Gonubie is a coastal town situated on the Eastern Cape coastline of South Africa, and around 15 minutes drive from my parent's home. It is known for it's lovely, wide and safe (lifeguards are on duty) swimming beach, estuary and the lush vegetation on the surrounding sand dunes. The warm waters of the Indian Ocean are a popular swimming spot for both tourists and residents alike !
On Sunday we took a late afternoon drive out to Gonubie beach, following a delicious Sunday carvery lunch at a nearby resort (my husband was still here with us at the time, and we were celebrating Father's Day - his first as a father of two !) At the main entrance/walkway area to the beach we came across these lovely sand sculptures (the one above of the man lying sunbathing was my favourite !)
The sand sculptures were all done by the same man - an Eastern Cape man who goes by the name 'The Sandman'. He had a small donation box displayed near the sculptures, where you were invited to leave a donation for viewing his work, if you so wished.
I'd never seen sand sculptures before, only photo's in magazines and the like, so really enjoyed seeing these as some of them in particular were very good ! Best of all, here was someone using their talent and initiative to earn a bit of extra money, rather than begging or turning to crime in order to do so, which one - sadly - seems to come across more & more in South Africa these days.
Gonubie is a coastal town situated on the Eastern Cape coastline of South Africa, and around 15 minutes drive from my parent's home. It is known for it's lovely, wide and safe (lifeguards are on duty) swimming beach, estuary and the lush vegetation on the surrounding sand dunes. The warm waters of the Indian Ocean are a popular swimming spot for both tourists and residents alike ! 
On Sunday we took a late afternoon drive out to Gonubie beach, following a delicious Sunday carvery lunch at a nearby resort (my husband was still here with us at the time, and we were celebrating Father's Day - his first as a father of two !) At the main entrance/walkway area to the beach we came across these lovely sand sculptures (the one above of the man lying sunbathing was my favourite !)
The sand sculptures were all done by the same man - an Eastern Cape man who goes by the name 'The Sandman'. He had a small donation box displayed near the sculptures, where you were invited to leave a donation for viewing his work, if you so wished.
I'd never seen sand sculptures before, only photo's in magazines and the like, so really enjoyed seeing these as some of them in particular were very good ! Best of all, here was someone using their talent and initiative to earn a bit of extra money, rather than begging or turning to crime in order to do so, which one - sadly - seems to come across more & more in South Africa these days. 
