Port St Johns is not some fancy destination but a developing-world town which houses a fascinating medley of characters and blends extreme poverty with unsurpassed natural beauty and great outdoor options. Its rural setting has also made it a popular location for various film shoots, including Shout at the Devil and  Blood Diamond starring Leonardo Di Caprio.

The town is located in the Eastern Cape roughly 900 kilometres from Johannesburg and can be reached by Route N3 via Underberg and Kokstad. An alternative route, albeit 100km longer, is the N1 to Bloemfontein and then via Aliwal-North and Elliot. This route affords an opportunity to also visit the popular Aliwal Spa Holiday Resort.

Approximately midway between Durban and East London, the town has a population of roughly 3,000 inhabitants and is one of the largest towns on South Africa´s "Wild Coast," a 250-km stretch of unspoilt coastline between the Mtmvuna River in the north and the southern Kei River. The town is situated on the banks of the Umzimvubu (Mzimvubu) River, which literally means "home of the hippo" and has its source in the mountains of Lesotho.

Read more in Tripatini contributor Pierre´s post Port St. Johns, a Jewel of South Africa's "Wild Coast".