Life In the Namibien Desert

[ by Stian ]

We are still in Namibia, but we were about to experience a completely different part of the country from now on. We were stepping away from game drives, safaris and almost any kind of animal experience and was now entering a way more hot, dry, sandy and isolated experience, which also would turn out to be pretty amazing. A change of impressions was very well welcomed at least by myself.

TWYFELFONTEIN: Rocks Without Doubts

We had left Etosha National Park, and our next destination was Twyfelfontein and it would turn out to be a hot, dry and a very rocky day as we did a couple of stops focusing on ...rocks. First stop was at the Petrified Forest National Heritage Site, where we got too see petrified trees which are many thousand years old. For the ones who don't know – a petrified object is an object which have turned into stone, like a fossil. It was interesting indeed, but nothing special. I was more intrigued by the extremely rare Welwitschia plant, which is said to be the oldest plant, as it can be over a thousand years old, some even two thousands years old, before it eventually dies - because of this the plant is referred to as a living fossil. The plant also only grows in the areas covering the northwestern coast of Namibia and the southwestern coast of Angola, making it even rarer. 

Our next stop on this rocky day was at the Twyfelfontein Rock Engravings. Here we got to see 6000 year old rock engravings made by the hunter-gatherers and later by Khoikhoi herders, which inhabited the area back then. Both of these ethnic groups used the place as a site for worship and to conduct shamanist rituals. In the process of these rituals at least 2 500 items of rock carvings have been created, as well as a few rock paintings. Since this site is displaying one of the largest concentrations of rock petroglyphs in Africa, UNESCO approved Twyfelfontein as Namibia's first World Heritage Site in 2007. The site was indeed nice, but I was a bit underwhelmed now after the previous nights experience, haha. Twyfelfontein literally translates as «fountain of doubt» from Afrikaans

Aba Huab Bush Camp

We finally arrived at our campsite, the Aba Huab Bush Camping, which was another ok campsite, though very hot and dry. The showers were ok too, the only problem was that the showers were located outside and as there was wind it felt like the stupid shower curtain was trying to rape me – AND the shower curtain as freezing cold as well – so the curtain undid all the great parts of the hot shower... ah well. There was also a bar at the campsite, but for once I don't think anyone made use of it actually, but of course most people had some beers in the coolbox in the truck anyways. We had a nice dinner once again and there were some funny jokes going on between grandpa and Muneirah, so it turned out be a pretty quiet evening, compared to previous evenings. I was happy too, as I was actually able to get another good nights rest, despite the night being a cold one.

On the Road Again...

The next morning we had another long drive ahead of us as we were going to the city Swakopmund, a drive which was indeed a hot one as well. Despite the nights being freezing cold, the days are burning hot often... the irony of Africa during winter, ah well. On our way we did several stops, which was nice – as it really made the drive feel shorter and more interesting. The first stops we did were at spots where different ethnic people of Namibia had made some kind of souvenir business for themselves, then we stopped at the skeleton coast as well before arriving into Swakopmund.

Stop 1: Herero People

The first stop was the site of the Herero People, which is a etnhic group living in the Southern Part of Africa, though most resides in Namibia. About 240 000 Herero people are still alive today and they are either Christians or live by traditional faith. The ladies of the Herero people are widely known today because of their elaborate Victorian dresses. We did not stay for a very long time though. We only came to look if there was anything interesting to buy from their souvenir stands and also to get to take a photo, though we of course had to pay for getting a photo taken with one of the women.  

Stop 2: Himba People

The second stop was made at the site of the Himba people, a semi-nomadic, pastoral people, closely related to the Herero people, living in the Northern part of Namibia as well as across the border on the Angola side. Despite the harsh living environment, the Himba people have been able to maintain their traditional culture. The Himbas are famous for the way they look. Especially the women as they cover themselves with otjize, which is a mixture of butter fat and ochre, possibly to protect themselves from the sun. The mixture gives their skin a reddish tinge, which is seen as the ideal of beauty by the Himbas. The women also braid each others hair, which they also cover with the same mixture. Both men and women are walking around topless, and if they do get hold of more modern-style clothing it's usually the men who gets to wear this type of clothes. There is only about 50 000 remaining Himba people left alive.

The Himbas we met also had a souvenir stand by the road, which we had the opportunity to purchase from. As our car stopped by the road this one Himba woman came running like a maniac, causing her breasts to bounce from side to side at the same time. It was pretty hilarious to see to be honest – if only the men could have done the same thing, but then with their «bouncers» of course,) haha. I ended up purchasing a bracelet for once actually – even though I did not feel like it – but I guess it was just my time this time:)

Stop 3: Zeila Wreck at the Skeleton Coast

Our third stop was at the coast of Namibia, which is referred to as the Skeleton Coast, as there are more than a thousand shipwrecks littering the coast, one of which was the Zeila Wreck. The reason for all these shipwrecks is the notorious fog which originates offshore from the collision of the cold Benguela Current and warm air from the Hadley Cell (a tropical atmospheric circulation), which then frequently envelopes parts of the Namib desert. Coastal regions can experience more than 180 days of thick fog a year. This has provided a major hazard for ships, and the coast has been referred to as «the gates of hell» by Portuguese sailors, and «the land God made in anger» by the bushmen. The fog can reach as deep as 140 km inland, and is a vital source of moisture for desert life.

So we had definitely reached the desert at this point, but it was freezing cold when we got out of the truck to view the ship. Just as we were there we had clear sky and no fog thankfully so the photos turned out nice – haha. Some of the guys wanted to do a prank on Lucas and lifted him up and ran towards the water pretending like if they were to throw him into the water, but they did not. Lucas fought vigorously and was not happy with this type of pranks. The rest of us found it a bit funny though;)

SWAKOPMUND

We finally arrived Swakopmund, which is a city located on the coast of northwestern Namibia, in the Namib desert – approximately 280km west of Windhoek. Our first impression was not great, as the whole town was covered in cold and moist fog. Literally, Swakopmund translates from German as «mouth of Swakop» as the city is named after the Swakop River which runs through the town. The town has 42,000 inhabitants so it is not a very big town at all. The town is a beach resort and an example of German colonial architecture as it was founded in 1892 as the main harbor for German South-West Africa. A sizable part of the population is still German-speaking today. As Swakopmund is surrounded by the Namib Desert on three sides and the cold Atlantic waters to the west, the small town «enjoys» a mild desert climate, and it rarely rains – as there is less than 20 mm of rainfall per year, but the city might be covered by the cold and moist fog for more than half of the year sometimes... ah well.

Activity Center in Swakopmund

Just after arriving Swakopmund, but before arriving to our place of accommodation, we made a stop at the activity center in Swakopmund, were we were presented with a video of all the different activities we could take part in while in Swakopmund. Among the activities we had sandboarding, quadbiking, skydiving, white water rafting, dolphin cruises and so on... of course most of these activities were a bit pricey again, so I chose to go for sandboarding and quadbiking the next day – as most others chose as well. Though most of the group also chose to do skydiving the same evening of our arrival, which would have been great to do again, but as it was a bit expensive (but still cheaper compared to New Zealand) I chose not to do it again at this moment.

Amanpuri Travelers Lodge

In Swakopmund we were staying at the Amanpuri Travelers Lodge for two nights. This place was more like a hostel, but also had private rooms. We were all lodged into the same room – meaning 20 people in the same room. For many this was not an option at all and several tried to get upgrades. Kenneth did not feel like sharing a room with so many people at least, and I had to agree – so I chose to go with him and we upgraded. I only for one night though as I didn't feel I could afford both nights. So the next night I did join the others in the dorm. It was not bad, but 20 people «fighting» for the shower at the same time is not very ideal I have to admit...

Sightseeing in Swakopmund

Most people chose to go skydiving in the evening, but I, Kenneth and Muneirah chose to go sightseeing on our own. Unfortunately it was a very foggy, moist and cold day in Swakopmund, so the sightseeing did not turn out to be fantastic. We did though drop by the typical sights – like the lighthouse, the jetty pier and the spot of the flamingos by the river mouth. All very nice places, but the pictures would have turned out so much better it the weather had been better.. oh well. The Jetty Pier was still kind of amazing though, as the pier stretches out into the water for quiet a long distance and the waves this day was very strong and at times they even flushed over the pier itself. Of course the following day turned out to be much better, and I could have done the whole sightseeing part over again then, but as I had other plans made this did not happen.

Best F***ing Steak EVER!

In the evening we all gathered for dinner at the Napolitana Restaurant, located right next to the activity center. As this was an Italian restaurant most of the menu contained Italian food, but thankfully there were some local dishes as well, of game meat. I chose to go for Kudu steak, as I have been told it tastes really good, and OMG how right was that! The Kudu steak is by far the best steak I have ever had in my life. It was cooked to perfection as it had been based during the cooking process. It was served with chips and as I thought the steak itself could be a bit dry I chose to get mushroom sauce on the side. I was so wrong as the steak was anything but dry and the mushroom sauce added absolutely nothing to it. I would «kill» to experience this steak over again:)

Party In Swakop

Unfortunately, once again, the newbies turned out to be very loud during dinner, and all other guests were turning around, obviously displeased with our table... It was once again very embarrasing, ah well. Though, unlike most other nights I actually felt like partying myself this night, so I did have a beer with my steak, and after the meal we all went over to the connecting bar of the restaurant, where most of us drank and had fun for some hours. This was also the first time during the trip that I got to «show off» my passion for «dancing». It all turned out to be a very fun evening, and I got along well with the newbies. I think almost all of them made a comment of how fun I was when I was drinking, and they asked me why I did not drink more often. I of course tried to explain them that I actually don't need to drink to feel that I am having fun, unlike some others, but I don't think they got my point at all. It was still a really fun evening.

Dirk the Macho Man

I also got to meet this guy, Dirk, who was from Cape Town originally. He actually came up to me for a nice chat and told me that I definitely had to get in touch when I came to Cape Town, so he could take me out and show me a real party. He also told me about the hot girls, whom were models, which would love to meet me when I got there. Dirk was nice enough and actually very handsome as well – at least in my eyes – but he was a bit strange. He tried to make a comment to poor Katrine (who was very drunk this evening) that she had to be careful about her dress so it didn't fall off. She completely misunderstood his intentions so she was upset with him, thinking he was being rude, haha. Ah well. Dirk also approached Sandipan with the same suggestion as he had made for me. It was a bit strange why he only approached the two of us.... I actually do suspect he might not have been any interested in Katrine at all, as he might be a player for the other team, despite being a supermacho man in every way. I never got to meet him again though – so I guess I'll never know.

The curious case of Ivan

Poor Ivan, our new guide, turned out to be so so so so so so drunkt his evening. He was not able to stand at all on his feet. TJ had had sense and gone home earlier – thankfully some of the newbies took care of Ivan and made sure that he got back to the hostel safe. The next morning we met Ivan again at the breakfast and he did not seem very hungover at all – just a bit quiet. I told him if he felt hungover but he just laughed and told us that he never gets hungover. He is always the «last» one to go to bed and still the first one to get up. Good for him;)

Sand Boarding

One of the activities I had chosen to do while in Swakopmund was sand boarding, which turned out to be superfun, though also damaging, that is for me at least. We were picked up in the morning, and then taken to the sand dunes just outside of Swakopmund. Our driver and guide for the day was Clayton, a handsome local dude, almost looking like a surfer-dude. At the dunes we were instructed in how to go through with the sand boarding – and then we got to go. We were literally sliding down the dunes on a chipboard. If we did not do the technique correctly we would risk flipping around and maybe hurting ourselves. We started off with the least steep dunes, until we felt that we had the grip of it. We eventually moved on to steeper and longer dunes, before trying out tandem-boarding, which I did with Kenneth, and ending up with the longest and steepest dune. It was at this point it all went for me. I had managed all the other dunes well, and my technique was fine. So when I was to set for the steepest and longest dune I did it all so perfectly well that I ended up flying on a jump midway and when I landed the fall was so hard that I hit my head in the sand, ending up swallowing five kilos of sand, breaking my shades (AGAIN) and bruising my lip, while bleeding both from my teeth and my chin. It turned out that I had exceeded a speed of 70 km/h, so it was no wonder it hurt when I hit my face in the sand. Ah well. In other words: I ended up being the only one getting really beaten up at sandboarding this morning.  

After we had finished the sandboarding session we had lunch, which was included in the package. So despite being beaten up till bleeding point, I still enjoyed sandboarding a lot as it was lots of fun and really heart accelerating.

Fixing my computer

I was supposed to do quadbiking in the afternoon, but as my laptop had malfunctioned I wanted to get it fixed... So I chose to do that instead as I had to get it done this day, and also I did not know how much it would cost. So I and Kenneth walked around the center of Swakopmund again, and we found the Acer Service Center, which was pretty amazing that they at all had (I had never guessed I would find one in this tiny town at least). I turned in my computer and got it back an hour later. This of course cost me almost 500 NOK – which is super expensive, so I was glad I did not go to the quadbiking as I could not have afforded both. Unfortunately I realized LATER that they had fucked up the sound-card-whatever-it-is in my laptop – so I have no sound at all on it anymore. They must have messed up something when they took it apart to fix the charging-connection (which was the initial problem) and then messed up another connection... which I did not realize until we had left the city, and it was too late anyway for me to go back and get it fixed. So now I have to go to another place, somewhere else and pay just as much to get the sound-system fixed as well.... I hate my life sometimes!!!!

Ocean Basket Restaurant

In the evening we headed for dinner at the Ocean Basket Restaurant, which is a pretty crappy chain in Namibia and South-Africa. Some of the group went ahead to the restaurant, while most (read: the early 20-something) did not like fish or seafood at all so they went back to Napolitana restaurant. I chose to wait back with Muneirah, and also Ivan. Ivan had made sure that he knew the way to the restaurant so we would find our way easily. Well he turned out to know nothing, as he first turned left, then right, then right, then left, then another turn and then had to ask someone, before making another wrong turn... ah well. We were almost right back at our original starting point, before he eventually found out the way. So basically, the direction was: Go straight, turn left at the first corner and go straight until you have the restaurant on your right hand! That was indeed a hard direction to follow for our brilliant guide;) haha. I and Muneirah of course just HAD to make fun of him because of this;) At the restaurant I ended up having only a fish and chips place, which was not as tasty either to be honest...so I actually regretted not going to Napolitana with the rest.

Mondeza Township Tour

The last day in Swakopmund we went for a township tour in the early morning, which was included in our tour-package. We had a nice guide who picked us up in the morning and took us to the township Mondeza. Here we were once again introduced to the Herero-culture, as we were taken to a home of a Herero woman. As we were a big group she joined us outside her house and we were told to ask her questions about her ethnicity and so on. It was interesting, but I have to be honest and say it was both too early in the morning and too misty and chilly in the air for us to come up with any good questions – and all we could get out of her is that the man decides everything, the woman has nothing she should have said – but that's they way she liked it anyways. Ah yes... and a man can have several wifes, and if a man dies, his brother inherits all of his wifes as well... so it is possible to be married with let's say 3 wifes – and the next day you have 7 more. Sounds like a fun and interesting situation, or not;) haha

We were also taken to second house, which seemed more of the normal kind. The lady of this house belonged to the Damara-people, which our guide also belonged too. We were invited in and got a quick course in the click-language, which was pretty much impossible to understand anything of, haha. Also, we got to smell a whole bunch of herbs, which is used for medication purposes and so on. The tour ended afterwards with us dropping by a small arts and crafts center, were most of the girls at least seemed to purchase more souvenirs;)  

NAMIB DESERT

So what is the driest and oldest desert in the world? No it's not your grandma! It was our next destination, the Namib desert itself:) The Namib is a coastal desert, which stretches for more than 2000 kilometers along the Atlantic coast of Angola, Namibia and South Africa. The northernmost portion of the Namib desert is known as Mocamedes Desert, while it's souther portion approaches the neighboring Kalahari desert. The Namib desert is the only true desert in Southern Africa as annual perception ranges from 2 mm in the most arid regions to 200 mm at the escarpment located up to 200 km inland. The desert geology consists of sand seas near the coast, while gravel plains and scattered mountain outcrops occur further inland. The sand dunes, some of which are 300 meters high and span 32 kilometers long, are the second largest in the world after the Badain Jaran Desert dunes in China. Also, the Namib desert is said to be the oldest desert in the world.

Passing the Tropic of Capricorn (again)

The ride to our next campsite was a long and bumpy ride – and all we could see was the desert all around us. It was indeed interesting, but also pretty boring. We had to pass through the Kuiseb pass and the Gaob pass, and these areas were pretty nice. We even had lunch at the Kuiseb pass, but it was HOT! We also made a stop at the Tropic of Capricorn, as we were leaving the tropical area of Africa. So just as we did in Australia we had to take a few photos here as well – and we also let TJ have some fun with his whip while we were at it, that is taking photos – haha. Afterwards some of the others got to try the whip as well, but it was for sure that TJ was the only master of the whip on this trip at least;)

Namib Desert Camp

The campsite itself was nice and the «bathrooms» were really nice. There was also a bar at the campsite where they sold really cheap beer and sodas – I think it actually cost the exact as in the stores, so they could probably not make any money at all in this bar really. We were supposed to do a desert walk with some guides at the site, but it was an optional activity which we had to pay for, so no one actually felt like doing the walk really as it was so hot. I don't think our guides appreciated that no one wanted to do the walk, as we were told later that it is the money from these guided walks which the campsite make money off. So it was basically another incident were we were almost pushed to do an optional activity, which suddenly did not feel like was an optional activity anyways. At one point I felt it was becoming to many «optional» activities, and some of them should have just been included in the total price of the tour already... ah well. At least I, Ingrid, Muneirah, Ann Sofie, Katrine and Silje did a short hike on our own.  

Loving The Camera

As Silje is a professional photographer, or at least she has a major in photography, she wanted to try to take some funny photos this evening. So it was me, Muneirah, Ingrid and Lucas who joined Silje for this experiment – and WOW. There is so much I don't know about photography that I would have loved to have learned as there are so many techniques I have never heard about before. Silje got us to make some really cool photos, so we did have a blast this evening. Actually we, from the «old» group were the last ones to go to bed this evening for the first time since the arrival of the newbies, haha.

SOLITAIRE

The next day we were heading for the Sesriem and on our way we passed the very very very tiny settlement of Solitaire. Solitaire is a small settlement in the Khomas Region of central Namibia near the Namib-Naukluft National Park. It currently features the only gasoline station, post office, bakery, and the only general dealer between the dunes at Sossusvlei and the coast at Walvis Bay, as well as to the capital Windhoek. The name Solitaire was chosen by the wife of the farmer who purchased this undeveloped area with the means of farming Karakul sheep in 1948. Solitaire can mean a single set diamond, but it can also mean solitude or loneliness. Combined these two meanings create the definition of being unique or one-of-a-kind and a precious but solitary place.

As Solitaire is situated in a junction of two major tourist routes through the Namib-Nauklauft National Park, there are tourists and tour companies frequently stopping by this settlement, like ourselves. The small settlement is amazing in every way. At first sight it looks like a tiny village in the wild west of USA, as you have several rusty cars laying around the area. There is one gas station, and also a bakery, which makes the best apple cake and buns ever. We could spot several tourists stop by here – and there is also a self serviced air strip at the place which is used by self-flyers at times. I do believe business is going well here, despite it being a tiny spot in the middle of the desert.

SESRIEM

Our destination for the day was Sesriem, which is another small settlement located in the Namib Desert, close to the southern end of the Naukluft Mountains. The settlement is especially known because the "Sesriem gate" is the main access point to the Namib-Naukluft National Park, the third largest national park in Africa, for visitors entering the park to visit the nearby tourist attractions of Sossusvlei, Deadvlei and also Sesriem Canyon. Though, as many "settlements" in the Namib, Sesriem is essentially a filling station with basic services such as public telephones and a couple of small kiosks where travelers can get general supplies such as food and water.

The Sesriem Restcamp, where we were to spend this one night, was just ordinary. At least it had a bar and all those things for the ones who needed to get something to kill their thirst with. The interesting things were of course the «tourist attractions».

Deadvlei

After check in we first checked out the Deadvlei, which is a white clay pan located near the more famous salt pan of Sossusvlei. Deadvlei (or Dead Vlei) is made up by the English word «dead» and the Afrikaans word «vlei» which translates as «lake» or a «marsh» in a valley between the dunes. So it translates to «dead marsh» or «dead lake». The clay pan was formed after rainfall, when the Tsauchab river flooded, creating temporary shallow pools where the abundance of water allowed camel thorn trees to grow. When the climate changed, drought hit the area, and sand dunes encroached on the pan, which blocked the river from the area, with the result that the trees died, as there no longer was enough water to survive. The remaining skeletons of the trees, which are believed to be about 900 years old, are now black because the intense sun has scorched them. Though not petrified, the wood does not decompose because it is so dry.

So what is there to do at this area? Of course we had to climb the trees... We did though not actually considering they might break and how that actually would affect the area, as the trees is the main attraction here really. Well we did manage not to break any trees or branches – even though half of our group tried to climb the same tree at the same time. Some silly people had not considered that these horrible dry trees could cause splinters so several of my travel mates got severe splints in their hands, thighs and under their feet and spent the rest of the evening picking splinters... it did NOT look like a very fun experience... but we got some nice photos at least:) The drive from the entrance to the vlei was a extremely sandy one. The sand is so soft it made it really difficult to overcome at times, some tourists had even gotten stuck in the sand, but we luckily managed to get through safely.

Sossusvlei

Next up we were all supposed to go to Soussusvlei, which is another salt and clay pan. It turned out that half of our group had not understood the instructions so when they were picked up by our drivers (we were split into two groups) they had gone straight back to the entrance of this tourist area. So it was only a few of us who got to go to the Sossusvlei, but we did only stay for a few minutes at the main dune-area, and got to take a few photos before we decided to return as well so we could have our lunch. Soussusvlei is by the way translated as «Dead-end Marsh» as Sossus is Afrikaans for «dead-end» or «no return».

Sesriem Canyon

After lunch, and on our way back to the campsite, we stopped by the Sesriem Canyon, which is located about 4 km from the campsite. The canyon is a natural canyon carved by the Tsauchab river in the local sedimentary rock and is about a kilometer long and up to 30 meters deep. In some places the canyon is only two meters wide. There is also a portion in the canyon that permanently contains water, which many animals use. The name Sesriem is Afrikaans and means "six belts" and was given by settlers who had to attach together six belts (made of oryx hides) in order to reach buckets down into the canyon to scoop up water. Though, as we learned in Australia, even this canyon is actually a gorge, as it is carved by a river... I guess they thought canyon sounded better.

Coldest Night EVER

The same evening we had another nice dinner meal, but the temperature was dropping close to the freezing point. We had been warned before our trip that the Namib desert would be an extremely cold experience, and we had indeed been told right. It really did not help that I had an extra blanket this coming night as it was the worst night of the trip so far coming to temperature, and that still considering that I had four layers of clothes, a woolen blanket and also my stupid sleeping bag...

Sunrise at Dune 45

The next morning we had another very early morning as we were to catch the sunrise at the famous Dune 45, which is located 45km past Sesriem on the road to Sossusvlei, hence it's name. It is known as "the most photographed dune in the world" because of its unusually simple and fascinating shape. Also it's proximity to the road make it convenient for visitors to stop by and take pictures. It is 80 meters high and it is not very steep, so it can easily be climbed. Though the use of the word «easy» is definitely up for discussion in this case, as the sand is extremely fine and soft, and as you hike the dune your steps sinks into the sand and it might become a touch and exhausting climb. At least it was for us who were trying to run up the dune as to be sure to be on the top for the sunrise. We also realized that the dune was much higher than what it looked like from the ground, as when we reached the part which we perceived as the top from the foot of the dune, we realized that we had only come a third of the way towards the top. So this morning we really had some exercise for sure, haha. 

The sunrise itself was ok, but the whole experience was very cold as the wind on the top of the dune was very chilly. On the way back down some, including myself, chose to run down the steepest side of the dune, which was quick and easy, while some crazy people (you don't even have to guess as it of course was Muneirah and Silje) chose to roll down the same side, haha. Of course we all had sand all through our underwear for the rest of the day though... haha. When finally back at the truck TJ and Ivan had made a fantastic breakfast for us to enjoy – a breakfast worthy of champions containing beans, sausages, scrambled eggs and even mushrooms to go with our bread:) LOVE!

On the Road Again.... part 40-something.

Our final destination in Namibia would be the Fish River Canyon. To get there we had another long drive of course. We did though pass some nice locations on the way – among them the Zaris Mountains. We also stopped by the very small settlement Helmeringhausen for shopping. Helmeringhausen does though not have an official governing body nor status, as it is completely situated on private land, and all infrastructure except the roads are part of Farm Helmeringhausen. Still, it features a small airfield, a country hotel, and a private agricultural museum. So there were SOME things here, despite it being «only a farm». We also did a very short stop at the small village of Bethanie as well before finally arriving at our next campsite...though this small village seemed way less interesting at first compared to Helmeringhausen....so I did not get any photos from this very short stop we made.

FISH RIVER CANYON

We finally arrived at our campsite, which was the Hobas Rest Camp, located in the Ai-Ais National Park, about 10 km from the Fish River Canyon viewing point. At the camp we just got most of the food and kitchen stuff off the truck right away before jumping on the truck again and heading towards the canyon, as we were to catch the sunset from the viewing point. We did not have luck this time though, as we were about 5 minutes late for the sunset unfortunately. The canyon, read: the gorge, itself was very very nice though. So we did spend some time there, enjoying the view and exploring the area. TJ had also made a surprise for us as well as he had brought cheese and crackers along with wine and other kind of snacks so that we all could enjoy ourselves while admiring the view.

The Fish River Canyon is the second largest canyon in the world, beaten by the Grand Canyon. It is therefore the second most visited tourist attraction in Namibia. It features a gigantic ravine, which is in total about 160 km long, up to 27 km wide and in places almost 550 meters deep. More than half the size of Grand Canyon. It is still a pretty impressive sight. The area of the viewing point belongs to the Ai-Ais National Park, but 90 km of the canyon is privately owned. The canyon is believed to have been formed about 650 million years ago.  

The canyon also offers a hiking trail which has become one of the more popular hiking trails in Southern Africa. The immense scale and rugged terrain has drawn many visitors from all over the world to experience what hiking or trail running the canyon can offer. Apart from the 2 kilometer descent west of Hobas and some optional short cuts, the trail generally follows 88 kilometers of the Fish River through to Ai Ais and is usually completed within 5 days, though every hiker needs to have a permit to do the hike, and also a certificate of fitness, completed by a medical doctor must be presented before obtaining the permit. It's not a hike for the light-hearted. The record though of getting through the 5-day hike is about 7 hours exactly.  

Birthday of Chris & Naomi

Back at the campsite Ivan had made a nice beef stew for our dinner, which was very nice. This day, which was the 36^th day of our tour, also turned out to be the birthday of both Chris and Naomi. So of course the friends of Chris had bought him a birthday cake. As Muneirah was Naomi's best friend she had of course taken care of Naomi's more private celebration, as Naomi didn't like much attention. Taylor suggested that maybe it was a good idea to smash the cake in Chris' face, as he would probably find that very funny. Oh was she wrong!!! So when the cake-smashing was about to happen Chris understood what was going on and he was not very happy... but he had no choice, so the cake was smashed. Everyone, except for Chris, found this very happy. It was so funny that someone, I think it was Muneirah, to do the same with Naomi (as there were cake left overs, haha). Naomi handled it way better than Chris though as she played along and thought it was funny. Chris unfortunately repeatedly made comments about this stupid idea all rest of the evening... ah well.

Revisiting The Canyon Viewing Point

The next morning, which also was the day we would be leaving Namibia and cross the border to South Africa, we revisited the Fish River Canyon so that we could see the canyon during day light. The initial suggestion was to catch the sunrise, but I think most turned this option down as we just wanted to have those two hours of extra sleep... I was among them who supported this decision, haha. The canyon did look more impressive during daytime, but as we still got there pretty early, the sun had not risen enough yet to really light up the canyon, so big parts of it were still in the «dark», in the shade from the sun. Ah well, but it was nice for sure:)  

Wrapping Up Namibia

Wow I am surprised that I managed to write even MORE about Namibia than what I did about Beijing, or Tokyo – even though there was not that much to write about... haha. Namibia was great though, in every way. I really really really enjoyed this country and everything we got to see and experience. I will definitely recommend Namibia for everyone. It is worth experiencing at least once in your lifetime for sure. I am though very happy with what I got to see and do while in Namibia so I do kind of feel that I really don't need to return, even though every moment was a fantastic one – even in the driest corners of the country:-)