Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Pretoria skyline
On my last trip to Johannesburg I popped up to Pretoria to visit the Voortrekker Monument. It was a very misty morning and the Pretoria skyline was just just visible in the fog. Pretoria is South Africa's capital city and forms part of the City of Tshwane Metropolitan.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Sharing a meal
Monday, June 28, 2010
Commemoration Methodist Church


which commemorates those who have fallen in the Anglo Boer War (1899 - 1902). This site was chosen as it is situated "in the mids of our daily work" and would be seen often, serving as a inspiration of peace.
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Sunday, June 27, 2010
Fountain of the Emperors
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Mossy log
Friday, June 25, 2010
Caterpillars
Time for a "Random ..." theme post again. Today's post is on Random Caterpillars (or worms. Whatever you want to call the first two)

We have had a bunch of these hairy spiky critters around the office building lately. They turn into the Garden Acraea Butterfly later on in their lives.
This little dude looks like he needs a haircut. I have no idea what he is, but I found him at Cape Point on my last visit there.

Thursday, June 24, 2010
Floating on air
A while ago I had the privilege to go on the ultimate adventure hot air ballooning with Bill Harrop near Magaliesberg north of Johannesburg. I have posted two pics of it before (Hot Air Ballooning), but wanted to show of a couple more pics from the experience.




If you would like to see more pics featuring the sky by photographers from all over the world, visit the good people at Skywatch.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Overgrown grave yard
On visiting the Somerset East Museum recently, I discovered this old overgrown grave yard behind it on the slopes of the Boschberg Mountain. I have a thing for old cemeteries and had a look around. Unfortunately the guy who was going to show us through the museum arrived and cut short my exploration, but next time I'm in town I will definitively head back there for another look.


Monday, June 21, 2010
God's Property



God's Property
Put your rubbish in the bin
Do not wee or worse
Stay on the pathways
Do not move rocks or paving
Do not remove paving slabs
Please keep this area clean
Do not stand on the vegetation
Exodus 19:5
Exodus 19:5
GOD
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Red Skimmer Dragonfly

Saturday, June 19, 2010
Friday, June 18, 2010
Skin patterns
It is amazing how beautiful some animals are. The tiger, leopard, cheetah, giraffe and a couple of others must heave been in the front of the row when God created the animals and were dishing out the skins. Poor warthog must have been standing close to the back. Here are a couple of close-ups of animal skins. All of these animals were (and hopefully still are) alive when I took the pics.
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Crocodile

Thursday, June 17, 2010
Weather vanes
Today I am combining my Skywatch post with a Random theme... post. The random theme for today is weather vanes. There is a folk song in Afrikaans about the chicken that can't lay an egg and that chicken is the one that stands on top of the church spire.



For more fabulous sky pictures, visit Skywatch for a peek upwards. Don't strain your neck though.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
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, so I decided to show a couple of pictures of my baby nephew's hands I took the other day.


Tuesday, June 15, 2010
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 by Dr Leander Starr Jameson. The Boers received warning of the attack and the invasion was a failure.


Monday, June 14, 2010
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.



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For more information on the monument, visit Wikipedia.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Orange Kite Spider

Saturday, June 12, 2010
Giraffe horns

Friday, June 11, 2010
Soccer ball light structures
Today is the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup here in South Africa. I will be posting most of my World Cup photos on my Port Elizabeth Daily Photo blog, but some will make their way here as well. The posts on here will continue business as usual.
These photos are of the new soccer ball structures on the traffic circles outside the Port Elizabeth Airport. They are beautifully lit up at night and while I was there taking these I saw lots of cars slowing down or stopping to take photos.

Thursday, June 10, 2010
Sundays River sunset
If you want to see more sunsets and other sky related pictures, visit Skywatch.
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