mellow centre of the universe

‘Slow down: fairies crossing’ reads the sign as you drive into Bathurst from Port Alfred, the Indian Ocean a hazy dozen-odd kays behind you.

Quirky and quaint doesn’t begin to describe this laid-back village on an ancient sand dune that boasts two town criers in red coats, not a single traffic light and the biggest pineapple in the world. It’s populated by non-conformists who don’t recognise rules that apply elsewhere: academics and artists, free-spirited entrepreneurs, conservative farmers and retro retirees, including old hippies still selling tie-dyed T-shirts. There’s a kind of Wild West attitude, but in the mellow Eastern Cape ‘up-yours’ way of acknowledging authority.

I moved