I love this graffiti, and this one is a real depiction of the vibe now going on inside, some cool Afro-Jazz takes place there. But as you can see, the place is pretty run down. In the past it lived up to its name. It was a Grand Hotel in a wonderful old historic building. Hopefully the move towards urban renewal in this part of town will include restoring this once gracious old lady, without losing the cool new ambience…
I had lunch at Wimpy last week, (note Christmas decorations already up, can you believe it?)With the growth of franchises around the world, it seems that, in many countries, shopping malls have become so similar that, once in them, you could be just about anywhere in the world.
This is the Greek Church in Parsons Hill. PE has a close knit Greek community, many of whom keep close ties to the traditions of their motherland, even after several generations here. This beautiful complex houses, amongst other things, their church, as well as the Hellenic Hall where functions are held.
A flock of pigeons greets the dawn on the roof of the old St Philips Anglican Church in Richmond Hill.
This is a view from the rooftop parking at Greenacres Hospital, looking across towards the north west just after sunset. The domed towers are part of The Bridge Shopping Mall, which literally does form a bridge across a major road heading down to the sea.
More of the beautiful African wildlife in not-so-wild surroundings, at the Kragga Kamma Game Park.
All cities go through cycles of growth and decay, and the centre of Port Elizabeth is no exception. Established in 1820, she grew rapidly and a bit haphazardly at first, to become, by the early 1900s, the South African port with the biggest exports. This was mainly because the diamond industry in Kimberley, and the Ostrich feather and mohair industries were all in their heyday, and used PE to export their goods.But as these waned, she was overtaken by other…
I hope this is big enough, it seems these panoramic shots end up a bit small, even when uploading large. I thought I would give you more of an overview of the Boardwalk Casino complex and the manmade lake with floating island.
Yesterday at the Boardwalk Casino complex, a jazz festival was held. The complex is built around a man-made lake, and there is a floating "island" on which the various jazz bands played. Around the lake are many restaurants and outdoor cafes, and it was great sitting outside on a perfect summer day, enjoying good food and good music.
Port Elizabeth has two satellite towns, Uitenhage and Despatch. Both are about 30 minutes drive inland, and rely heavily on the motor industry. They are both included with PE in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, which runs the metropole.Uitenhage is older than PE by a few years, and has some great old buildings. And at this time of year, it also has some glorious Jacaranda trees, which thrive in South Africa, although they are originally from South America.