South Australian Museum – How Museums Used To Be

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Many people think of Adelaide itself as dated, boring and a bit of a museum. It hardly any wonder then that the main museum there – the South Australian Museum is a “museum of a museum”. While museums world wide are being jazzed up and turned into interactive and politically correct experiences this museum is like entering a time-warp – a museum straight out of the sixties were stuffed animals and locked (though not dusty) display cabinets crammed with artefacts prevail. That said, it has used a more contemporary approach in a few areas – such as the exhibition on the Australian Antarctic explorer Sir Douglas Mawson which is appropriately supported by real artefacts of interest.

You are probably thinking that I don’t like the place. Far from it, I love it. Continue reading “South Australian Museum – How Museums Used To Be”

National War Memorial – Lest We Forget

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The National War Memorial has a prime corner sight at the intersection of North Terrace and Kintore Avenue and was opened in 1931 to commemorate those South Australians who gave their lives in World War I between 1914 and 1918. Why it is called the “National” War Memorial is not clear as it only commemorates South Australians lost during the War – perhaps initial intentions differed. Continue reading “National War Memorial – Lest We Forget”

Captain Matthew Flinders

59Captain James Cook is most often credited as being the person who discovered Australia, in 1770. In actual fact, Cook claimed the eastern part of the continent for Britain in that year and it was Dutch man, Willem Janszoon, who first landed on the continent on the Cape York Peninsula (in Queensland) and met with Aboriginal people in 1606. It wasn’t until 1803, almost 200 years after this initial European discovery, that someone proved that Australia was an island continent. Continue reading “Captain Matthew Flinders”