The Transkei
Wild Coast
When driving towards the Transkei, particularly between East London and the Kei River crossing, it almost seems as if you are entering another country. This, you can tell, is wild, untamed country. Whereas en route to Transkei you will travel through towns and cities much like any other in South Africa, when you get there these bastions of civilization are few and far between, with miles and miles of lush, unspoilt green fields and countless aloes lining the hills and valleys of this beautiful area instead.
Having been an independent homeland, the traditional Xhosa stronghold for many years the Transkei retains a sense of difference and otherness, despite its reintegration into South Africa. Still dotted here and there with traditional Xhosa rondavel kraals perched precariously on the slopes of the perpetually misty mountains and herdsman still to be seen watching the herds of cattle that symbolize wealth here, the Transkei can seem like a land lost in time. Continued
Article by: SA Travel News Editor
