Days of Our Lives - Chooeypoo & Flapper: 07 Sep : Coffee Bay (Wild Coast)

When I first started planning for this trip, I was trying to figure out which route to cover for the tour. The only thing I knew was, do East Coast to West Coast. But where precisely? I had no idea... AT ALL.

Anne, who grew up at East London (end of the Transkei (see below)- another name for the Wild Coast -route), recommended Coffee Bay.

So I started my research....

"untouched"... "natural beauty", "poverty"....

I think you guys can visualise the bubble over my head as I read those keywords.
Need I say more?

TRANSKEI (Extracted from Wikipedia Encyclopedia Online)

The poverty-stricken but beautiful Transkei — which roughly means the area beyond the Kei River — is situated in what is now part of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, bordered by the Umtavuma River in the north and the Great Kei River in the south, while the Indian Ocean and the Drakensberg Mountains of the landlocked kingdom of Lesotho served as Transkei's eastern and western frontiers rspectively. The main city is Umtata.

The Transkei has many rivers flowing from the mountains to the oceans, so unlike much of South Africa, it is relatively unscathed by drought. Xhosa, with its distinctive clicks derived from the Bushman or Khoi-San peoples, is the main language.

For much of the 1900s, many black male farmers in the Transkei were forced by punitive taxes levied only on Africans, known as poll taxes, to head north by train to work contracts underground in Johannesburg's gold mines. Some never returned, crushed in rockfalls in mines with very low standards of safety for their workers. Others returned with dreadful lung diseases from inhaling particles, or tuberculosis. Migrant labour has continued to shape the Transkei ever since.

Nelson Mandela, South Africa's first black president, was born in the Transkei in 1918, and still has a home in Qunu. His first two wives were also from what later became Transkei, also the father of his second wife Winnie Madikizela became the agriculture minister in the Transkei.

Flag of Transkei bantustanIn 1959, the National Party government introduced legislation to create eight ethnically and linguistically divided homelands for black South Africans.

For much of its history, the Transkei homeland for Xhosa speakers was ruled by Chief Kaizer Daliwonga Matanzima, a nephew of Mandela's. In 1980, he deposed the king of the Thembu people, Sabata Dalindyebo. The Transkei homeland became independent state in 1976 with its capital at Umtata, although it was only recognised by a few countries internationally. With the victory of the ANC in the 1994 elections it was reincorporated into South Africa, despite opposition from many of its citizens.

Here's the deal. The Transkei is an independent state and very much in a state of poverty. The roads are ill-maintained, boasting of huge potholes and visible deterioration of living conditions. If you see the map, you will notice we were not travelling along the coast. Reason being that there is no motorway built along the coastal line, which is a shame really because one is not able to enjoy the picturesque beauty of the Indian Ocean.

The Transkei is one of the most interesting region to visit for its political history and oxymoron character. I mean, think about it, poor but beautiful. Poorly beautiful? Beautifully poor? It actually serves as a good reminder to South Africans that perhaps the government isn't doing such a bad job after all.

Thanks to my ingenuity of deciding to accomplish this East to West Coast tour, this turned out to be the most arduous sector of the tour. As I mentioned earlier, there is no through road on the coastal line, which means travelling on the small roads. And that's hell of a road to be travelling on! Not all the small roads are tarred so ALWAYS READ UP BEFORE TRAVELLING. The gravel roads will require a 4x4 vehicle.

Even though the road to Coffee Bay is tarred but the potholes are big enough for horses to dung in it. MANDATORY to drive slow on these roads or you can kiss your vehicle goodbye.

Conclusion about Wild Coast?

Try it only when you have plenty of time to spare.

Must have at least ONE stopover between Durban & Coffee Bay. You need to explore the other towns as well. Duban straight through to Coffee Bay is a passion killer.

Coffee Bay itself is not worth the drive. The 'Hole' really isn't such a big deal afterall (see photo below).

DO NOT go in your poshest vehicle, arm yourself with a 4x4.

You will only try it once in your lifetime.

Still can't decide between poorly beautiful or beautifully poor.

For more information, go to the WILD COAST Tourism Website. Great great website! Detailed information including maps and key information like road conditions!

[ Leaving Durban to Mzamba ]

MTAMYUNA RIVER BRIDGE

[ MZAMBA Craft Market ]

This IS (note: not past tense) suppose to be some hip and happening place with vibrant energy, authetic African craft blah blah blah. Lo and behold the shock we suffered when we arrived! Forsaken and forgotten, there were only that many signs of life. I could hear my mama breathing....

[ Along The Way to Port St John's ]

[ PORT ST JOHN'S ]

If Port St John's ever had glory days, I would imagine the place to be really stunning.

If you look hard enough beyond the polluted shamble state, it actually is a pretty town.

It was interesting watching the few existent White kids running around uninhibited, with their hair running wild, barefooted and basically carefree. That's quite a rare sight.