View from the office

I have four offices in Adelaide from which I work at various times. That requires me to carry four different electronic security passes for entry, which is rather annoying, but less annoying than forgetting to take one.

One of my offices looks over Victoria Square toward Gulf St Vincent. In fact, the sea is visible on most days, 10km away.

Another office looks in the opposite direction toward the Adelaide Hills. You know the weather is bad when you can’t see the hills.

The Parliament House office is like a dungeon, buried in the basement of the historic building.

My other office is close to Parliament on the ninth floor and I don’t have any view at all. Well, that’s not strictly correct. My direct vision is toward the hallway door to the toilets and I get to see a constant flow of traffic.

That’s handy when I want to see someone, but couldn’t be bothered looking for them. As most of my colleagues are women, I only have to wait 30 minutes or so and the person I’m looking for will materialise in front of me.

I know to wait until their return visit, however, unless I only want the conversation to be short, in which case I interrupt them before they head out the door.

This particular building offers some nice views, though. The above picture was taken from a colleague’s office, using my Samsung Galaxy SII phone through a tinted double-glazed window.

Government House, Adelaide

The photo is looking over Government House, down King William Road toward Adelaide Oval and North Adelaide; quite splendid on a fine summer’s day.

According to His Excellency’s website, Government House, Adelaide, is the oldest vice-regal residence in Australia.

The earliest part of the House to be built was the east wing (right side) of the present building. It was completed and occupied in May 1840.

Various additions and renovations have occurred over the years, the latest major one being in 1973 when some rooms on the first floor of the original East Wing were rearranged and modernised to form a separate suite for the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh.

Governors, their families and house guests make use of all the upstairs rooms.