Uncategorized

Uncategorized

Baby hands

Today is Youth Day here in South Africa. Youth Day commemorates the start of the Soweto riots of 1976. The iconic picture of Hector Pieterson, a black schoolchild shot by the police, brought home to many people within and outside South Africa the brutalities of the Apartheid regime. I have done a post on the Hector Pieterson Memorial in Soweto, Johannesburg before which can be seen by clicking on the link above. I didn't have anything youthy to post today,…

6 Comments
16/06/2010
Uncategorized

Stalls outside St Georges

Outside the boundary of the St Georges FIFA Fan Fest but within St Georges Park, the municipality has registered and allowed quite a number of food and craft vendors to set up shop for the duration of the World Cup. For those inside the Fan Fest its a cheaper option to have lunch or dinner than to buy from the vendors with their regulated prices within. I feel a bit sorry for these vendors cause the last couple of days…

2 Comments
16/06/2010
Uncategorized

Fan Fest viewing

The official FIFA Fan Fest is situated at St Georges Park cricket ground. The main feature is the 45 square meter big screen (the biggest screen of all the FIFA Fan Fests in the country) that shows all the matches live. In between the matches there are entertainment on stage as well as other activities going on around the Fan Fest..Ed's note: My friend Rochelle who lives in Vancouver, Canada, has reminded me that the last time this particular screen…

5 Comments
15/06/2010
Uncategorized

Fort Schanskop

Very few visitors to the Voortrekker Monument outside Pretoria takes an extra couple of minutes to visit Fort Schanskop on the opposite hill. The fort was one of three erected around Pretoria in 1896 after the Jameson Raid and was designed by French military engineer Leon Grunberg. In 1895 the friction between the Cape Colony and the Transvaal (South African Republic) under Paul Kruger in the north worsened. An uprising was organised in the Transvaal to accompany a planned invasion…

4 Comments
15/06/2010
Uncategorized

Voortrekker Monument

The Voortrekker Monument stands on top of a hill outside the city of Pretoria and can be seen from all directions as one approaches it. The monument was opened in 1949 and stands 40 meters long, 40 meters wide and 40 meters high. This massive granite structure was built in honour of the Voortrekkers who left the Cape Colony between 1835 and 1853 to get away from British rule and find land to call their own.Surrounding the monument building is…

6 Comments
14/06/2010
Uncategorized

Shark Rock Pier flags

Shark Rock Pier at Hobie Beach is flying more than just the beach's Blue Flag, its also decked out in all the flags of the countries playing in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

5 Comments
13/06/2010
Uncategorized

Orange Kite Spider

I have done a post about a Kite spider and its web before, but I recently came across this orange and white Kite Spider (Genus Gasteracantha). The Kite spider has a flattened, shiny and hard abdomen with spiny projections. They are normally found in a symmetrical orb web in a tree. They are quite small, normally about 8mm, so most people would walk right by them without spotting them.

8 Comments
13/06/2010
Uncategorized

Giraffe horns

The giraffe... the world's tallest mammal. In Afrikaans a giraffe is called a kameelperd (camel horse). Just like a camel, the giraffe walks with both legs on each side of their body at the same time. But that's not what this post is about. Have you aver wondered about a giraffe's horns? Are they real horns or just tufts of hair? A giraffe has horns. I found this giraffe skull in the garden at Elephant's Footprint Lodge. In the picture…

4 Comments
12/06/2010
Uncategorized

Vuvuzela Wednesday

Love them or hate them, the vuvuzela is become part of soccer in South Africa and the craze is slowly starting to spread across the world. The vuvuzela is a plastic blowing horn, approximately one metre in length, and commonly blown by fans at football matches in South Africa. It requires some lip and lung strength to blow and emit a loud monotone sound like a foghorn or an elephant. They are generally hated, but is growing on the South…

4 Comments
12/06/2010