The journey from Coffee Bay to Jeffreys Bay (our next intended destination) is too long for a single day's drive so Alicia consults the Lonely Planet for recommendations. She comes up with Grahamstown. We stop here after eight hours on the road and go straight to Jail. The Old Gaol that is - a converted jail, now being used as a backpackers. We're confined to cell #275.
Grahamstown, home to Rhodes University, is a beautiful town, and holds the record for the largest number of churches in any one town in Africa. It also has the oldest postbox in South Africa, which we use to mail a few postcards.
While in town, we visit the observatory and see the Camera Obscura (the only one in the southern hemisphere). What is a Camera Obscura? It's a "camera" built on top of a tower, that uses a combination of mirrors and pulleys to project real-time moving images from the outside, on to a large round plaster of paris table. The images are crystal clear (it's like watching TV) and athough the technology is from the 1800s, the 360 degree view of the town is still incredibly impressive today. What a way to be given a tour of the town!
