Incredible Namibia

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Just a quick note to say Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Australia will follow shortly - we're working backwards at the moment!

Executive summary: Incredibly different, unique, diverse, immense and spectacular. A country still very much off the beaten track although that is almost certainly going to change in time. Travelling in Nam' is not cheap compared to Asia, Europe or any other countries but it is certainly worth it. The people are very friendly and it is generally well organised but you definitely know you're still in Africa! This should be a must visit country for everyone despite the fact that many have never heard of it.

So on to the fuller version...After the craziness of the lead up to Gus and Tracey's wedding, in amongst which Pam and I were trying to get things ready for our trip and finalising the last few bits and pieces, we finally got to pick up Shannon and Marc from Cape Town International. It took us 3 attempts to do so as one had to go by a process of elimination as to which roads you needed to take to get to the international arrivals pick up point as the signposting was, let's say, a little inadequate. It would be like a recipe listing all the ingredients, explaining step 1 but then failing to mention any of steps 2 to 5. As we found out 2 weeks later the parkade was much the same when trying to find the lifts. What was also quite funny was the little ramp to the lifts being so high that the luggage trolleys couldn't get up it without having someone lift the front up. The check-in systems also crashed but all these aside, it looked an impressive new building although the opening of Heathrow's terminal 5 sprung to mind. And today on the radio I heard a report on these issues and more so it seems a little more work is still required.

But this blog is about Namibia, or Nam for those who can't pronounce it. With Shannon and Marc at home we gave them a quick brief of the plan for the next day - rise at 5am and depart at 6am in our Nissan Grand Lavina with trailer in tow for Ai-Ais on the southern end of Namibia. It was going to be a long drive which would be a theme throughout our holiday. The distances are vast and so in a 2 week want-to-try-and-see-it-all holiday we had to accept that we'd have some long driving days.

The alarm went off at 5am the next day and was as welcome as a hole in the head or a large smelly person in the seat beside you on a 14 hour flight. But with a cup of caffinated jet fuel and a rusk in the tummy we got charged up, packed the last bag or two and departed 1 Julianaveld at 6:15am. Not bad at all, especially for our jet lagged friends from Canada. The drive out of Cape Town was damp as we passed through one rain squall after another so there was little of interest to see. The traffic dodgers weren't up either and neither were the animals so the drive was thankfully uneventful on the way out of town. I turned on Tom Tom to get a directions and distance report. Tom Tom must have struggled because it said Ai-Ais 759km total distance - turn off in 659km - nice and straight forward then - just go straight! As we headed up the west coast so the vegetation started to change - thinner, shorter, sparser (sounds like an aging human!) - Nam was getting closer. We eventually stopped for some lunch around midday a few kilometres north of Springbok which is the last town of any significance before the border. Lunch was a typical travellers lunch being rolls and juice along with various goodies providing a sugarry boost. It was pretty barren under our little tea tree, a South African term for a cement table surrounded by 4 cement pillars for chairs and usually with a little roof above it, or in the case of the lusher environs, a nice shady tree. Nothing of interest to note here really except when one looked into the garbage bin to see an animal skin. I'm not sure how it got there or why although my guess was someone did some unofficial shopping nearby - nice of them to throw the skin in the garbage though!

We eventually wound our way through the hills and mountains south of the border and popped out at Vioolsdrif, a two horse town where only one horse is ever in at any point in time - there are no internet cafe's here, no home decor stores, no supermarkets, and possibly not even any normal people. We parked the car on the side of the road, picked up our piece of "official" paper and proceeded to the different doors in the order prescribed on such paper. First up was immigration - these people are the same the world over as a general rule and I'm sure there are dead people out there who are friendlier and who have a better sense of humour. Them ticked off and our passports stamped we headed to customs - we didn't have any weapons or laptops to declare, so assumed all the booze and food products was fine, and collected our second stamp before heading to the police clearance hut where we were looked up and down, and as neither Marc nor I had a beard of more than 1 day old we collected our 3rd and final stamp and were cleared to cross the border. So into no-man's land we headed and across the Orange River, stopping for the obligatory picture under the "Welcome to Namibia" sign before arriving at the Namibian huts. First up we had to complete the forms before I had to pay our road tax (N$330, about US$50) and we were cleared to go. Our first stop was 500m down the road for some more petrol - the rule was to fill up whenever we saw a petrol station as one was never too sure when we'd see the next one! Seriously, we could go 100's of kilometres without seeing a petrol station, or even human life! Thankfully it was about R1 (US$0.15) cheaper per litre than South Africa which was good news for us given the distances we were going to be covering in Nam.

The B1 north was a solid road, the main road to Windhoek, the capital of Namibia. It certainly wasn't special or particularly wide but it was pothole free and smooth. It also seemed to be fairly traffic free which as we were to find out was the norm in Namibia. About 40km up the road we hit a turn off to Ai-Ais, about 100km earlier than Tom-Toms turn off, so we took it and started our dirt road travels. Note to travellers - Tom Tom is not yet Africa wise so best to go for Garmin or hold off a few years until the maps and data improve. Most roads in Namibia are dirt, generally good dirt, but occassionally can get a little wild and bumpy. The dirt "C" roads, which for those that haven't got it yet are one down from the "B" roads, are generally ok as they are still main routes and one can get up to about 100km/h on them when straight and smooth. D, E, and definitely F roads we avoided unless we absolutely had to take them. Maybe their coding system is B for best, C for caution, D for danger, E for exciting and F for f%&$@ bad?

We had about 100km along the dirt before we got to Ai-Ais. It was a relief to get there, especially as driver, as every bump sends a morse code signal (maybe the car saying are we there yet?) through the steering column up ones arms and into ones bone structure. Checking in at the Ai-Ais camp was a painless process, and they reminded us (I didn't actually know we had!) we'd gone back an hour and so we had actually arrived early, as opposed to mid-afternoon. That was good as we had time to set up camp, always a little slow when we're all getting used to things and finding our respective roles, to get dinner ready and then to get some much needed rest. We then discovered that the trailer was not particularly dust proof; opening the lid resembled a wizards magic potion pot with smokey like dust billowing out from within. That little trick meant that all the cooking and eating gear had to be washed and we'd have to make some sort of plan for future dirt road epics.

Pitching the tent went fairly well until we had to hammer in the pegs. Ai-Ais is situated in the Fish River Canyon, a watery oasis within an otherwise dessert landscape. 50m away from the river there is little more than rock and chunks of rock so trying to get thin little metal tent pegs into bedrock required a lot of muscle and a lot of patience. Marc and I spent as much time straightening pegs as we did hammering them in. Our tent wasn't going to go anywhere once we got them in though! We also had to replace virtually every tent elastic band as the last time it was used was about 15 years ago and the rubber had all but disintegrated. The girls had the other fun task of cleaning the dust off all the cooking and eating stuff so there were no winners in this exercise!

With tent pitched and things cleaned we could pop a cold beer and start preparing dinner and getting the sleeping area all set up. Pam was preparing some butternut whilst the rest of us were pottering around doing other little things. We then became aware of some kind of commotion but as nothing sounded panicky we just assumed it was normal camp site activities and thought nothing of it. And then Pam clapped her hands and shouted "hey" which is her offensive defensive manouvre. We all turned round only to see a baboon standing next to her at our camping table helping himself to a butternut. He backed off a few paces, butternut in hand, before unwrapping the tinfoil and then heading off into the hills with half of it. This was not new behaviour to me but for the Canadians it was accompanid by great excitement and yells of where's the camera! Pam seemed quite comfortable working alongside the baboon (yes we do cook together at home but I am trying not to read too much into that although with the bearded look I am maybe not too far off baboon status now) and had just thought it was one of us in her peripheral view. In fact, an entire troop had moved through the campsite and that's what the commotion was - we'd just all been too absorbed in our tasks and activities to take much note of it all until Pam had started her clapping routine. It wasn't 5 minutes later though and the camp warden was out with his 10m whip and cracking away at it to scare them all off. This whip sounds like a rifle shot when used properly and given our stony surroundings echoed all around the campsite and up the canyon. Luckily we had plenty of butternuts with us and so we didn't miss out that night. Had it been our only one the baboons might have found themselves in a bit more trouble because a hungry man is an angry man!

With dinner out the way and all washed up we headed to the pool which is heated by water from the hot springs. It was a nice place to soak and relax for a while after a long day in the car. The smarter indoor pools were being refurbished at the time but the outdoor pool seemed ok, or so we thought. As it was dark we couldn't see what lay beneath, sounds like the movie, but as it turned out there were a fair few algae like plants which are harmless unless one possibly gets a bit too much of it in the mouth. We think Marc managed to get some in his mouth via the water that night and unfortunately it meant his stomach and body took a beating the next 2 days whilst his immune system fought off the bacteria or whatever it was. It wasn't at all fun and was all too familiar to Pam and I after our Vietnam experience along similar lines.

The next morning we eased into the day before going for a walk up the canyon. We packed a little picnic lunch and headed off to find a nice spot alongside the river. It was hot, very hot, and possibly not the best time of day to be out walking but it was fun nonetheless and nice to see some of the vegetation and different terrain. Shannon spotted a snake that disappeared into the bush too quickly to be identified but it was fair to say we were not alone despite the arid surroundings. Shannon would also prove to be our eagle eye animal spotter, especially in Etosha.

We decided to cross over the river to a little shady patch for lunch. From afar it looked like we could hop across on dry stones without any effort but up close it became a little bit like a game of chess - you had to plan 10 steps ahead otherwise you were likely to get stranded on a rock with no option but to go back and start again along a different set of rocks. The river wasn't deep so it didn't really matter but it was the challenge to try and stay dry that had to be met. Well, most feet got wet, but we got to the other side and tucked into lunch with one eye on the hills around us for any furry shoppers who might fancy joining us. At least being in the river bed and surrounded by rocks and stones we had enough ammunition to fuel a 3 year riot and so any baboons would have had to come very well prepared or be able to throw a lot further and more accurately than us to get any lunch - we were now ready for them!

We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing back at the campsite and in the hot pool before enjoying a dinner of green salad, bean salad, beer bread baked on the fire, boerewors (South African sausage) and lamb chops. A tasty meal that set us up for a good nights sleep in advance of a long and dusty drive the next day.

We awoke the next day to find that Marc was positively crocked. Whatever the bacteria was that had got inside him had now firmly taken route. The combination of jet lag and bacteria didn't go well and he spent much of the day fast asleep in the car as we travelled towards Sesriem - if you knew how bumpy the road was and how noisy it could get you'd realise this was quite a feat and he truly was crocked. Soon after we left Ai-Ais we arrived at the Fish River Canyon view point. There is very little fanfare around the site but it was well worth the trip and very impressive, if not for the enormity of the canyon then at least for the sparseness of the surrounding areas. Those with appetites had a light breakfast before we headed on. And then we were struck by the first of our motoring mishaps as the jockey wheel (small wheel in the front of the trailer) wiggled loose on the bumpy roads and touched down. We pulled over as soon as we heard the different noise but by then the jockey wheel had already taken a bit of a beating and although it was still present and accounted for it's effectivenees as a wheel had been greatly diminished and it was now more of a wobble than a wheel. With it now secured such that we risked not being able to unsecure it later we resumed our journey along the bone jarring dirt road. On the good bits of road we did a comfortable 100km/h with not a worry in the world but on the bad parts just getting up to 40km/h felt like we were hitting warp speed through a meteor shower. Without the trailer behind us it would have been less of a worry but with a trailer in tow the potential touch points are significantly increased and so with the odd hole and plenty of dips in the road it became quite the adventurous drive.

We thought it was tough going doing 650 odd kilometres through barren terrain in a day so imagine our surprise when we came across 2 guys on mountain bikes following the same route. All their gear was on their bikes and when we saw them they were taking a break on the side of the road with not a tree in sight, the temperature in the sun comfortably above 40C and nothing but rocks and dust around them. We later found out that they were cycling from Cape Town to Vic Falls (for the English guy) and to Denmark (for the Aussie). The latter was expecting the trip to take him 18 months...now there's an idea! The day we passed them they also slept in their tents on the side of the road - an interesting proposition given some of the local wildlife but something they have to be able to do on their trip. It certainly is a brave adventure, especially when one considers how barren the area is and how few people pass through on that route. We went hours at a time without seeing anyone, or anything for that matter, going in either direction so it was a big relief when we arrived in Sesriem, partial civilisation, without any problems. We were however shaken to our cores and pretty tired. Driving 650 odd kilometres in a day is tiring at the best of times, doing it all on dirt is even more so. Next time you go to a fun fair try and ride the bucking bronco for 9 hours and see how you feel!

We set up camp in Sesriem fairly quickly as we were all slowly getting into a good routine which would continue to get faster and faster as the holiday progressed. On this occassion though, rather than having to wash everything because it was covered in dust (we'd bagged and covered everything this time) we had to clean out boxes and the trailer. The long drive of thumping and bouncing, especially for the trailer, was the sort of test for most packaged items that would make a bureau of standards proud. Unfortunately not all passed with the victims including beer cans, milk, wine and juice cartons, bananas (no surprise there!) and a lamp filament. If we'd put a tub of full cream milk in the trailer it would probably have been cheese by the time we arrived in Sesriem!

With the camp set up and the trailer and food all cleaned we settled in to a cold beer and a nice relaxing barbeque. It wasn't long though before we had our first of many visitors that night. We became quite accustomed to having jackal wandering around the camp and around our tent at night. They were seldom threatening though and could normally be chased off with a good stomp of the foot and/or a mean stare. After a long day's drive we all slept hard that night and were all rearing to go the next day when we got up at 4:30am for our hot air balloon trip.

None of us had been ballooning before and so this was an exciting first for us all. There are also few places in the world quite like the Namib dessert so this was going to be a unique experience regardless of how we looked at it. We clambered over the campsite gate as the guard was waking for nobody and met up with our enthusiastic mini bus driver. We picked up a few other passengers on the way who looked like they'd come straight from the races or out of the first class lounge before heading off to the departure point. We arrived to find everyone else waiting in the 2 balloons for us and so we hurriedly climbed into the big wicker basket. I was certainly expecting the baskets to be a lot smaller, far less comfortable (i.e. no padding), and far more open (baskets were divided into 5 sections - a main section from front to back for the pilot with either end of the basket split into 2 areas for 4 passengers each. The pilot gave us a brief intro on what to expect during the flight along with a rather exciting run down of how we might land. There is the calm weather landing where a good pilot might land the basket on the back of the truck, and then there is the sports landing which for all intents and purposes is a "controlled" crash landing. So with a couple of tugs on the gas wire and to the sounds of a giant blow torch in full cry, the balloon heated just that little bit extra to get us off the ground and we started to drift off with the wind. It is a very odd feeling cruising through the air whilst not feeling any wind in your face, especially when one is travelling at a good rate of knots.

Now I think every sunrise and sunset is stunning, but to see the sunrise across the dunes and mountains of the Namib Dessert from a hot air balloon is quite spectacular. The changing colours, different sands, and all sorts of shapes and sizes of rock formations and sand dunes is something quite out of this world, not to mention the dessert vegetation and animal life. It seemed impossible to take enough pictures or to quite capture what one was seeing but hopefully you get an idea from some of the photos we've uploaded. Our pilot took us up and down to find the different winds that took us in different directions and he even took us low enough to "talk to the bush" which entailed dragging the basket through the top of a thorn bush. The flight eventually came to an end after 45-60 minutes - it was hard to know when you were having so much fun and time certainly did fly that trip. As the wind was a steady 25km/h when we were about to land we were going to need to make a sports landing - yeah baby!! So with impact imminent and a landing site chosen (we had to land next to a dirt road as it was in the national park and the vehicles are required to stay on the designated tracks) we were told to go into the sports landing position. This entailed us crouching with backs facing our travel direction placed comfortably against the padded basket, squatting down, and with hands holding the straps in front of us. Not long after crouching down we felt the basket touch the ground very gently. Pam mistook this to be touch down whilst I was more sceptical and gave a sideways glance before thinking the trip was over only to see us still cruising through the air with bushes whizzing by our sides. The 2nd touch was a very definite touch as we were met by a cloud of dust and a hail of sand and pebbles. Now we were dragging along the ground with the ground crew (sky boys) trying to restrain us like the owners of a Newfie trying to hold him back when he wants to chase the neighbour's cat. With the edge of the basket digging into the ground like a blunt cheese slicer and the sky boys pouncing on the balloon and basket like cats on a ball of wool we came to a dusty and bumpy halt. Getting out the basket was far from glamorous and you'd be advised not to wear a miniskirt on such a trip (to be clear none of us did!). Essentially you perform a backflip or in some cases a side roll out of the basket and then drop down to the ground (as we were now on top). The people below us could just roll straight out but they would have had quite the encounter with the dessert floor during the landing!

With pictures taken of our "crashed" balloon we piled into the 4x4's and headed to breakfast which by now had been all set up in the middle of the dessert with tables, table cloths, chairs, cereals, cold meats, cheeses, tea and coffee, juices, and enough champagne to keep even the most thirsty of champagne lovers happy! We had quite the breakfast feast and in particular enjoyed the Zebra biltong and other tasty treats that we seldom come across. Even at 8:30 in the morning the dessert was heating up and we were grateful for just the slightest of cirrus clouds that appeared to help knock just a few degrees off the temperature.

Certificates in hand and belly's full we hopped back into the 4x4's and headed back to the campsite for some R&R and pool time. The pool was great, even if somewhat chilly, but chilly in the middle of the dessert can be quite a relief! After lunch, not that we needed it after our breakfast feast, we drove out towards the dunes and on to Sossusvlei. The drive through the dunes was quite something as they towered hundreds of metres into the air for as far as the eye could see and were all different shapes, sizes and colours. It is like nothing we had seen before and truly spectacular. We eventually arrived at the end of the tar road where we all hopped out and then hiked the final 5 km through to Sossusvlei itself, a big dry vlei (lake) in the middle of the dessert. During times of heavy rains it fills with water to create this oasis in amongst all the dunes but for most of the time it is just a dry vlei bed. Walking 5km would not normally be too tough but when it is all in sand it is more like a 10km walk. As a result we didn't have quite enough time to get through to Deadvlei which was a slight pity but what we saw was great nonetheless. The walk back had to be done at pace but we did get to enjoy a lovely sunset over the dunes and passed many a springbok, gemsbok and jackal on our way. Despite the falling sun it was still pretty hot and we all managed to work up a good sweat and a fairly large appetite!

The next morning was another early riser as we headed for Dune 45 to watch the sunrise. We were through the gates at 5:15am, having overcome some issues with permits and African organisation, and were at the foot of the dune by 5:50am. It's always an exciting time when the gates open and everyone races off in their cars to some random spot in the middle of nowhere whilst the rest of the world sleeps pacefully. The snake of lights wound it's way through the dunes along the road and you wouldn't even really need to know where you were going so long as the front guy did! I've always wanted to be the front guy but then go somewhere that you know nobody really wants to go just to see how many people follow!

If we weren't awake when we arrived at the dunes we were wide awake 5 metres into the climb. The sand is as fine as you get and one step up is followed by a 3/4 step slide backwards so it is very slow going - and don't forget it's already hot. And then every bit of sweat attracts about 10 million grains of sand so it's not long until you're also covered in sand. By 6:30am we had summited the dune and found a perch on the crest of the dune to take in the sunrise and enjoy some breakfast. We'd come prepared with tea and coffee, rusks and cereal and were soon the envy of many around us. The sunrise was once again amazing and being in the dunes to take it all in made it all the better. Hopefully the pics will give you some idea of just how awesome it was. With silly pose pictures taken along with the obligatory ones for framing later on we charged down the dunes like Armstrong jogging across the lunar surface with our shoes filled with enough sand to fill a cement truck.

We returned to camp shortly after and packed up our goods in record time now that we were starting to get the hang of things before hitting the road for Swakopmund. We had a shorter journey, almost all on dirt, this time round but it was likely to be rough and bumpy nonetheless - and so it was. We also drove through some of the most barren and desolate landscape, but all very picturesque, that I have ever seen. We crossed the Tropic of Capricorn a few hours into the drive and did the necessary with the camera, as had many others judging by the worn paths around us, before continuing on our journey with the air con as our best friend. It was about 60km out of Swakopmund that we came across another 2 cyclists on one of the flattest, driest and windiest stretches of road we had seen thus far. They looked like arctic explorers with goggles and wind gear on, all in an attempt to provide protection from the sun, wind and dust, although I'm sure they'd much rather have had some cold at that point. With one of them taking serious strain we provided them with a bottle of water before waving good bye, at the same time wondering why they decided to seemingly cycle through the hottest part of the day through a dessert. Most others we'd encountered had opted to cycle early in the morning and get to their destination by no later than late morning.

We eventually got to Swakopmund and breathed a sigh of relief as we hit the tar roads. We found our accommodation easily enough and checked in to what would be our first proper bed in almost a week with solid walls surrounding us. Our euphoria was short lived though as we soon found out that the trailer had done 350km too many on the dirt. The right hand side suspension had not only collapsed but virtually disintegrated leaving a few dents in the chassis and a wheel that would fail any road worthy test. Much of the afternoon was then taken up with, you guessed it, the girls cleaning the trailer and food where we'd had yet more casualties during the bumpy ride, whilst Marc and I found a repair shop. Thankfully it didn't take us too long to find a repair centre. With the problem explained we waited in the waiting room whilst we listened to the sound of very loud banging and clanging in the workshop next door to us. It took a bit longer than initially anticipated and so we eventually went back to collect the girls so we could do a shop before closing time. Supplies were running low now with the dirt road victims and having come across no proper shops for 5 days. With the shoppers at work I returned to collect the trailer. It was now looking much healthier with new struts inserted into the remaining suspension mechanism and new brackets fitted and we were ready to go once again - relief!

We hit the sack fairly pooped that night but with a touch of excitement knowing that we could sleep in the next day for the first time in quite a while. We enjoyed a tasty breakfast after which we were picked up for our quad biking and dune boarding experience on the dunes around Swakopmund. This was going to be fun!! And so it was! Cruising up and down the dunes and giving the bikes a good "burn" was awesome fun and by the end even the girls were giving it horns! Apart from just dune cruising we also did rollercoasters which essentially mean you race as high as you can up a dune and just when the bike is starting to strain you turn down and race back to the bottom. Timing is everything and going too far means you might ramp off the top of the dune (not a good idea!) or the bike stalls and you either tip over, get stuck, or just slide down the dune. A couple of times I got close enough to the top of the dune to see over the edge and I very hurriedly turned back down as the idea of going over the top and facing quite a long drop was not at all appealing. Marc got stuck with a little bit of a dud bike and got stuck in the sand on 2 occassions which provided the rest of us with some entertainment. It did mean though that he didn't have to use his breaks at all, only full throttle!

The quad biking was broken up with some dune boarding. This involves lying on a piece of hardboard about 1.5m long and 0.5m wide and racing head first down a sand dune. I'd previously done this in New Zealand on boogie boards which was awesome fun but a much sandier experience. The hardboard has the advantage of being able to be curled up in the front so you don't get quite as much of a sand spray in your face when cruising down at 80km/h. One does need to keep body parts in the air or and off the sand though as the speed and friction can cause some nasty burns as Marc's elbows can attest too after his first run. Unlike Bart Simpson though, the lesson was learnt and it didn't happen again. After a quick warm up on the baby run we headed up to the big guy - it was quite a hike to the top but it was certainly worth it for the thrill of the ride down. I think Shannon ended up winning the longest traveller competition followed by Pam and then the boys. Not sure of the science behind it all but we were close enough behind them at least to not be embarrassed. It was a great morning out and loads of fun and I'd highly recommend it to anyone wanting some sandy action.

We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around town taking in some of the sights whilst also picking up a couple of souvenirs at some of the many road side market stalls. The German architecture in Swakopmund is quite stunning and I seem to recall reading somewhere that it is the best preserved German architecture in the world, having not been bombed at some stage during the 1900's.

The following day we had another early start as we headed for Namutomi and then Okaukuejo in the Etosha National Park, situated in the northern reaches of Namibia. The drive was thankfully all on paved roads and very uneventful, which made a nice change from our experiences to date. We drove through many a one horse town and in fact we actually saw the horse in one town grazing on the outskirts. Several of these towns were nothing more than a building with a TV aerial whilst some were fortunate enough to have a little petrol station. All checked in at the office we went to set up camp which by now we could almost do blindfolded. We checked out the campsite and with the day now cooling as the sun got lower we headed out on the first of many game drives.

Etosha had had an unusually high amount of rain prior to our arrival and as a result the bush was thick and lush and the water holes full and plenty all of which is not ideal for game viewing. Despite that though, over the course of several days, we managed to spot a lot of game. The highlight must have been the 19 lion (8 male, 8 female and 3 cubs). One is normally happy to just see a few so to see 19 is truly being spoilt, especially when cubs are involved. Three of the lionesses we spotted were on a hunt although given their proximity to their prey were unlikely to catch anything before Christmas in my mind. We also managed to see rhino, enough giraffe to make you think they were rats, and more than enough jackal. We only saw 2 elephant, both bulls, which was unusual for Etosha as they are normally everywhere, but apparently in the wetter months they all migrate north. We saw plenty of buck too with Springbok and Gemsbok being my favourites as both have very clear colours and markings and look very smart.

One interesting part to game viewing is the way different people alert the driver to a possible sighting. As driver, one just slows down and has a closer look without causing any alarm or too much excitement or having to admit that the rhino was in fact a terminate hill or dead bush. Shannon was always direct and to the point - "stop!!". Pam was more along the lines of "I.....think.....I.....saw...... something....maybe" whilst Marc, who saved his sightings for only the most important of animals, like lion, was along the lines of "what the %&^$ was that???". Each method very different but all effective and proven to work. All in all it was a bit disappointing to not see more elephant but we saw plenty of other game for it to be a very successful game trip.

From Etosha we headed down towards Vioolsdrif (just across the RSA/Namibia border) via Mariental where we spent a night in some very comfortable and good value accommodation (River Chalets - highly recommended) and all along paved roads. We payed a quick visit to the Quiver Tree forest just outside Keetmanshoop which made for a nice change from straight forward driving. Normally these trees appear alone but occassionally appear in clusters for one or other reason. The forest is on a farm and as such one is required to buy tickets at the farm house. Normally that wouldn't be worth a mention but as the farmer seemed to descend from the Old MacDonald clan he had a few interesting pets and friends. The dogs were normal enough, as were the goats, but the pet warthog got our attention. Shannon was particularly startled when she entered the house only to see a warthog lazing in the lounge. He was very friendly though and loved a good belly rub or tickle behind the ears!! Pumba lives in Namibia for those Lion King fans out there!! We also paid a visit to the pet cheetah where the sign on the unlocked gate merely read "No children allowed. Adults enter at own risk". Whilst standing at the gate the cheetah wandered over with a hungry look on its face and so we thought it wise not to go to pet it, especially without the owner nearby, and despite seeing plenty of shoe prints inside the cage (but not on the outside!!??).

We crossed the border with far less fuss this time round but still with forms to complete on the Namibian side which, although the same single form for both departure and arrival, were really written for arrivals given the questions asked. On parking at the South African border post one of the female police officers took a long look at our car and when we got out said "You hef such eh nice kur, why is eet sor derty?" and then laughed. She turned out to be quite the character! And whilst getting our police entry clearance, the police officer asked for our passports, took only Pam's and then said she thought Pam looked like Celine Dion! Chuckling to ourselves we headed to the Umkulu camp site from where we'd head off on our Orange River canoe trip the next day. The dirt road there was probably the worst we'd been on during our African travels and it was no surprise when the next day I woke up to find one of the rear wheels flat. The camp site was relatively new and as a result quite bland but give it another 6 months and it should be pretty awesome. The idea is to make it as eco friendly as possible with amongst others, the comapny growing their own vegetables for the river trip meals.

There had been a lot of rain further inland in recent weeks and as a result the river was very full. This not only meant that many of the overnight camp sites along the river were under water but also that our trip was likely to be much faster. This was certainly the case as the following day we completed a mornings rafting in just over an hour without so much as paddling for more than 5 minutes. It was extremely relaxing as a result and a great way to soak up some of the African sunshine. After a great feed at lunch we headed off on the afternoon leg. This too took little over an hour to complete despite us barely lifting a finger. At one point we actually felt the wind in our hair as we floated down the river, such was our speed. We were meant to pass through 2 rapids and go over a weir but the water was so high we didn't even see the weir! Our campsite turned out to be ok however as it had some sleepable higher ground. There was little to set up as we were going to sleep under the stars that night which was a first for many in our group. Our guides, Sas and Ryan, gave us a quick tour of some Bushman rock paintings, along with the less accomplished graffiti version which some people feel necessary to leave behind, before getting what was a truly sumptuos dinner all cooked on the barbeque. We eventually went to bed that night quite tired from I don't know what, only to be awoken a few times during the night by cat fish squirming in the muddy river banks just a few metres away, barking baboons in the hills, and even a suspected mountain leopard. It's fair to say I think most of us slept fairly lightly that night as one always does the first night under the stars.

The next morning we had a great breakfast before being picked up and taken back to camp where we packed up our goods and then headed on to Springbok, for some tyre repairs, and then on our way to Vredendal. We'd seen all of the route before but this time it was basking in sunshine which changed things a little and made it all a little more picturesque. I had thought that the canoe trip was two full days on the river but when we heard it was only one we decided to head south a day earlier and visit a few wine farms along the Olifants river. We got to Vredendal late afternoon so decided to visit a vineyard before finding a place to stay as most of the farms closed around 5. We ended up at the Spruitsdrift wine estate which was a great little spot with nice and friendly staff. The wines were very good too and Marc got to taste his first ever brandy. With a couple of bottles and wine vat to boot we headed back towards town to find somewhere to spend the night, evetually coming across a nice little B&B chalet perfect for our needs. The owner was a lovely woman and no sooner had we checked in and she had arranged with a local wine maker to give us a tour of his cellar and an almost private tasting. We didn't actually know about the tour until the next morning when we arrived but Eric was there ready and waiting for us at 9am. He explained the whole wine making process, showing us where everything went and what happened when, and then ended off with us tasting some of the wines still in the vats before they went through the final filtration stage. The wines were absolutely delicious when tasted at this stage. Their cloudy look should not put one off as the flavours and aromas that come with it are unreal. We all suggested it could be the next wine fad if he bottled the wines in this form. Not only do they taste and smell better but they also keep their flavour much better with all the good stuff still in them. He didn't seem to take to the idea and so off we headed to the official tasting room where we tried some of the other wines as well as the bottled version of the wines from the vats. They were all very good and we ended up with a few more bottles, most of which have now been given a good home!

As a result of the impromtu and unexpected tour we were unable to manage any further wine farms that day and so headed to the Strandloper seafood restauarant for lunch down in Langebaan. I'd chosen this as it's a little different with everything literally on the beach - very rustic and basic but something a little different. As it turned out they were closed that day and so we had to find somewhere else which in fact turned out to be just as nice and probably a bit more comfortable, even if it wasn't right on the beach.

But our adventures were not yet over for the day because whilst travelling back to Cape Town after lunch the puncture repair gave out and the tyre became damaged beyond repair as a result. We had a roadside wheel change with the spare making a second appearance in as many days and then continued on home via Blouberg Strand for the postcard picture of Table Mountain and Cape Town city centre.

Everyone seemed very relieved when we returned safely and I think it's fair to say we were all very excited to be back in a house with nice warm and comfy beds and a bathroom that didn't require a trip outside. We shared some of the stories from our travels that night and then promptly hit the sack for what turned out to be quite the sleep for most. The rest of the weekend we spent exploring the Cape Town area. We went wine tasting at Delaire at the top of the Helshoogte pass overlooking Stellenbosch and Franschoek (stunning views and awesome setting!) before descending down into the valley for a picnic lunch at Boschendal. It was then on to Camps Bay via Lions Head for sunset on the beach followed by sundowners in one of the pubs overlooking the beach. A great day out and the weather certainly turned on the charm for our Canadian guests! It repeated its fine work the next day as we headed up Table Mountain and then down to the Waterfront for a bite to eat and a final round of shopping.

It has been an action packed and pretty busy 2 1/2 weeks but it has been an awesome time and comes highly recommended for anyone wanting to experience something quite different from anything they have seen or done before.

And to end off, just a few very general and random observations from our time in Namibia.
1) The roads are good but oh so very quiet.
2) Namibia as a whole never seemed to be busy and we got quite used to, or not unnerved by, not seeing other people for hours at a time.
3) The national parks and pretty much anything mainstream tourist is expensive - Africa is not a cheap place to travel by any means and is a far far cry from what Asia is able to offer the budget traveller.
4) Most of the people in Namibia were very friendly, the exception tended to be the more government type officials which maybe not so strangely also tended to be the most tardy and unhelpful.
5) Maths literacy in general seemed to be appalling - the length of time it would take people to do very basic calculations was unreal, as was the fact that 30 plus 30 required a calculator to establish the answer, all done at tortoise speed of course!
6) Things seem to work in Namibia as a general rule and things are generally well run and managed. The fact that you very seldom hear of Namibia in the international news is a further sign that things are going ok there.
7) If I headed back to Namibia I think I'd take a 4x4 and ditch any trailers - it's rough stuff there and although a car can manage most things it would be much more comfortable in a more purpose built vehicle.
8) The ideal length of time to see what Namibia has to offer is probably somewhere between 3 and 4 weeks, although even that would still be a busy trip.
9) There was far more accommodation on offer than I expected - very little of it is actually available on the internet so local accommodation books or "turn up and hope" might be a good way to go if one has a wider and more flexible budget.

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Comments

[Jo]

Nam
Hi guys sounds amazing!!! Brings back all the memories of my Africa trip this time last year... cant believe how quickly the time flies! anyway love hearing about your travels, travel safe Jo x