Bayworld

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Bayworld’s Sacramento canon

The Shipwreck Hall in the Port Elizabeth Museum at Bayworld has some excellent information on shipwrecks around Port Elizabeth.  The displays contain a lot of artifacts salvaged from wrecks like the Sacramento, Amsterdam and Doddington.  One of the items that form the centerpiece display is a cannon salvaged from the wreck site of the Portuguese galleon Sacramento near Schoenmakerskop in the 1970's.  The Sacramento ran aground in a storm on this coastline in 1647 with 72 survivors making it to…

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03/04/2017
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Bayworld’s Marine Hall Whale Skeleton

The Port Elizabeth Museum, which forms part of the Bayworld complex, has a very unique exhibit hanging in the Marine Hall.  It's the skeleton of the last Southern Right Whale to be harpooned in Algoa Bay and is the focus piece of a exhibit that covers whales and sharks (amongst others) along with everything associated with them.

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24/02/2015
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Remembering Dolly and Domino

https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/XMfyng2j4IQ&source=udsThe dolphins at the Port Elizabeth Oceanarium at Bayworld was synonymous with Port Elizabeth for a very long time until the last two, Domino and Dumisa, was moved to a Ocean Park in Hong Kong.  Although they were moved there in 2009 already there are still out of town visitors that come to the city asking if there are dolphin shows.  This post isn't about keeping dolphins in captivity, doing dolphin presentations or part of a debate whether we should have dolphins…

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16/01/2015
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Prince of Wales Obelisk

I often wonder how many people have noticed the stone obelisk outside Bayworld in Humewood.  The obelisk is called The Prince of Wales Obelisk and was brought to South Africa by the founder of the Eastern Province Herald, John Paterson.  It was meant to be placed on the grave of his partner, George Kemp but the Kemp family thought it to be slightly too much and donated it to the city.  The City decided to erect it in front of City Hall…

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09/09/2014
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Meet the Amsterdam

The Port Elizabeth Museum at Bayworld has an excellent exhibit of artifacts and pieces from the Dutch ship Amsterdam that ran aground close to the mouth of the Swartkops River in 1817.  The ship, captained by Hermanus Hofmeijer, hit a fierce storm in 1817 with the wind ripping apart the sails and snapping the masts.  After eleven hours of fighting to keep her afloat the battle was lost and the captain decided to run her aground between the Zwartkops and Coega…

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03/06/2014
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Whale skeleton

The KidZ admiring the skeleton of the last Southern Right Whale to be harpooned in Algoa Bay hanging in the Port Elizabeth Museum in Bayworld.

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31/05/2014
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Dino at torchlight

Here's another picture from A Night at the Museum at Bayworld the other evening.  The Dino Park T-Rex seen in the torchlight of the KidZ.  A little bit scarier than seeing him during the day.

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30/05/2014
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Which keg is the heaviest?

Bayworld is so full of childhood memories, one of them being the kegs in the shipwreck hall.  Three kegs each 20kg in weight but with the pulleys being the difference.  This means that they feel like they are different weights and the KidZ loved trying them out just like we did when we were kids.

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28/05/2014
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Bayworld cut-out

A week or so ago the Friends of Bayworld hosted a hugely successful Night at the Museum at the Port Elizabeth Museum at Bayworld.  The place was packed to the bleachers and I don't think they ever expected in their wildest dreams that they will have such an overwhelming turnout.  I get to visit Bayworld fairly often for tourism purposes and it was great to take a walk around with the family for a change and share with them all…

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27/05/2014