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Painted Reed Frog

Admiring the little spekboom trees in one of the local plant nurseries the other day, a slight movement caught my eye.  A little Painted Reed Frog was sitting on one of the branches and tried his best to be invisible when I brought the camera closer. Painted Reed Frogs are found from Swaziland in the north to as far south as Port Elizabeth.  While those in the north are striped, the painted reed frogs in the Eastern Cape are spotted.  They normally…

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06/12/2010
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Carols in Settlers Park

On Saturday night the second annual Carols by Candlelight in Settlers Park took place.  The event was organised by the Wildlife and Environment Society of SA (WESSA) and Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism and forms part of the Baakens Valley Recovery Program.  Although the wind was blowing all day long, the spot where the carols took place was sheltered and you barely felt a breeze.  The program was lead by the Salvation Army Brass Band and the vocal talents of Niqui Cloete-Barrass…

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06/12/2010
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Ore ship

An ore ship loading manganese ore at the Port Elizabeth harbour.  In the foreground is a couple of yachts at anchor next to the Algoa Bay Yacht Club.

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05/12/2010
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Nativity Play

Its that time of the year when all little angels don their wings, wise men pick up their gifts, shepherds collect their sheep and mini Joseph and Mary head for the two chairs in the middle of the stage that represents Bethlehem.  Most pre-primary schools and Sunday schools stage a short nativity play this time of year at their end of year prize givings.  Everybody always tries something slightly different so that the kids don't feel like its always the…

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04/12/2010
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Bloomingdales

Its that time of the year when most of us actually dare to venture into the garden (often with a lot of persuasion from the wives) and do some work towards making the yard look a little bit prettier.  Port Elizabeth has a number of excellent nurseries where avid gardeners (and the rest of us) can get everything they need to spruce up around the house.  One of the bigger nurseries in town is Bloomingdales in Walmer where you will be…

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03/12/2010
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Braai time

Summer is here and with it the opportunity to participate in one of South Africa's favorite pastimes. Its BRAAI time! "Braai" is the Afrikaans word for barbecue and "vleis" is meat.  Braaivleis is best done on open coals and not on a gas braai, although it is accepted as a lesser alternative.  With the summer holidays around the corner and South Africans heading to the coast (or bush... or mountains... or desert...) there will be lots of braai'ing done by the…

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02/12/2010
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Palm tree silhouette

I was waiting for a meeting the other day and sat playing around a bit with my camera.  The sun was behind the palm tree outside the venue and the palm leaves with the weaver nests hanging on them was very nicely silhouetted. *click*Visit Skywatch for more pictures of the sky

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02/12/2010
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St Georges Park Swimming Pool

The St Georges Park Swimming Pool next to the St Georges Park Cricket Stadium was opened on 12 November 1937.  The opening of the pool was celebrated with a performance of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night Dream" and was said to be one of the most beautiful and modern baths in South Africa at the time.  The complex has a Olympic sized swimming pool, a kiddies pool and a grand stand with seating for 1080 people.  The well knows South African playwright Athol…

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01/12/2010
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Jetty Street

People arriving in Port Elizabeth by ship in the old days disembarked at the old jetty and had to travel up Jetty Street into the town.  The statue of Queen Victoria was positioned in front of the Public Library to look down Jetty Street and welcome visitors to the town.  In the 1970's when the Settlers Freeway was constructed it literally cut the harbour off from the town centre area and Jetty Street was closed up when the bus station was…

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30/11/2010