At the top of the Gamtoos Valley one would find the Kouga Dam, one of Port Elizabeth's three main water supply dams. The Kouga Dam was the first double arch dam to be built in South Africa. Other than for urban use, the dam is also the main supplier of irrigation water to the Gamtoos Valley. The pic was taken a little while ago when the dam last overflowed.More information on the dam can be found here.
The Valley of Desolation is situated just outside the town of Graaff Reinet. It can be found in the Camdeboo National Park which provides the visitor with insights into the unique landscape and ecosystem of the Karoo, not to mention awesome scenic beauty. The Karoo was formed hundreds of millions of years ago and in some places, dolerite form jointed pillars. The best examples of which are found in the Valley of Desolation where erosion of the softer sedimentary beds…
Just two random shots of the Anglican Cathedral of St Michael and St George in Grahamstown.
St Andrews College in the town of Grahamstown was founded by Anglican Archbishop Armstrong in 1855. Much of the early architecture was based on stone, one of these being the Clock Tower – a memorial to old boys who fell to the Great War. St Andrews is one of 4 South African schools who have the right to elect a Rhodes Scholar to Oxford each year.
The St Mary's Cemetery is probably the oldest formal cemetery in Port Elizabeth and can be found close to the city centre. It is situated near the mouth of the Baakens River on the banks of what used to be the fresh water lagoon after which Algoa Bay was named. I did a post in The Firefly Photo Files a little while ago with some more pictures of the cemetery.
The Port Elizabeth Museum at Bayworld has a great collection of artifacts from shipwrecks found around Algoa Bay on show in the Ship Wreck Hall. The centre piece of the display is a number of canons and ship guns that has been recovered over the years.
We visited the Port Elizabeth Museum at Bayworld today in celebration of International Museum Day. I love museums. To me its like an exploration every time I enter one. I also have many fond memories of the PE Museum and the countless visits there when I was still small. Not much has changed over the years at the PE Museum, but I still get excited when I do get the chance to go and visit. Over the next few days…
This morning the Spar Ladies Race took place on the beachfront. It consist of 5km and 10km races. The Port Elizabeth leg of the race is one of the biggest in the country with nearly 10 000 entries. Most of the participants take part in the 5km which is mostly a fun walk with big and small as well as young and old taking part while the 10km is a much more serious race with some of the best runners…
The old Port Elizabeth Main Library was opened in 1902 and has some magnificent stained glass windows which was restored a couple of years ago. One of the stained glass windows in the library The stained glass dome in the roofWhen we were small my mom used to work across the road from the library and we often got to visit it. We used to sneak up on the gallery walkways to enjoy the view from the top. I still…
My favorite art gallery in Port Elizabeth is the Ron Belling Art Gallery on Park Drive close to St Georges Park. I recently also did a post about it on The Firefly Photo Files.Ron Belling (1933 - 1998) was a Port Elizabeth architect, aviation and marine painter, and an authority on aviation history, aircraft design, aircraft camouflage and markings. The most amazing fact about him was that he was a self taught painter who could do the most amazing things…