Namibia - Days 3-4, Epupa Falls, Himba Tribe

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We left Melissa's guesthouse after a good breakfast. My travel mates and I were in Shapa's car today, whose name basically means that he was a 'vaccine marker' - essentially, he branded their cattle. He had another name, that I cannot spell, which means "what kind of weapon" which dates back to the German occupation and how their fighters had to use weapons that were non-traditional but available. When he first started out as a guide, he faced a lot of discrimination, including from other guides, for wearing his traditional dress. Little did many realize that he speaks English, Afrikaans, as well as his native Herero language.

Along the way, we were passing the western border of Etosha National Park, though not going in for a visit. Etosha is approximately 22,000 square kilometers and it's name means "land for men" since men traditionally worked with the grazing cattle and there are wild animals and harsh terrain there. Some people were disappointed to not visit, they wanted a game drive, but that was not part of our itinerary and we pushed onto Epupa Falls. The guides assured us that we had a chance of seeing animals since we were so close to the border. And it was not long before we saw our first giraffe. It was pretty far in the distance, so not good photos. Meanwhile, George took the time to give us some information about the Mopane tree as well as their culinary snack, Mopane worms. Apparently, during certain times of the year, the Mopane worms can be found covering the ground. Thankfully, not this time of year. But the Mopane tree features prominently in their daily lives, including being used in the construction of the Himba tribe's homes.

We stopped at a restaurant in Opuwo where we had lunch for over two hours; all I had was a grilled ham and cheese (toastie). This was pretty standard during the trip - all our meals were at least 2 hours long, usually due to the lateness of preparation for the food for so many people. I was getting so antsy between that and the many stops. :p Road trips in America - go until the gas is almost gone, fill up, pee, and grab food, and be on your way again. Once we left Opuwo, they warned us about their gravel roads, aka "African Massage". I was pleasantly surprised about the road conditions, especially the gravel roads - they were in great shape! You would barely know that you were on one except for the dust. However, the clutch in one of the trucks broke and we had to accept the occupants temporarily in our other cars. Fortunately, we were near a small town with a police station. The rental company would come and pick up their broken car and drop another while we were at Epupa Falls.

We stopped twice more as we approved the falls, once to see a baobab tree that was atop a valley, and then when we saw a group of three Himba ladies, a couple of them riding the donkey. It was pretty neat to see them in their native dress. Sometimes I always wonder if our trips to villages are put on, but this indicated a true adherence to their local traditions, especially the women, as I saw them everywhere. Including in the grocery store!

Epupa Falls Lodge

We arrived at the lodge and, yet again, it was a free-for-all on the rooms. There were some rooms that were located right on the river with views of the falls. My roomie and I got stuck with a hut on the ground away from the falls. We were disappointed. But there were four beds and two bathrooms for us, so.... we tried to make the best of it. However, there was no AC and it was soooooooooo hot. My roomie wound up sleeping on the deck of the restaurant that evening and I was tempted to join her, but if I pointed the fan directly on me, it was not too terrible. Other than that, the lodge was absolutely fantastic. Prime location, nice huts, great showers, and yummy food. The first night we had either oryx steak or two of the women who were pre-known to not eat red meat / meat were allowed to have a vegetarian dish - I was so jealous, it looked great with lots of squash and they said it was delicious. The steak was good too, but I was already getting over the meat - I don't usually eat that much. Second night we had .... I forget, but it was great too! And the views while eating.... amazing.

When we first arrived, we walked to the falls nearby to get some sunset photos. We were right across the river from Angola, so it was kind of neat to see Angola across the way. At the time, Angola was / is closed for Covid, but there is also not a crossing for many miles, so no chance to slip across the border. The next morning, we walked to the rocks to watch the sunrise, and later while eating (delicious) breakfast, we saw monkeys moving around across the river in Angola. So cool. Then we went for a short hike along the gorge where we stopped many times to take photos of the many gorgeous views. It is really hard to describe and not as easy to capture in photos, but it was truly beautiful and peaceful. However, no swimming due to the milky water and possible crocodiles.

Himba Tribe

That afternoon, we all went to visit a local village for the Himba tribe. I guess it is not really a village, but a homestead as they are generally all the same family. It is a bunch of little huts located in a circle around a kraal, where they keep their animals such as goats. The men were out with the cattle to graze far away and they can be gone for months. The women were home tending the homestead, watching the animals, and caring for the kids. Plus they do crafting to sell, particularly bracelets.

Shape wore his traditional dress and George translated and told us their traditions. One of the most important ones was the Holy Fire line - from the entrance to the kraal to the entrance to the main lodge, there is a fire, the coals of which are handed down; you cannot cross the line between the fire and the kraal. George told us this repeatedly and stressed that it was extremely disrespectful to cross it - of course, a couple came close to doing so. We sat in the hut of the head wife while George explained a lot. The bands on the women's shoes indicated the number of children they had. They carried a cosmetics case with two pouches: one for ocher and one for perfume (I forget the tree name, but it smelled like eucalyptus). They also use a mashup with the red ocher and some mud I think to make a paste for their hair. The fathers and uncles decide the marriages - the women have no say, but since it is a family matter, domestic violence is not a usual occurrence. They also get their bottom 4 teeth knocked out at the age of 11 by a Mopane branch.

The Herero and Himba tribes are closely related and are part of the same language family, but their customs are a bit different. While the day to day responsibilities are very similar, the manner of dress and even the huts are a bit different. The huts for Herero are typically square with tin roofs. The Herero women wear huge Victorian style dresses with lots of petticoats to give shape. However, they add a lot of color to the outfit, including for their hats, which have the fronts shaped in the manner of cattle horns, the longer horns indicating younger women. For both tribes, cattle is the main form of currency. The Herero are located further south and thus were more impacted by the Germans, while the Himba in the north were less interactive with European settlers.

I don't typically take photos of the local tribe people because ... well, I just can't. But I do enjoy getting to know how they live and their day-to-day lives. It just seems so simple and peaceful. However, while we were walking toward the crafts at the end of the visit, a little girl just came up to me randomly, put her hands up, indicating for me to pick her up. I happily obliged and carried her around for about 20 minutes. So cute. I am so glad G2 captured the moment - that was my favorite part of the day.

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Falls
Nice falls.