State Library of South Australia — Attraction in Adelaide

To many, it’s really a strange thing to hear I spend a lot of time at various libraries while I was here. There’s a reason for that. The libraries have access to “the internet”. Not the notion of the World Wide Web as it stands today. Netscape, probably the first web browser ever was only launched close to the end of the year and Yahoo! have yet to be launched. It was an interesting time for me, at the precipice of a global Internet boom. But I was here at the library for more primitive method of information acquisition: bulletin boards, research journals, information databases. It was the ancient Wikipedia, searching for stuff and then finding the actual book that contains those information I seen. I also spent a lot of time writing. Not emails, but actual letters you write with a pen and posted via the postal service which takes a week or two before it reaches friends and family. It’s hard to imagine how distant you can feel to everyone else back home. No mobile phone. No email. No Facebook nor FaceTime. No Messenger nor Google Chat nor Skype. It’s hard not...

The State Library will always hold a special place in my heart. From studying in the Mortlock Wing for my final exams to searching for my Research Project resources with the lovely staff, to getting told off my the security guard for chatting and giggling with friends in the silent section time and time again.

I recently decided to show an interstate friend around the State Library, and explored the exhibition on the ‘Gardens of Adelaide’. It was very interesting learning about the history of some of our well-known suburbs, and spotting areas we still frequent nowadays on the old maps.

Towards the back of the exhibition was an interactive activity space, where out of paper, scissors and tape, you could use your creativity to make your own garden creation and stick it on the wall. Of course, as two adults in their mid-twenties, this activity was made for us.

I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but I like to think my bottle brushes far exceeded the standards of the pieces...

I really liked the state library, and when my dad and I went there, I had a lot of memories from when I went there as a baby, especially in the Mortlock Wing. When we went to the State library, the first thing we did was we went in a room full of electrical devices through the decades, which was pretty cool. We went to the Centre of Democracy and saw how democracy has changed over the years, and there was an informative touch screen display with many leaders and other important people. One of the most memorable rooms in this library was the Mortlock Wing. It has walls lined with old books that goes up three storeys high with a quiet study areas for people to use. It has a very classical and old feel to it a quite amazing historical place to visit. I would definitely recommend visiting the state library if you're...