Transkei – The Wild Coast (South Africa)

I am now sitting in my garden in Germany, enjoying the sun and going through my African memories. Since I got ill I keep looking back on the things I have done, going through my amazing travels memories, and South Africa is the one that keeps coming up in my mind the most. Probably because I haven’t been there in 7 years and I am starting to have withdrawal symptoms. But I guess it is also because I have been in touch lately with all my South Africans friends who keep praying for my health and keep asking me when I will be returning for a visit. As mentioned in my previous blog “Africa – Love at first sight”, I would like to share a few of those childhood memories and I begin with during our Transkei holiday in 1998.

After our first week in the bush in the Northern part of South Africa during Christmas, we headed over to Durban to meet our South African friends with whom we would be spending a week by the sea over New Year’s Eve.

The Transkei, which is part of the Eastern Cape province since 1994, used to be a Bantustan (homeland) that was a territory set aside for the Xhosa tribe and declared independence of South Africa during Apartheid. For those who don’t know it was also the birthplace of Nelson Mandela. I do mention this as you won’t find “Transkei” in most travel guidebooks (perhaps only in the history section), as it is an abolished name and only used by the local white South Africans. From the former capital of Transkei called Umtata (renamed to Mthatha in 2004) we then headed East towards the Indian Ocean, a coastline called the “Wild Coast”. On this note, I have to mention that South Africa has now this obsession of changing names of cities, streets, airports and many more as they feel the old names are a reminder of the apartheid days. Just an example, Johannesburg airport changed its name from Jan Smuts Airport to OR Thambo airport.

Anyway, traveling towards the coast is an adventure on its own: no roads at all, just bumpy and rocky paths and a fascinating landscape to enjoy. For the last 50km it took us around 5 hours drive. But what made this trip so different? Well, we went camping in a remote area where no other people put up tents and we had the beach all to ourselves. We were a group of roughly 15 people and those next 8 days were one of the most incredible weeks of my life.

Three big military tents were set up – each for its own purpose. One was the kitchen and dining area – portable gas stoves, fridges and deep freezers were brought along on bakkies (South African word for a pick up car) and trailers. I found it quite impressive what sort of organization the entire trip required, as everything had to be brought over on site including a generator for electricity. The second one was a sleeping tent for the major part of the group; whilst a few of us had their own tents ideal for two people to share. The third one was the bathroom area with a portable sink and even a hot water shower. I found this set up quite interesting, but I also realized very quickly that it was a bit of an act to get it going. The shower was basically a black rubber pipe that was connected with a water container. However, to obtain hot water a wood fire had to be lighted on to heat the water. It turned out to be a bit of a challenge figuring out the right time when to shower, as if you waited too long the water got boiling hot and you burnt yourself.

After exploring the surrounding area though, we found a beautiful small waterfall just 10 minutes walk from our campsite. The water was fresh and beautifully clear. Instead of showering in the tent we ended up showering every day under the waterfall. Is there anything nicer and more authentic than experiencing something like this? At the end of each day, after sunbathing on the beach, swimming in the sea or going out deep sea fishing, we always took our short walk to the waterfall before sunset. Once a black mamba, the most poisonous snake in Africa, crossed our little path and disappeared in the bushes. This was the first time for me seeing a snake alive in the wilderness and I became more cautions walking in the dark. Hence our shower trip at the waterfall had to be finalized before sunset.

We did some hikes in the surrounding area as well, heading for a swim under a big waterfall and the men jumped off a cliff at a height of 10 meters into a riverbed. I was 12 years old those days, and didn’t have the courage to jump; even though I regretted it afterwards. When it was my Dad’s turn he totally forgot to take off his “good watch”, and during the jump his watch opened and was almost lost in the river. A short lasting heart attack moment but he was lucky not to loose it. We went for a swim at another larger waterfall nestled in idyllic and exotic vegetation. Today when I look at those videos taken I just ask to myself “how many snakes must have been around the waterfall that day”?

Whilst the men went out deep sea fishing almost every day, us women joined only a few times. In fact, they were quite successful and caught several yummy fish that were then prepared on a braai (South African word for a BBQ): grilled on its skin seasoned with lots of lemon garlic, pepper and butter – the most delicious way of preparing any type of fish and until today my favourite!

One day we were out on the ocean when suddenly out of nowhere we felt a big bump under the boat. It was a whale shark emerging from the water and it was hitting our boat underneath. When we realized what it was we were totally captivated and watching the whale shark swimming next to our boat. It was my first whale shark I have ever seen but those days I didn’t know yet that many more occasions would follow in the future.

There are actually no words to describe what I have experienced on this trip, as these things described so far may not overly excite you reading. However, I think that it was a total different way experiencing Africa, and not like an ordinary tourist in nice safari lodges in National Parks or Beach Resorts filled with many other tourist. This authentic way of African life, and spending time with South Africans gave me the opportunity to understand Africa from a different angle. You may not believe me if I tell you that my best holidays in Africa have been those in the most remote and basic places. Consider this as light introduction into my African life, as many more incredible stories will follow.

I thought the best way to give you an idea on how this holiday looked alike is to share this in a short video. Enjoy watching it!

PS: apologies for the bad quality… video cameras those days weren’t that great