My home town : Mount Frere

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August 7, 2013

Unlike other kids I'm not from the suburbs or the "burbs" as they may call it, I have spent most of my time in boarding school which was in KZN and very far from home, but that doesn't change the fact that I am from Mount Frere.

Unlike other kids I’m not from the suburbs or the “burbs” as they may call it, I have spent most of my time in boarding school which was in KZN and very far from home, but that doesn’t change the fact that I am from Mount Frere.

these are some of the Bhaca villages surround Mount Frere

Mount Frere also known as KwaBhaca, is a small town about 100km North East of Mthatha. It is mainly surrounded by many rural villages including Dangwana, Kumahahane, Mbondleni, Mtwana, Mtshazi, Mvuzi, Toleni and many others.

Mount Frere is surrounded by mountains and valleys but it is mostly known for its diverse population. In this unpopular town you find people from different ethnic groups but the majority are from an ethnic group called called AmaBhaca .

Bhaca women dress like this during ceremonies as they are not allowed to wear pants and short clothing

Currently the Bhaca are mistakenly considered to be part of the Xhosa people who dominate the province, but their culture is still very distinct and their kingdom is independent.

During the festive season we normaly have cultural events or ceremonies where uncles and older men slaughter cows and sheep, these ceremonies are attended by a lot of people. There are often people that you do not know however as long as they speak isiBhaca or Xhosa we act and treat them like family. In my home town people do not need an invite in for them to attend a gathering.

Unlike other kids that go shopping when they are bored or go watch a movie, in Mount Frere, one can never be bored because there is just a lot to do and by that I don’t mean doing things you enjoying doing but things that you have to do. One might wonder what I’m talking about, I’m talking about chores !! Collecting cows known as ” uKuqoqa “, fetching water and cooking for more that 15 family members.

The use of alarms when I’m in Mount Frere is just useless because most the time I am woken up by the sound made by the birds in our back yard trees ( more like a forest ) and of cause the ‘cockle-doodle-doo’ sound made by the roosters from 3am in the morning …its torture !!! but one gets used to it.

as one can see that there aren't any proper roads people walk from one village to another — as one can see that there aren’t any proper roads people walk from one village to another

If days pass without me sending my friends DMs on twitter they already know that I’m in Mount Frere, because there is no free internet there and definitely no Wifi and no we don’t write letters to communicate in case you’re wondering how we lol.

Being in Mount Frere is one refreshing experience, away from the fast life. This where I mostly get my inspiration and remind myself about my background, where I am now and definitely where I’m heading in this life.