Posts Tagged ‘Algoa Bay’
Local celebrities will grace the lawns of The Humewood Golf Club when the 14th Celebrity Golf Classic which is hosted by Algoa Bay Council for the Aged is held on 15 March 2012.
Amongst the celebrities who will be taking part in the event and who will be “swinging” to raise funds for the elderly are Mr South Africa 2010, Denver Burns, SA Rugby players Breyton Paulse, Rob Louw, Robbi Kempson, De Wet Barry and Danie Gerber.
Local comedian Gino Fabbri will be there alongside SA Boxing great Kallie Knoetze…this could lead to ’bouts’ of serious laughter!
To add that special touch of glamour to the event Roxy Louw and several beautiful ladies will be there on the day.
We are told that SA Sunshine Tour Golf PRO’s Titch Moore and Francois van Vuuren will host a “Mulligan” with ice cold cocktails on the 18th….does that mean if you get to take the 2nd uncounted shot at the little white ball that you get to drink the cocktail or your playing partner…whichever way the days round of golf will end on a high note indeed.
Gino Fabbri will entertain with a comedy show at the prize giving event.
Funds raised will go in particular to older people surviving on state pensions of R1040 per month.
There may still be place for your team (4-ball) to book. Phone Alta or Maureen on 041 3688434.
Every year we are assaulted with images of the ‘petering out’ of the annual sardine run along the KZN coast when the sardines come close inshore and excited Kwazulians/Natalians/Last Outpostians rush into the water from their beaches with all manner of nets and buckets to scoop up sardines for breakfast, lunch and supper.
This annual event attracts thousands of international and local tourists who come to see and experience this phenomenon.
Most people are not aware though that the sardine run also takes place in Algoa Bay. The sardines gather here from late February in large numbers to feed ahead of the big winter storms that open up a ‘gap’ into the Aghullas Current which allows them to run northwards along the South African coast past the magnificent Transkei and along the Kwazulu Natal coastline.
Whilst the sardines are fattening up and waiting for the gap along the East Cape Coast and in Algoa Bay the commercial fishing boats put to sea and hunt the sardines down, hauling tons of them into their holds to be used for bait, food supplements, animal food and human consumption.
On the doorstep of Port Elizabeth a daily drama takes place in Algoa Bay which is home to 7 different dolphin and whale species. Sardines are an essential food to dolphins, whales and seals as well as our Gannet colony on Bird Island and the Penguins. All these animals can only survive if significant numbers of sardines stay available to them in large enough numbers.
Article courtesy of MyPE – For more in depth information please visit MyPE
For accommodation in PE – Port Elizabeth, Nelson Mandela Bay, on the magnificent sunshine coast of South Africa, Homeleigh Halt Guest House, bed and breakfast style, invites you to…”be our guest….”
Port Elizabeth is referred to as the “friendly city” and is the watersport capital of South Africa.
Friday 17 September 2010:
APD (Association for persons with physical disabilities), in proud association with Algoa Bay Stationers and Round Table is thrilled to inform you of their next exciting fundraiser.
Ian von Memerty from Strictly Come Dancing and SA’s Got Talent acclaim will be performing at the Hellenic Hall on Friday 17 September 2010. Doors open at 19:00. Tickets cost R120,00. Sporting memorabilia and a weekend away for 2 at Kuzuko Lodge valued at R10 000 will be on auction. A cash bar and finger snacks on sale.
The proceeds raised from this event will be going towards our Day-Care Centre. We would like to invite you to support this initiative through the purchase of tickets. Why not purchase a table(s) for your business, friends and / family. This is a great platform for a team builder. Each table seats 10 people.
Check out http://www.ianvonmemerty.co.za/for further information about the artist. Tickets are selling fast. Book now to avoid disappointment.
For reservations, Contact Lydia on (041) 484 5426 or email firstname.lastname@example.org
Homeleigh Halt Guest House supports the APD. Our staff proudly wear their uniforms that are manufactured in the APD’s Sewing Project department.
Port Elizabeth’s architectural heritage can be traced by taking a walk around the central city Market Square, which features several historic buildings.
The centrepiece of the square is the aesthetically pleasing City Hall, dating from 1858, topped with an attractive clock tower. Also in the square is a replica of the Diaz Cross that commemorates the first European to set foot in Algoa Bay in 1488, when Dutch explorer Bartholomew Diaz stopped over on his way east.
Alongside the city hall is the Prester John Memorial, dedicated to the Portuguese explorers who landed in South Africa.
On the northwest flank of the square is the city’s public library, built in 1835 and originally used as a courthouse. The beautiful building is regarded as an excellent example of Victorian Gothic architecture and is interesting in that its façade was manufactured in England and shipped to Port Elizabeth to be recreated piece by piece.
In front of the library stands a marble statue of Queen Victoria, which was unveiled in 1903.
Slightly downhill from the square, at the entrance to the harbour, stands the Campanile, containing the biggest carillon of bells in the country. Visitors can climb 204 steps to enjoy the view from the top of this monument, which commemorates the landing of the 1820 settlers
http://www.mype.co.za/: The birth of a humpback whale was filmed this weekend by a German TV crew which travelled to Port Elizabeth at the invitation of Rainer Schimpf from Dive Expert-Tours. The crew is in Port Elizabeth to see and film the marine diversity of Algoa Bay.
Rainer says; “Traveling around Cape Receife, we saw a breaching Humpback whale, as we came closer with the boat we realized that there were five Humpback whales displaying great activity in this area. They were diving up and down and behaving very excited for quite some time and then, suddenly, a sixth Humpback whale – a newborn baby, grey in colour and a with a bent hump, broke the surface to take its first breath!”
With this historic event caught on camera by the TV crew and still photographers, we have conclusive photographic proof of Algoa Bay being the birth place of a Humpback whale. Shortly after the baby Humpback surfaced for it’s first breath, the afterbirth also surfaced and drifted away.
To read more on this historic event and to view the images captured please visit the article posted on MyPE
Port Elizabeth’s rich cultural heritage guarantees history lovers a unique insight into the Eastern Cape’s and the Metro’s diverse and remarkable past.
The nomadic San were the earliest group of indigenous people known to live in the Eastern Cape. The Khoi displaced the San into the mountains and semi-desert, early in the second millennium AD. The forefathers of the Xhosa speaking people arrived on the banks of the Kei River in about 800AD.
While on his epic voyage of discovery searching for a sea route to the East, the Portuguese, Bartolomeu Dias, rounded the “Cabo da Roca” in February 1488 and entered “Baia da Roca” – Cape and Bay of the Rock (now Cape Recife and Algoa Bay). Dias also gave the name “Ilheus Chaos” (Flat Islands) to the Bird Islands. In 1497, Vasco da Gama, successor to Dias, entered Algoa Bay and noted the Bird Islands on his voyage to India. His charts gave Cape Recife it’s name – “Cabo do Arricife” – Cape of the Reef. The “Bay” was later named “Baia de Lagoa”, by navigator and cartographer Manuel de Mesquita Perestrelo in 1576, which referred to the lagoon situated at the mouth of the Baakens River.
By the middle of the 18th century, the number of ships passing the “Bay” had increased and occasionally survivors of the shipwrecks were given hospitality by Dutch Trekboers (farmers) who had trekked from the Cape in search of good farmland.
At the end of 1799 the English, fearing that the French would render military assistance to the Graaff Reinet rebels, decided to construct Fort Frederick, overlooking the mouth of the Baakens River as a permanent military post.
4 000 British Settlers arrived by sea in 1820, to become the first permanent British residents in the Albany District. On 6 June 1820, Sir Rufane Donkin, Acting Governor of the Cape Colony at the time, named the new sea port in memory of his late wife, Elizabeth.
Before the up-country gold and diamond booms, PE developed as one of the major commercial cities in SA, trading in wool, mohair and ostrich feathers. As a result, the harbour became a bustling port. People traveled to the city in search of trade and labour opportunities.
Early Port Elizabeth was characterized by the settlement of European, Cape Malay and immigrant communities. The diverse community lived together according to economic and social status, rather than on an ethnic basis. Some folk were already residing in New Brighton since 1903. However, when the Group Areas Act was legislated in 1960, this resulted in forced relocation under the “apartheid law” among the non-white population and the so-called townships came into being.
Port Elizabeth was the first city in SA to establish a fully integrated, democratic local authority and has long been a leader in the political transformation of the country.
Presently, Port Elizabeth is fondly referred to as “Ibhayi” by Xhosa speakers, “Die Baai” by Afrikaners and “The Bay” by English speakers.
The Bay of Port Elizabeth is located on the south-eastern coast of Africa along the shores of Algoa Bay.
The city is fondly referred to as “The Friendly City” and tourists, who linger long enough to discover Port Elizabeth’s treasures, soon encounter the refreshing and sincere hospitality from which the city has earned its name.
Port Elizabeth is a superb value-for-money and family fun holiday destination, the city offers a diverse selection of attractions, scenic nature trails, historic heritage, magnificent wildlife, cultural experiences, countless water sport activities and 40km of breathtaking coastline and beaches.
The Bay is known as South Africa’s watersport capital and offers activity throughout the year, especially wind-surfing and fishing.
In fact, Algoa Bay is regarded as one of the best sailing venues in the world, while scuba diving is of world class quality with beautiful reefs, shipwrecks, fish and colourful coral species.
Port Elizabeth boasts a wonderful moderate climate all year round, and has been rated as having the fourth best weather in the world! Sea temperatures range from 16ÞC in winter to 23ÞC in summer. Summers are dry and warm with relatively low humidity, while winters are notably mild, with an all year round rainfall.
Spoil yourself and enjoy a truly unique holiday experience in Port Elizabeth.
Homeleigh Halt offers you superb accommodation at an affordable price.
Feel free to contact us for any further information.
Algoa Bay also offers a huge diversity of marine life that can be viewed all year round.
Each year the “gentle giants of the ocean”, are familiar sights along the coastline (and can easily be sighted from the shore in season.) these “not be missed” sightings include the Southern Right whale, which mates and calves between July and October each year in the large, sheltered Algoa Bay.
The Bay’s calm conditions make it an ideal nursery for calving and feeding of the young.
Humpback whales pass by during June and July and again in November and December.
The sardine-eating Bryde’s whale is present throughout the year while Bottlenose dolphins, Cape Fur seals, gannets and cormorants are also common sights througout the year.
Port Elizabeth is often overlooked as a destination on “The Whale Trail” but it in fact offers visitors the most unique viewing opportunies because they calve in our sheltered Algoa Bay. All too often the fact that these magnificent mammals are our regular visitors do not even receive a mention in the various articles on whale watching which tend to concentrate on areas further down the Garden Route and closer to Cape Town.
One of the most import bits of information that I can share with you is the fact that Port Elizabeth is the only place in the world where you can experience the “Big 7″ side by side!
We are more than happy to assist in making the necessary arrangements for you to view these magnificent animals up close. Book your accommodation now.
Start your day by enjoying a scrumptious breakfast at Homeleigh Halt before heading off on an adventure filled day.
There are many wonderful charters which will take you out to view them from the permitted viewing distance.
The 6th International Coastal & Marine Tourism Congress (CMT) is to be held in Nelson Mandela Bay, South Africa from 23 to 26 June, 2009.
International divers report viewing more marine species per dive in Algoa Bay than a weeks diving in some of the world’s most popular dive spots.
It was the legend of Prester John that brought Bartholomeu Dias to Algoa Bay more than 500 years ago. Prester John, so the legend said, founded a prosperous kingdom of great beauty and wealth in an unknown location where peace reigned and man lived in harmony with strange creatures alongside the fountain of youth.
We believe that this great beauty and wealth is not gold bullion or sunken treasure but rather a marine environment second to none just waiting to be discovered by every visitor with a desire to explore our silent world.