The Transkei is known as 'the homelands' because of the darker apartheid years in South Africa. It was considered a seperate country and was specifically where the Xhosa people could live freely. On the positive side going to the Transkei now you really feel like you are in Africa and in many ways it still feels untouched. There is one main city, Umtata, but it consists mainly of villages. Most of the families could be considered 'subsistence farmers' where they grow their own corn and there are chickens, pigs, goats and cows all over the place. Coffee Bay is situated on the coast and where we choose to spend our time in amongst the hills, overlooking the ocean.
Coffee bay is always one of may favourite stops on the trip, if not my favourite. There is no one thing about Coffee Bay that makes it so good but rather a combination of everything: the people, the Coffee Shack (backpackers), the waves, scenery and the tranquility of the place. Everyone got into the slowed down life of Coffee Bay very quickly and days were spent lying in hammocks, surfing loads, going for walks and chilling on the beach. Coffee Shack offers activities every day for those who want to explore the local area, and many of the group spent a night in the local village.
We spent an afternoon at hole in the wall as well which is, well, a hole in a wall. You'll have to see the photos to get a better idea of what I am talking about! We surfed loads as well and had great waves at the beginning of our stay, unfortunately there was a cyclone up the coast for our last few days and the swell got a little big for most of the group to surf. A few of the crew still took on the challenge and got a few good waves.
Take a look at the pics to get an idea of how beautiful the place really is.
Go and watch the video too,
Adios