Namibia

        After the grueling 8 day crossing of the Atlantic I was pretty excited to get back on land.  I had signed up for a safari with my buddy Ben, which we were told, left the day after we arrived in Walvis Bay.  The morning we did arrive and were being let off the ship my friend Jocelyn (who was also on the safari with us) came to my room and asked if I was ready to go.  I looked at her a bit puzzled and informed her that my group was leaving the following day, at which time SHE informed ME that our safari was 14 hours away from the port and that leaving the next day would be impossible.  I immediately called Ben and he assured me the plan was still to leave on the second day.  I had him call the travel agent to be sure, which he did so reluctantly.  He called me back a few minutes later to apologize and ask if I could be ready to go in the next 5 minutes, as it was now noon and our bus would be leaving in the next half hour.  So we packed up quickly enough, ran down the gangway, and set off into the unknown city with no idea of which direction the bus stop was. (Did I mention we didn’t have tickets yet for the 7-hour bus to the capital?) We found our way to the bus stop as it was pulling into the parking lot and while everyone was loading up I approached the woman collecting tickets and asked if we could still purchase tickets for that day.  She said to just hop on and they would come around to charge us.  So we found seats on the upper level (that’s right, a double-decker greyhound;-) and waited.  She only came by once, but said she’d come back a second time.  Long story short, she never did and by the time we’d taken our luggage out once we’d arrived, they were pulling out of the parking lot on the way to the next pickup.  Dishonest you might say?...ok well maybe, but hey a free road trip through Africa makes quite a better story right?  Upon getting to the hostel where we were staying for the evening, we met a Swiss couple that was headed out for dinner.  So we joined them, though I’m not sure hanging out with 6 college kids on their first night in Africa was their idea of a nice night out, but to each his own.

        The next morning the safari company, Wild Dogs, picked us up from the hostel.  I mentioned the 14 hour drive earlier, but that actually wasn’t made known to us until we had already been driving for about 4 hours in the safari bus.  Somewhere around lunchtime Lombard (our eccentric Afrikaner safari guide) pulled over on the side of the road and announced we’d be making lunch there.  We drove on along the one major road in Namibia until we reached Etosha National Park.  The sun was beginning to set by the time we had to set up camp, but we managed to get the tents all together before dark and enjoyed the meal our guides had prepared for us.  There was a water hole within walking distance from the campsite, so naturally we went over around midnight to see if any animals were getting thirsty.  Sure enough we were able to see two rhinos and a couple hyenas grab a drink.  We played cards for a little before getting some rest for the next day’s adventures.

        Bright and early Lombard got us all up for coffee and biscuits; I’m talking before-the-sun-wants-to-be-awake early.  We set out on the first game drive of the day.  Along the paths were multitudes of zebra and springbok, a few wildebeests scattered here and there, and through the trees in some areas we could catch glimpses of elephants.  We headed back to the camp for a full breakfast of eggs, bacon, range juice and fruit.  Lombard had something special for use in store on the next drive.  So then, after packing up the site, we headed out to the Etosha Pan.  This was one of the most impressive landscapes and settings I’ve ever seen.  It was endless, flat, grey, desert beyond my imagination.  It was as if the ground was screaming for moisture, kinda like when your heels crack and flake off; that chalk-dry, crumbly type ground.  But don’t get me wrong. It was beautiful.  We then made our way to our second campsite, more of a lawn in the back yard of a luxury resort.  There was a heated pool, late night bar, gift shops, bathrooms, showers, and another water hole.  The drive we went on after lunch was the most “successful” as far as safaris go.  We went to the largest water hole in Etosha and found everything from springboks, kudu, and zebra to elephants and giraffes.  I’ve decided that my favorite animal to see was the giraffe.  Something about the way they prepare themselves to stoop to drink or how they glide so gracefully over the uneven terrain just seems so alien and out of place.  Of course some of my admiration may also come from height envy...On our way back to the camp for dinner we got a chance to see what may be the laziest and yet most feared animals; the lion.  Apparently they rest in the same spot for an average of 21 hours each day.  It comes as no surprise then that we arrived in the middle of that 21 hour period, so they were not all that exciting to watch, but I promise I saw lions!  We enjoyed lamb, chicken, corn, garlic bread and salad for dinner, played some cards, and set up our sleeping bags this time on top of the roof of the bus (not everyone, just me and my friends Kurt, Vin, and Jocelyn).  I really enjoyed this because of all things I noticed the stars most.  I’m sure if there are more stars in the southern hemisphere or what, but that sky was one of the most dazzling displays of light and beauty I’d seen in a long time.  It also reminded me a great deal of the summer nights I’ve spent counting shooting stars on the Delta.

        With a long road ahead of us, we rose early, loaded up the bus and made our way south towards Walvis Bay.  On the way down we stopped into a woodcraft market.  This was a tough place to walk through.  You could feel the need of the people before you set foot in the place.  I stopped in at the second little shop and met a man selling some of his carved masks, bracelets, necklaces, soapstones, and salad bowls.  He asked me for my shoes or my shirt and told me I could pick anything in the shop.  The shoes, though they are worn out with holes and tears, were all I had to walk in, but I did have an extra shirt. So I gave him my shirt and he let me choose one of his pieces.  I wish there was more that I could have realistically or more permanently done for the people in that market.  We boarded the bus again and made it back into Windhoek, Namibia’s capital, where our next challenge was arranging a ride to the ship.  Lombard phoned a friend and set up a couple of fifteen passenger vans to take us back down for under $20 a person!  That drive through the Namibia countryside, during sunset will be forever burned into my memory with all its richness of color and excitement.

        For my final day in Walvis Bay, I went into the city to find an internet café where I was hoping to be able to upload some pictures for you all on here, but unfortunately their server could not handle that much file transfer.  So we’ll have to be patient;-)  I finished the time in Namibia walking the town, grabbing lunch, and perfecting my bargaining skills even more.  Namibia is a beautiful country. it was such a blessing to get to go to a port that doesn’t get a lot of attention and certainly not a lot of tourists.  The people there were generally very friendly and almost everyone was approachable and welcoming to talk to.  I even met one of the dockhands, Petrus, who asked me to take his picture by the ship and send it to him.  Namibia was definitely a great way to experience a side of Africa that would not be available in Cap Town, I’m very glad we got to be a part of SAS history as the first voyage to visit Walvis Bay, Namibia.

"Either he was a raving lunatic of an unusually abominable type, or else He was, and is, precisely what He said." -CS Lewis, The Problem of Pain