CAROLS BY CANDLELIGHT IN THE
GARDENS
“Carols by Candlelight in the Gardens” – a new experience for George! This
was enjoyed by a crowd of 400 excited, happy people on Sunday evening 11 December, who joined in
lustily with the singing of well-loved, and some new, Christmas carols. Accompaniment was provided
by the 25-strong South Cape Symphony Orchestra led by Mr Niall Jack.
Some orchestral items were also played, notably themes from “Phantom of the Opera” and the “Egmont
Overture” by Beethoven. Thereafter candles were lit as thoughts turned to the Christmas story with
Bible readings and community carol singing. As the sun began to set and a stillness settled upon
the gathering as the wind thankfully died down, it was heartwarming to look upon the scene of
family groups on the lawns sharing in this community celebration of the birth of Christ. Even the
frogs in the adjacent Garden’s dam joined in loud chorus! It was a grand sight to behold the mass
of twinkling lights when all raised their candles high.
Held at the new “Events Lawn” in the Garden Route Botanical Garden, this marked the official
opening of the newly-erected Gazebo - which used to stand in York Street some years back. The
Garden Route Botanical Garden Trust plans to use this attractive Gazebo for further Sunday
afternoon “Concerts in the Gardens” in the summer months, as well as hiring it out to couples who
may wish to hold their weddings in the Gardens ( to book to use the gazebo for this purpose contact
the Gardens at 044 874 1558 during office hours).
A collection was taken for Life Community Services, a local charity which does sterling work in
serving the indigent children of George. People gave generously so more children will have food
this Christmas!
For more
pictures, see "Gallery"
Fynbos Festival, October
2011
What a wonderful experience this year’s festival was. We completely changed
the layout as we were tired of cramming the festival into the bottom end of the garden. The vast
majority of people really loved the new look and thus we are happy. There are one or two crinkles
to iron out in the future but we hope that with more stalls and events the festival itself will
fill out nicely. Do you have any ideas on events to host next year, things you would like to see at
the festival? Then call us with your ideas. Herewith an
account of the festival and its highlights:
Environmental Talks
Definitely one of the highs of the festival, Christine from WESSA, pulled out all the stops this
year, and organised a host of speakers of the highest calibre. These included: Bianca Curry,
Stephan Hattingh, Leif Petersen, Dr Bool Smuts and Jonathan Deal. The students from NNMU are also
worth a mention and we would like to thank your continued dedication to local conservation
initiatives. The talks were fascinating and we were honoured to have these passionate people
speaking at our humble festival. Many lives were touched and hopefully we can start making that
difference.
.
Bonsai Exhibition
The first ever Southern Cape Bonsai exhibition was held in the Moriarty Environmental Centre during
the festival. Hosted by the Kat River Bonsai Kai, the exhibition displayed some fifty-odd of the
Kai’s finest trees. The calibre of Bonsai on display was higher than one would find at some
international conventions, and if you did not see the exhibition you certainly missed out. We would
like to thank the Kat River Kai for this wonderful exhibition we look forward to seeing you here
next year!
Plant
Sale
As always the festival was centred on our indigenous plant sale. We
thank all nurseries that participated. We had a great variety of high quality indigenous plants and
the Volunteers seemed to have more plants than ever before. Sadly Kraaibosch had a massive plant
sale on at the same time and this noticeably affected our plant sales. If you feel that we should
focus on certain plants send us your views.
SPCA Bark in the Park
A wonderful addition to the festival this year was our local SPCA’s “Bark in the Park”. About 100
of the George’s happy - barking canines joined in with their owners to do either a 5km or 3km walk
through the gardens and into the forests. The walk started and finished in the gardens. Heather
Church form the SPCA maintains that it was their best event yet. The dogs and their owners were as
good as gold and we will certainly co-host this function next year. So if you have a dog and are
keen on socialising, bring him/her along to next year’s event and join in the noisy fun.
Needs for next year’s Festival
First and foremost we would like to thank everybody who was involved with the festival this year.
From the nursery ladies to the volunteers helping with the parking and selling plants, organising
and counting the cash. Without you the Festival would not be possible. We certainly need volunteers
for next year. We also need about R 20 000 sponsorship for advertising, security and tents, and
would welcome, with open arms, any donations for this. Stall holders and exhibitors are also
welcome. If you would like to get involved with next year’s festival in any way please do not
hesitate to call Kristen at our offices!