Monday 21st October

Hello Canberra,

📆 Today: It’s Monday, October 21st.

☀️ Weather: 24° and sunny. The rest of the week is also going to be warm and sunny.

This Weekend: 🕯️ The Nara Candle Festival

The 20th-annual Canberra Nara Candle Festival celebrates the Sister City relationship shared between Canberra and Nara, Japan. The festival is based on the much larger Nara Tokae Lantern Festival in Japan. Enjoy the spectacle of 2000 shimmering candles and take part in hands-on activities, including calligraphy, origami and lantern making. There will be live entertainment, including martial arts demonstrations and Taiko drumming. It's happening this Saturday, in the Canberra Nara Peace Park, Lennox Gardens. Details here.

Transport Canberra will be running free shuttle buses for the event. Details here.

🎃 What's Happening This Halloween in Canberra

Halloween is coming up on October 31. There are lots of events happening this spooky season in Canberra:

Trick or Treating: This map has locations of decorated houses and houses welcoming trick-or-treaters. More.

Spooktacular 2024: The Zoo is holding a family-friendly fundraiser with games, scavenger hunts, crafts, dancing and candy. More.

Canberra Halloween Fest: The "biggest Halloween festival" in Canberra is happening on the Patrick White Lawns. There will be trick or treating, a magic show, a ghost parade and more. More.

Halloween Takeover at Dendy: Horror film aficionados, will be pleased to know Dendy is screening eight horror films this Halloween. Come in costume to get a free popcorn. More.

O'Connor Community Halloween Party: The volunteers at the O'Connor Community Pantry are throwing a community Halloween party on October 31, at Finn St Park. There will be a pumpkin carving competition, a BBQ fundraiser and a bake sale. More.

There's lots more happening for Halloween in Canberra, including improv comedy, a film festival, a spooky car wash and more. Details here.

Eats: 🥣 AK’s Diner

Ex-chef from XO in Narrabundah AK Ramakrishna is opening a new lunchtime restaurant in New Acton. The 'diner' will serve Malaysian comfort food including his signature 'Mum's Famous Chicken Curry’ and beef rendang. The meals will be served with rice and your choice of condiments including pickles and chillis. The restaurant will be opening soon in the Nishi Building and you can follow AK’s Diner on instagram for details on when they'll open (probably this week). Details here.

On Now: ⛵️ Lake Life Exhibition

There is an exhibition covering Lake Burley Griffin's 60-year history on display at Regatta Point. The exhibition features a curated collection of nostalgic photographs, objects, and rare historical footage. Details here.

This Weekend: The Canberra Brick Show

The Canberra Brick Show is Canberra's very own LEGO fan event. There will be over 300 amazing displays, exhibits, and vendors coming from across Australia. It's happening this Saturday and Sunday at Thoroughbred Park. Details here.

Tidbits:

The Count Continues: Counting of votes for the ACT election continues this week. Based on the latest distributions the psephologists are predicting Labor with 10 seats, Liberals with 10 (possibly 9), Greens with 3 (possibly 4) and Independents with two. This could change as more results are released including postal votes which are yet to be counted.

Traffic Disruptions: Police are warning there will be traffic disruptions, including road closures from 11:30am to 6pm today due to the King's visit. More.