Exploring with my camera
Urquhart House was built sometime between 1806-21 on land belonging to Johan Hendrik Greyling in the Cape Dutch style, with a prominent anchor and stars on the front gable. Incredibly, the reason for these decorations is unknown. The building became the … Continued
On our first day in Graaff Reinet we launched ourselves into The Graaff Reinet Museum which is housed in four historic buildings: Reinet House, Urquhart House, The Old Library, and The Old Residency. Reinet House, built in 1812 on an H-plan, … Continued
The Rev Jean Pierre Pellissier (1808-67), of the newly created Paris Evangelical Missionary Society, arrived in the Cape in 1831. He stayed in Wellington to learn Dutch, and then moved further north to Bethulie. His house was built in 1834-35 by C Gosselin, a … Continued
I read The Boer War as we travelled in South Africa and was horrified by the bungling, stupidity, ruthlessness, and barbarity of the 1899-1902 war. Of course there were acts of bravery, daring, and enterprise, even cleverness, but this was a war which … Continued
Bloemfontein is the Judicial Capital of South Africa and the seat of the Supreme Court of Appeal. It is part of the renamed Mangaung Metropolitan Authority – ‘Manguang’ being the Sotho name for ‘Bloemfontein’ and meaning ‘The Place of Cheetahs’. Bloemfontein is 4,557 ft … Continued