museums

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Hector Pieterson Memorial in Soweto

The Hector Pieterson Memorial is one of Soweto's iconic sites and a popular stop on a tour of the township.  The Memorial along with the Hector Pieterson Museum is situated in Orlando West and commemorate the role of the country’s students in the struggle against apartheid.  The site is just a few blocks from where the 12-year-old Hector Pieterson was shot on 16 June 1976 during the Soweto uprising when high school students from the township took to the streets in a peaceful protest against the mandatory use…

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30/11/2014
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The JBay Shell Museum

Jeffreys Bay has always been know for two things.  Surfing and shells.  These days surfing in the town is bigger than ever but unfortunately shells aren't.  I remember when I was small we always visited my grandparents at Paradise Beach close by over school holidays.  You could go out early morning just after high tide and pic up the most beautiful shells.  These days there are very few left.  Lots of small ones but no more big and beautiful ones…

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15/10/2014
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Oudtshoorn’s CP Nel Museum

The CP Nel Museum in Oudtshoorn is one of the top town museums in South Africa with a fantastic range of exhibits representing the history of the town and surrounding area.  Most visitors pass through town on their way to the ostrich farms or Cango Caves and never see this Klein Karoo gem, but the few who do stop gets to learn so much more about the area.The museum owes its origin to the private collection of colonel Charles Paul Leonard Nel,…

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27/06/2014
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Schreiner House in Cradock

Olive Schreiner (24 March 1855 – 11 December 1920) was a world renown South African writer and is best remembered for her novel The Story of an African Farm which has been highly acclaimed ever since its first publication in 1883.  She was born in Wittebergen and grew up Healdtown from the age of six.  Between 1868 and 1870 she lived in Cradock with her brother who was the headmaster of the local school and two other siblings.  Although Schreiner only lived in Cradock for…

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09/06/2014
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No 7 Castle Hill historical museum

Sailing into Algoa Bay as one of the 1820 British Settlers, Reverend Francis McCleland would have been standing on deck looking out over the bay towards the beach, little knowing what awaited him in the Cape Colony and how he would influence what would become Port Elizabeth.  Rev McCleland became the colonial chaplain in Port Elizabeth and oversaw the building of St Mary’s Anglican Church (later declared a cathedral) which was completed in 1834. Only a couple of years before,…

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29/01/2014
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Jurassic Park at Bayworld

Did I stumble on a long lost valley filled with dinosaurs?  Did somebody finally invent a time machine that allows one to go back to the time of the dinosaurs?  Did I get invited to the set of Jurassic Park 4? No, no and... no.  I visited Bayworld in Port Elizabeth.  Bayworld has an very interesting section by the Snake Park that has life size moving dinosaurs.  Every kid's dream.

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27/01/2014
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Port Elizabeth 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.  Its the focus piece of a exhibit that covers whales and sharks along with everything associated with them.

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17/01/2014
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Montagu Museum

Montagu op Route 62 in the Klein Karoo het twee fantastiese museum wat besoekers aan die dorp by kan gaan inloer.  Die Montagu Museum is geleë in die ou Sendingkerk wat in 1907 gebou is en konsentreer op die dorp se kultuur-historiese skatte.  Die museum het verskeie uitstallings met die kerk se preekstoel and ander kerk items wat sentraal hieraan is.  'n Belangrike deel van die museum is die medisinale plantnavorsing wat hier plaasvind en ook uitgestal word.  Agter die museum…

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22/01/2013
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Old Mission Church rose

The Montagu Museum in the Klein Karoo town of Montagu is housed in the town's Neo-Gothic style Old Mission Church which was built in 1907.  At the end of 2011 we spent 10 days in the town and decided to return at the end of 2012.  After our 2011 visit I did a blog post about the museum so I don't really want to do a similar one this time around.  I did look for a nice angle to photograph the building…

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08/01/2013
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Dias Museum

Daai dag in 1488 toe Bartolomeu Dias in 'n storm om die Kaap gevaar and kort daarna in wat vandag Mosselbaai is geland het, sou hy seker nooit kon raai dat op daardie selfde plek vandag 'n museum sou staan wat sy naam dra nie.  Die Dias Museum kompleks het 'n fantastiese verskeindenheid van attraksies en sluit 'n skulpiesmuseum, die Munrohoekhuisies, die oorspronklike varswaterfontein waar Dias se matrose water geskep het om aan boort te neem en die Poskantoorboom in.  Die Poskantoorboom is 'n…

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04/08/2012