During the last week or two we have had two cruise ships visit the Port Elizabeth harbour on cruises along the South African coast. Usually the locals have to look at the ships from afar due to strict harbour security (too strict some days if you ask me). I had to do some work quay side for the MSC Symfonia and as I never go anywhere without my camera I took the opportunity to snap this picture.
The new 5 star hotel and conference centre development at the Boardwalk Casino and Entertainment Complex is starting to take shape very nicely. Walking in from the main car park last weekend I noticed that the new building has now risen above the rest of the Boardwalk. There are exciting times ahead as far as conferencing goes once the new conference centre is open.
Gemsbuck (or Oryx) is native to the arid regions of southern Africa and didn't occur in the Eastern Cape naturally. A couple of the private game reserves around Port Elizabeth have introduced Gemsbuck into their reserves though. As Gemsbuck are mainly desert-dwelling they do not depend on drinking to supply their physiological water needs and as the reserves all have ample water supply it means that the Gemsbuck has actually adapted quite well. These Gemsbuck were photographed at Amakhala Game…
Visitors to the Cape would normally associate wine with the Stellenbosch and Franchhoek areas, so big was my surprise to discover the Cape Point Vineyard on the Cape Peninsula just outside Noordhoek. Although some reports show that vines were planted in the Noordhoek area as early as 1752, the Cape Point Vineyard's first vines were only planted in 1998. The vineyard is situated on a narrow strip of land between the cold Atlantic and the mountain with the warm summers and cool…
Over the last two years every time I visited the St Mary's Cemetery I've had a look for Rev Francis McCleland's grave without any success. Grizel Hart, the curator at No.7 Castle Hill, explained to me where to find it and on my last visit - after again walking right past it twice - I found it. Rev Francis McCleland came to to Algoa Bay in one of the 1820 British Settler parties and became colonial chaplain in Port Elizabeth. He bought…
Its been a bit of a cold and wet weekend so I thought I'll try and counter that with a warm beach scene of a couple taking a walk along Sardinia Bay.
Hydrangeas (or Christmas Roses as we also call them) at the Noordhoek Farm Village during our Cape visit in January.
Not everybody heading down to Hobie Beach during the Splash Festival over Easter weekend are there for the festival itself. Many also go to enjoy the beach and Friday's hot weather meant that a lot of people headed into the water. Unfortunately for the organisers it was spring high tide over the weekend and the volleyball courts turned into "tidal pools" as the sea pushed itself over the sand walls created to avoid just that.
The Splash Festival in Port Elizabeth is the biggest 4 day beach festival in South Africa and draws thousands of people to Hobie Beach over Easter weekend. The beach sport like Beach Volleyball and Beach Rugby are always popular events but the thing that pulls the most people to the festival is Saturday night fireworks display on Shark Rock Pier with people searching out good viewing spots from early on already.