I woke up this morning and decided to leave Coffee Bay. The weather came in a day earlier than predicted and it rained last night, but that wasn’t really the reason for my decision. I don’t know why but I had such an unsettled feeling there. For the first time on this trip I felt unsafe and I’ve learnt to trust my intuition, so I was relieved to pack up and go. Maybe it wasn’t a physical safety issue but more of an energy dissonance that I was feeling? I’m just not sure.
I stopped off at Lazarus’ to grab a cup of coffee for the road and he offered me a free spliff with my take-away. I wondered afterwards if they are actually a coffee shop that offers free spliffs or are they a doobie dealing shack that offers free coffee. Either way it’s the price of a coffee, whatever you’re really buying. The coffee is good stuff! So I didn’t get to go on my hike to the Hole in the Wall, and because of the rain and the dodgy roads I wasn’t going to risk driving there in my car. I’m not sure if I’ll be back, but I have resolved not to chase tourist attractions on this trip just for the sake of a photo. It’s about my experience of travelling these roads and engaging with whatever comes my way that interests me.
At the coffee shack I was accosted by the bead vendors and it was a total freakout, because of the Covid-19 situation. I wanted to buy something to support the local community but the minute my window went down I had four people crowding my car and pushing their product into my face. No sanitiser in sight. I was not happy at all. And extremely unhappy because I then did freak out and I don’t care to see that side of myself. But I had to get them away for safety reasons and asking politely wasn’t working. I bought two bead bracelets which I didn’t want and it got me thinking about boundaries and how I often find myself working hard to stay calm and hold the boundary as someone keeps pushing and pushing. Eventually I snap and then I feel like the bad guy. I suppose the trick is to shut it down right at the start in a very firm and polite way. Something I’m still learning to do after a lifetime of trying.
Driving out of Coffee Bay on those potholed roads is a nightmare, but I figured out that if I followed a taxi they would show me the best route around the holes. And then it became a bit of a game as I tried to out guess the taxi driver and find a better windy path than him. I think anyone watching us driving, without the context of the holes, would have thought us all crazy. I was having a bit of fun and I began to think about a computer game that I could create called Transkei Taxi. The aim would be to beat the taxi to the N2 and score points for various actions along the way. Obviously hitting a pothole would lose you points and you would have to navigate the route without being hit from behind by the trucks that don’t care about the potholes. You would get bonus points for things like spotting a great photo opportunity and taking a pic, but you would have to contend with the kids that would appear out of nowhere wanting money. Bonus points for winding up your window in time, and if not then bonus points for getting your mask on before they reach you. You would lose the game entirely if you hit a stray animal but get bonus points for avoiding them. Playing that game in my head is how I stayed sane today, driving for 60km along those terrible side roads.
To make things even worse, I had a work meeting at 11am so I had to “race” to a safe spot with signal to join my Teams meeting in time. With 10 minutes to go I was considering pulling over onto the side of the N2, but fortunately I found a one-stop just before Mtatha. And then, just as I was busy saying my bit in the meeting, these guys pulled up next to where I had parked, put their music on full blast and started randomly jiving next to their truck. It really was funny. My colleagues didn’t think so though. You had to be there I guess.
I arrived at Mount Currie eco park, outside of Kokstad, at 4pm, just in time to pitch my tent before the darkness and rain arrived. I have zebra in my back yard today and a spectacular view of the mountain and lake. It’s autumn here, judging by the golden leaves, and snow is predicted to fall overnight. Wish me luck!