Easter in South Africa

Easter is upon us here in South Africa. It means different things for different people. If you are religious person then you go to church normally on Good Friday and then again on Easter Sunday. If you aren’t then you go worship the sun god by going to the beach and getting burnt!

Different churches do different things, for instance the Zionish church of South Africa hold a big conference up in Mpumalanga making it an all weekend event and hundreds of people from all over Southern Africa attend. Our church has a Good Friday service and then on Sunday meet down at the beach and use the ‘Splash Festival’ venue for an open air service after which they have baptisms in the sea . After which everyone goes down to the beach and makes a ‘skottle’ breakfast and this becomes a family event sharing with friends. While the mainline churches will have services on both days in their respective venues.

The Splash Festival in Port Elizabeth is an annual event hosted by the city and features sorts activities and different types of music to cater to the crowds that go there. There are also the stalls that sell everything under the sun and then some more!

Autumn Has Arrived and So The Leaks as Well!

Autumn has arrived with the first good rain of the season. The block of flats I live in leaks like a sieve and so we run with towels and buckets to catch all the water coming through the walls and ceiling! We don’t complain too loudly as the rents are absurdly low and so we put up with all the drips. The weather has become cooler now as the first hint of winter peeks around the corner. Already snow has been reported on some mountains to the south west of our city. I predict that the winter this year will be colder than last year as it seems that each winter gets colder and summer hotter!

driving rain

Squalls come through every hour so when you just think the rain is over the next one arrives catching you off guard. The sun is out but to the north of the city it is pelting down. Each part of the city gets it’s own share of the rain at different times. Now the dams will fill up again as with the drought we’ve had they have been getting depleted.

raining today

We lie in the southern part of South Africa and in between two demographics so we tend to get some summer rainfall which is mostly from the northern subtropical region of Kwazulu-Natal and the winter rainfall of the Western Cape which lies to the west of Port Elizabeth, my city.

Monday Morning. – Off the top of my hat so to speak

To most, Monday morning are the blues of the week but for me it’s a new day dawning a new week to be excited. Today will be 36 C they say and it’s already warming up. Whats your day feeling like? I’m here at the Internet cafe as my own airtime data is finished and besides to get out of the flat is to expand my horizons. I do not know what this week will bring maybe heart sore maybe a new adventure I never know unless I embrace the day and seek for it. Life in South Africa for an older guy like me is not easy as there is massive unemployment and the more experienced young generation must find it first. I have the experience but my age is against me so it’s a difficult situation where some would tell me to become a pensioner and vegetate while others say go find work. I’ve started this booking agency on line but without customers, nothing can be achieved, so that’s the reason for blogging to0 reach a larger audience. I was employed as a backpacker manager for ten years and so have the experience to do this, but how do I find my customers out in the ether. These are just thoughts that rush around my head most days. What are your experiences in life?

A Saturday Morning in Central.

On Saturday’s I normally go out at 9.30am to 10am as most shops open at 9am. I used to go to the local bakery for coffee but with the aftermath of Christmas, the prices have gone up again and they are getting pricey so I decided on the new coffee shop down on the corner of Lawrence and Clyde Streets hoping to buy my croissants there as they are inexpensive. When I got down there it was only to discover that someone had purchased the last one as I walked in the door! But not withstanding that I still stopped for a hot cup of coffee and a large biscuit. They’ve become quite popular as quite a few people came in as I sat there. It was very pleasant as it reminded me of the small side-walk cafés in Cape town down the side streets in Gardens. When I was finished I decided to return home as it being the beginning of the month everywhere was crowded as people queued to first draw and then spend their hard earned cash! I stopped in at the service station to fill my car as the price goes up by 39 cents next Wednesday, the second such hike in 2 months. Central still has the quaint charm of an old city suburb with its old buildings and tree lined streets. On quieter Saturday mornings I often go to the internet café to check on my mail and update my other sites.

My Suburb called Central

It rained today, so welcome as it has cooled the air. Lots of moisture around with heavy black clouds. At least it is a soaking rain and not the floods we have been having of late.
Venturing out into my suburb, through the wet streets I went in search of a new coffee shop as my normal one has got expensive. I have heard of another one low down and so went to find it. A real gem hidden away in Lawrence Street among the antique shops. I had a hot cup of coffee and a cup cake for the price of just a cup at the former place! Sometimes one must walk a little further to discover these hidden gems. It is set in an old building and has interesting décor of old furniture and related items. They didn’t have a lot of cakes on display but what they had was very appetizing to say to least. Carrot cake, muffins, chocolate éclairs, croissants and quiche. The antique shop next door has a treasure trove of books, furniture and other memorabilia to excite. At one time they used to sell exotic cars but the present owner has decided on the above instead. This street is just off the Heritage Trail which winds through Central. On this trail one wanders around looking at the old buildings and history of Port Elizabeth. It starts at the Donkin Reserve and takes in the city centre and then goes up the hill to old Port Elizabeth’s heart. Central has many fine old buildings built by our ancestors dating back to the 1800’s when the city was first started by the settlers who landed in 1820. So who will be first to visit this southern most city in Africa?

A View from my Window. Part 2.

Today is a beautiful day with some cloud around as we desperately wait for some rain. Lots of cars going past as everybody heads down to the beach. The wind is easterly which means good weather for the sunbathers and swimmers. Earlier this past week we had a oil exploration ship dock at Coega, the new deep water port across the bay. There’s been talk of drilling for oil off our coasts which is good as it might create badly needed jobs.
Just down the road at the traffic lights is the “Technikon” a centre of learning, the next step after school where mainly the youth get their first taste of life. Across from this building is The Oval, a sports stadium, in the middle of our city, primarily as cycle track and increasingly a venue where schools come to have their sports day and compete. There are also some churches around that are visible, one being an Anglican Cathedral which goes by the name of St Cuthbert’s. This is a lovely old stone building built in the late part of the 1800’s. The rooftops of a more modern church with an old history is visible beyond the Technikon, this original church was demolished to make way for a free-way cloverleaf and so it was rebuilt to original design but with modern materials and incorporating the original windows and was one of the oldest churches built here. St John’s Methodist church’s steeple is just visible over the buildings to the right of my view, this church also has a history being erected in the late 1800’s as well.
How does your view look today? Does your view show the sea or just buildings? It would be interesting to hear about your views, so please feel free to share your thoughts on this.

Ships in The Bay

There are often ships sitting out in the bay. Today there are least two ships both ore carriers, but as we have tow port within the greater metropolis of Mandela Bay there are often many types of ships. Car carriers come either to deliver Audi’s and other imports to the big motor manufactures that ply their trade from our city or they come to pick up Volkswagen Polos which are built at the plant in Uitenhage. Amazingly all right-hand drive polos are been built at Uitenhage. They used to build all the right-hand drive Golf’s here there too but when the 2010 recession hit they took that build back to Germany to save jobs there. Ford exports both the Puma diesel and Rocam engines to mainly South America, and the far east. The car carriers arrive at 6pm and set sail at 11pm having loaded 1000 cars, they don’t waste time at all!
During the months of July through to October they fruit boats come to load fruit for export and they are at least 2 ships in the harbour loading while 3 to 5 ships await their turn out in the bay. We export iron ore and also scrap metal to the far east. Most grain imports come through our harbour and are trucked to the Western Cape we have the facilities to off load. Then we have both line fishing and crayfish boats that go out from our port to fish for their livelihood. There is a crisis at present where line fishermen have not been awarded their permits that they had for years whereby forcing them into poverty as their source of income has dried up. The people getting the permits are not even fishermen so it appears as if bribes are the order of the day!
We have other interesting boats and ships that visit our port from time to time, there are oil rigs on their way to the east stopping for either repairs or provisions. Sometimes after a big storm at sea ships come here to be patched up so they can continue on their way. We get a lot of old ships being towed to the breakers in India and the East to be scrapped. The the different navies of the world also call here for social visits and then increasingly we get cruise liners calling here so their passengers can get to see the game reserves and other exciting events we have on offer around our city.

Grain ships unloading

Port Elizabeth harbour

A View from my Window.

Looking out my window I can see many sights but right in front is the horse memorial. This memorial commemorates the horses that fell during the Boer War .It is unique and quite special as it is about the only one in existence. I also see quite a few tour buses that bring tourists to see the monument. Big one and many small ones all showing foreign tourists our exciting places of interest.Then there are the mainliners that travel up Cape Road on their way to Cape Town carrying all sorts of passengers. I can also see the bay with all manner of ships coming into our 2 ports carrying cargoes destined for our country. We also get passenger ships and cruise liners visiting here bringing different people to our shores. And then we have these interesting ships, barges and oil rigs that come into the bay for both repairs and protection from the weather. Looking out today I see a lovely day with some cloud on the horizon and the wind is blowing again a feature of my city. In the west are more clouds meaning another cold front is on the way. Ambulances rush up and down the road with sirens blaring and mini bus taxis roar around with their guys yelling and touting for business. Sundays see less taxis and more cars as people come and go to the beach. Then some tourists walk on the Heritage Trail which is popular and winds through the city centre and shows all the places of interest on a more personal level. Some of thee are the fort which never saw a shot fired in anger and many settler houses that have been lovingly restored back to their former glory. I can also have the largest flag in Africa if not the world flying from a flag pole at the Donkin Reserve. This reserve was made to be an open space when the settlers arrived in 1820. Sir Rufane Donkin was on his way back to England when the governor of the Cape asked him to welcome the settlers to our shores and he erected a monument to his late wife who had died in India and thus that is how Port Elizabeth got it’s name!

the Horse Memorial

the view looking out over the bay

Weather change for good or not?

Our weather so predictable in the past seems to be changing now! Summers hotter, winters colder all round the world the same,. Super storms, bigger hurricanes, more destruction. Some say global warming, some say moving plates, some say we heading for the next ice age. But what does the Earth say? Consider the planet for a minute man does not care how he treats it Cutting down Rain forests indiscriminately, taking away wetlands, Not thinking of tomorrow.  I live at the coast and we never had thunderstorms here but now we have them every other day. Just flash flooding here one minute gone thew next. Summer is still bearable for me as I can take off but some of my friends suffer majorly from the heat spending most of the day in the shower. The trouble with winter is especially in South Africa we are ill prepared for it not having the correct procedures in place for warmth as a result we tend to get cold and get sick more easily. When it’s really hot with no cool breeze then fires start and you not only get hot you also get smoked out from fires around the city.

Today is one such day all you can smell now is smoke from bush fires drifting over the city. Hardly any breeze to cool us down temperatures rise to 40 deg C and it seems as though the whole city’s on fire! Maybe tomorrow will be cooler, maybe not we must just wait and see.