By Tabisa Mntengwana
28 October 2009

THE beach is arguably the best place to be over the summer – and the reason tourists flock to Buffalo City for the holidays – but sun, sand and surf are not all that is on offer.

Loads of fun has been lined up, with activities ranging from a Barbie doll exhibition at the East London Museum to flea markets, with a stroll along the Esplanade and a stop at the stuffed hippo at the Amathole Museum in King William's Town to add to the mix.

A boardwalk has been built over the shark and ray pool at the East London Aquarium, allowing great views of the marine life.

Check out one of the aquarium's ragged tooth sharks, recently released into the display pool. It weighs between 15 and 20 kilograms.

Siani Tinley, the curator, says that when the sharks grown too big for the pool, they will be moved to a bigger enclosure.

One of the most famous visitors to King William's Town is Huberta, the hippo. And it is here that she remains. In 1928, the hippo set off from St Lucia, in northern KwaZulu-Natal on a three-year, 1 600km meander down south. Her adventures along the way captured the imagination of the nation and the world.

Huberta was not shy towards the many strangers she met while she crossed roads, railroads and rivers, cities and towns. Wherever she went there followed journalists, photographers, hunters - and the attention of thousands of people around the world.

Her story appeared in South Africa's newspapers and international publications such as Punch and the Chicago Tribune.

The press, thinking she was a male hippo, nicknamed her Hubert. Later, when it was discovered that Hubert was in fact a female, she was renamed Huberta.

In 1931, Huberta reached East London, having crossed 122 rivers. A month later, three hunters shot and killed her while she was basking in the Keiskamma River. Her body was found floating downstream.

There was a national outcry and her killers were tracked down and fined £25 each for destroying royal game.

Today, her preserved, stuffed body can be viewed at the Amathole Museum in King William's Town. The museum is open on weekdays, from 9am to 1pm and from 1.45pm to 4.30pm; and on Saturdays and public holidays, from 10am to 3pm. It is closed on Sundays.

Barbie was born 1969, and this year the East London Museum has joined 50th birthday celebrations being held around the world for the ever-popular doll. A Barbie exhibition at the museum comprises much-loved dolls and accessories donated and loaned by Buffalo City residents, some of whom have owned their dolls since 1969.

"Most of the dolls, clothes and accessories were loaned to the museum by young girls and older women who still had their Barbie dolls," says Louanne Kirton the museum's exhibition designer.

"These dolls have brought pleasure and enjoyment to the children who have loaned them to us and the public for viewing."

Our Future through the Past, a photographic exhibition, opens at the East London Museum on Friday, 4 December.

It will show photographs taken from the 1890s alongside recent photographs of the same scene, showing the evolution of the world.

Kirton says the Barbie and photographic exhibitions will run until mid-2010.

The flea market at the East London beachfront has been around for years, and is still a great place to pick up a bargain or go Christmas shopping.

On sale is a variety of goods, from old and new books, to food and drink, and arts and crafts. There is a children's section with trampolines and jumping castles. The market runs from 9am until 2.30pm on Sundays.

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