, site in triplicate, committee to decide the committee, send to the Senate and start the process all over again. No wonder government moves so slowly. Politicians don't go gray from the stress; they really are there into their old age getting nothing done quickly.

Bought a suitcase sticker at the shop for $2 and returned to my car. I have decide to see all the free sites around Canberra before I go to England