It was Sarah’s Birthday this weekend so we decided to try and go to Ratanga Junction for some gut churning and bad pizza, but unfortunately it was closed due to the weather..(it was bright sunshine) This does not bode well for the future of Ratanga Junction, seeing as we are in the middle of school holidays right now.
If you plan on going do check the website here, from a weather forecast although they don’t seem to pay attention to it themselves.
Instead we decided to check out the new ice rink at the Grand West Casino centre. My wife was born on the 7/7/77 and not a great day to visit the casino if you expect to find parking! So it was very busy and all the parents had dumped their kids in the ice rink/movies/coat check so they could get down to losing some money fast!
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It looks like we are in for a frosty winter. With snow in Soweto?!? and on the peaks in the Drakensberg and Ceres.
The nights in winter here can be chilly to say the least, and subzero temperatures are not uncommon.
The days however can be lovely, today being such an example! Crisp blue skies hardly a breath of wind (rare for CT) and a very respectable 18 Celsius. A perfect day for a surf.
A hallmark of the Cape Town winter is the arrival of the winter swell, which creates rideable waves at our best spots, which lay mostly dormant during the summer.
There are at least 50 surf spots within an hours drive of Cape Town, and many surf schools to show you the ropes if you don’t mind the famously cold water. (which does get a bit warmer in the winter)
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Elsewhere in the world, the term “Cable Theft” refers to illegally having acess or watching TV channels that you have not paid for.
In South Africa, it refers to the actual theft of copper cable, insulation and even manhole covers. The copper is then sold to scrap yards and melted down.
South Africa is actually exporting copper to China, although we do not have any copper mines 
R77-million worth last year ($10.5-M)
The theft of these cables causes massive blackouts and brings trains to a halt regularly.
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South African tourism is growing at 3 times (14%) the global average (4.5%).and at 8.3%, tourism has now overtaken gold as the the countries largest GDP contributor.
Tourism brings in more than R66-billion to the economy annually and contributes over half a million jobs. In 2006 8,4 million foreign tourists visited South Africa. SA Tourism expects to break the 10m barrier by 2010. These are fantastic and positive numbers for South Africa.
Read entire article here.
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Durban is currently gripped by rugby madness as history is about to be made in the Super 14, which is a tri-nation rugby competition between club sides from South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
For the first time in the competition, it’s an all South Africa final as The Sharks (Durban’s pride and joy) prepare to take on The Bulls (or the Blou Bulle to the locals) in Durban! Tickets for the event sold out within minutes and bars and restaurants are fully booked already. The atmosphere and anticipation around Durban is amazing!
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Finally after 10 years The Lion King is making its first appearance in Africa at the newly built “Teatro” at the Montecasino in Johannesburg
I am not a huge fan of Broadway musicale’s mainly because of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Sarah Brightman, but I thoroughly enjoyed watching the The Lion King in London when it first opened. It is a real spectacle of a production, which did an impressive job of bringing the savannah to the west end and it made me pretty homesick at the time.
The first show is schedule for tonight 06/07/07 and so I have no review …
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The Kimberly hole is oft quoted as the deepest man-made hole in the world.
The Kimberly hole mine is not in use any more, but was dug to mine diamonds and at present forms a 215m deep circular pit, which has started to cave in due to ever increasing traffic loads on the nearby N12 highway. The council is meeting to discuss re-routing the highway to save the big hole.
If you are ever in Kimberly, stop by the Mine Museum at the edge of the hole. On display is the largest uncut diamond in the world, the “616″. Its name is …
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It is nearly time again for the world famous sardine run, where gigantic shoals of sardine (which can be seen from space), swarm up the East coast of South Africa.
The Sardine Run can be witnessed at some point between May and July (conditions permitting). If the water is too warm the Sardines will stay out in the deeper water.
Divers come from all over the word to view this once in a lifetime dive opportunity dubbed “The most exiting dive in the world”
The massive schools clump into bait-balls as a feeding frenzy occurs by shark, seal, birds, fisherman and other predator fish species.
It was reported today that if water temperatures remained low, the fishies could be close to shore by next week. If you are in the are check for updates and dive info here.
Sardine run facts after the jump:
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With only 1084 Days to go we can almost smell the…..boots? Stadiums are going up and down faster than stalagmites and will definitely* be ready for the first matches.
Here are the highlights on the progress towards the first African world cup.
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The Vredefort dome is the worlds largest meteor crater and is situated 120km SW of Johannesburg.
It is said to have been created by a chick chunk of rock the size of Table Mountain vaporizing 70 Cubic Kilometres of earth on impact and a crater 300km wide.
Vredefort’s original impact scar measures 380km across and consists of three concentric circles of uplifted rock. They were created by the rebound of rock below the impact site when the asteroid hit. Most of these structures have eroded away and are no longer clearly visible.
The dome is also known for its unusual chaotic magnetic properties, which make compasses swing wildly and amalgam fillings play K.i.s.s FM.
As a tourist destination, the dome is a place of great scenic beauty. Home to over 450 species of nesting birds, butterflies and other more interesting wildlife.
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