It is not possible to print all boarding passes when I check-in on my laptop at home. Only the tickets for the legs from Zurich to Frankfurt and Frankfurt to Johannesburg are emitted. The lady at the counter tells us to get in contact at Johannesburg. It's good to have enough time in Frankfurt for transit. Getting from one terminal to the other is a marathon. The outside temperature is 34 degrees celcius on that summer evening. After boarding the A380 aircraft we're not actually having the feeling of being in the biggest aircraft, since our compartment is fairly small having not more than about 10 rows. The plain takes off smoothly and on time.
27.07.12After landing in Johannesburg a ground-attendant tells us to hurry. So we run. However at passport control there is a huge crowd. Time runs and as we arrive at the Transit desk they tell us that boarding is closed. We do not really believe and run to the gate without boarding passes. We get past the boarding-pass check attendant, tell her a story, get past the baggage and liquid scanner but do not get through the gate. They stop us whereas other passengers keep boarding. We have to wait for the afternoon flight in about 4 hours. Just too bad. We go back to the transit desk and get our passes after some debates. In fact, they wanted to send us to the Lufthansa office which was closed. Finally it's time to get aboard and we get an upgrade to club class. Arrival at Windhoek at 15hrs. We pick up our Daihatsu Terios at Europcar, get used to drive at the left hand side and arrive at Tamboti guesthouse. There we have a beer and watch the sunset at 6 p.m. It's getting quite cold. We're 'looking forward' to sleeping in a tent for the next couple of nights.
28.07.12After having a hefty German breakfast at the guesthouse we pick up our camping equipment somewhere in the south of Windhoek.Our Nokia navigator helps us to get there easily. We are three and there's not much space in the car. It takes a while until we reach an agreement. We decide for a tent, 2 sleeping bags (we brought one along with us), three mattresses, two blankets, a folding table, two folding seats without back and one with, a single cooker, a gas cylinder and a kitchen box. Then we drive to the super-market for food; steaks, tins, pasta, crisp bread, water and wine. By the way, we have no fridge aboard. Before we make a move, we get some money from the ATM. A receipt comes out of the slot, but no money, Jesus. The owner of Tamboti warned us, only withdraw mony at ATMs which are attached to a bank. That's what we did. We enter the establishment and show our receipt to the clerk. Error code 61: withdrawal limit exceeded. We try again, 1000 NAD, it works. It is 12 o'clock noon, finally we are on the way to Waterberg. First stop is Okahandja to fill the tank. The road is in a brilliant condition, paved. Cruising speed is 120 km/h. Wart hogs are grazing along the road, here and there a gazelle. We're in Africa. No man's land. We get to the junction, turn right. The ridge of Waterberg is in front of us. A merkat colony right where we branch into the gravel road. We don't take pictures. We'll do it next time when we spot them. We arrive at the camp at around 4.30 p.m. There's enough time to establish our camp-site before the night falls in. How to assemble our tent? ..takes us some time, but finally we manage to set it up. Then it's time to burn the wood which we have bought at the camping-shop. Takes us some time to get our meat barbecued. Unfortunately the table collapses and the chunks of meet go flying on the sandy ground.. Our first camping night. There's lot of room for improvement.
29.07.12We have our first night in the tent behind us. I haven't been sleeping at all, waiting until it is time to get up. Our first activity in the morning is hiking up to the top of Waterberg plateau. The sunrise is perfect but we don't spot any animal, not a single bird. However, coming back to the camping ground for breakfast, we are attacked by a colony of baboons. Some sit on the roofs of the cars, others overturn dustbins and catch whatever is not nailed down. The camp-guards are very busy in scaring them off and so are we. At 4 p.m. we are registered for an excursion to the plateau. Costs 450 NAD a person. Hope we see a lot of game for the money. After 2 hours crisscrossing the vast bushland on the top of the table mountain and spotting hardly any game, our expectations turn into disappointed. Two buffalos at an artificial waterhole and a handful of gazelles, that's all we have seen. It is terribly cold on the way back to the camp. We end the day with a bottle of wine and a bowl of spaghetti.
30.07.12We get up, have breakfast with the baboons and prepare for departure. Arriving at Outjo we have some food at a café outside and do some shopping for the next couple of days. Mamselle Nature Camp is our destination for today. The gate to their estate is a few kilometers outside Outjo Etosha bound. After a short drive on a cart track, a farm worker stops us, hands over a key and explais us the way to our house. After half a mile we get to a junction with a sign-board: Luxury house to the right or traditional Hut to the left. Ours is the luxury house out in the bush. We enter the house. A living room with kitchenette, two bedrooms and a bathroom. There's a fire-place outside with table and bench. The farm worker turns up and makes fire in the water-heater. We undertake an excursion to the windmill. There's a watertank and cattle about a mile away from our house. Back to the house, we enjoy the evening in the middle of nowhere, enjoy the sunset and enjoy sleeping in decent beds.
31.07.12There's no water at Mamselle this morning. A tube must have broken according to the owner. An hour and a half's drive and we are at the gate to the Etosha national park. We fill in a form, get a stamp with the entry time and drive to Okaukuejo. Right after the entrance we already spot some impalas, oryx antelopes and zebras. The waterhole of Okaukuejo is a meeting point with hundreds of animals; gnus, antelopes, zebras. After taking some pictures we drive north-west bound. We observe two giraffes, mother and baby, in the veldt, then reach the Etosha pan which is a white endless salt-plain. The road is gravel, easy to drive. A running herd of gnus. An iguana crossing the road. Impalas. Back to Okaukuejo we take the road to Halali where we are booked for the night. The plants are getting higher. A cluster of trees. Elephants! Some time later we encounter even more elephants at a waterhole, a herd of 20 animals. Another group of those peaceful giants on the road, eating thorny bush. We take pictures, 3 meters away from them. Later in the day we spot kudu antelopes, ground squirrels, giraffes. The waterhole of Halali is quite abandoned at sunset, some antelopes, that's it. We go back to the camp for dinner. Spaghetti. Then we return to the waterhole. Good decision: two rhinos grinding their horns, dingos sneak around them. Some time later the animals disappear in the night and we in our tent.
01.08.12Our second day in the park. We haven't seen any big cats yet. At breakfast we're surrounded by hungry birds. After having packed and checked out, we take the rear-tracks. The road conditions are quite demanding. The animals seem to hide in the bush. After about 3 hours criss-crossing the velds we return to the salt-pan and stop at the Etosha lookout. A surreal scenery. We're embedded by a white plain touching a purple sky at the horizon. The color of the sky is exceptional due to the dusty and salty air. Back on the road, some cars are parked in the middle of nowhere. Cats in sight. A couple. Maybe lions? Leopards? Cheetahs! They cross the road right in front of us. We follow them by car and get bored after a while, since they are not in the mood for a chase. Later in the day near Klein-Namutoni waterhole we encounter a lonesome giraffe walking along the road, approaching our car and watching us through the windscreen. Usually giraffes are fearful, but this one's not. Arriving at Namutoni camp, we go to the waterhole for sunset. No animals. Let me summarize: we have seen a lot of game in the last two days, all kind of antelopes, zebras, gnus, ground squirrels, birds, warthogs, dingos, giraffes, elephants and two cheetahs. With the lions in mind, we spend another night in the tent.
02.08.12We're slowly but steadily getting used to sleeping in a tent. After breakfast we have a quick look at the waterhole. No animals. We leave Etosha. The roads in this part of Namibia are quite busy, unusual for this country to see people, houses, cattle. In terms of people, we didn't feel like being in an African country so far, here we do. Ondangwa is a busy, dusty town. We change mony and buy some food. A police officer advices me to stay at the car whilest the others go shopping. Do we really need to be that cautious? The next town is Oshakati. The vegetation is tropical. Lots of palm trees, ponds, cattle grazing. After Oshakati we stop at Uutapi to take pictures of its baobab trees. Baobabs are here and there, mystic trees, they have no leaves, because of wintertime, I guess. Today's final destination is Ruacana. It takes us a while to find the right junction. The deviation to the town comes after the airport. We have a reservation at Ruacana Eha lodge. The rooms are quite small for three people, but the staff are very friendly. We have game steaks for dinner and finish the day early.
03.08.12Ready for the most spectacular track of our trip, D3700 along Kunene river. The paved road ends at the Ruacana power-station. Before the dam was built there was a huge water-fall. We are standing on the viewpoint and try to imagine water rushing down the rocks. The road turns into a gravel track. We master the first pass, rocky ground and sand and a terrific ascent. Our brave Daihatsu Terios manages to reach the top. The downhill road is even steeper. Down in the valley a river needs to be crossed. We stop, have a look how deep the water is, watch out for crocodiles. Then we cross it. Another steep pass, another river and so on for the next 50 km. The scenery is fantastic. We drive along Kunene river. Monkeys jump from tree to tree. Himba villages. Palm trees. Safely get to Swartbooisdrift from where the road is wider and in a better condition.... Should be in a better condition, but the car seems to have a problem. We stop. The left tyre on the back is completely flat. We change the wheel with a spare one and drive carefully to Epupa. Himba women try to sell their articrafts and want to get photographed along the road. Baobab trees here and there. Epupa is like an oasis. Omarunga camp is situated on the riverfront in a palm tree forest. We put our tent right on the shore of the river. There's a crocodile lying in the sand on the other side. Before sunset we walk down to the Epupa falls. A spectacular setting surrounded by Baobab trees. Wonderland. Once again we have spaghetti for dinner and enjoy the pleasant climate in the very North of Namibia.
04.08.12With the sound of the falls in our ears we've had a good sleep. In a group of eight visitors we are part of an excursion to a himba village. The chief's wife welcomes us, our guide hands out some presents, basic foods. Traditional Himba women are entirely salved with an ochre paste. Their hairstyle is very special as well as their jewellery. We play with the kids and take pictures. Are we intrudors, gazers? We don't feel like. Then we visit a school and a cementary. Back in the camp we spend the afternoon at the pool. The temperature is above 30 degrees. We enjoy the heat. In the late afternoon we walk to the falls again, wander downhill along the river. Angola on the other side. The setting with the falls enbedded in baobab trees is magical.
05.08.12We've ordered a new tire which will be ready tomorrow in Opuwo. We drive 180km on graval road without spare tire but an extra gallon of water in case we have to spend a night on the road. Two hours and a half later we are in Opuwo. Civilization. We have a reservation at Abba guesthouse ,right at the road, coming from Epupa. Basic, friendly, having access to the world wide web. We go to the restaurant at the junction to Kamanjab and order some hefty steaks and beer. Tastes good after two spaghetti days. Opuwo is a proper African town, dusty but full of life. Topless Himba women, Herero ladies wearing hats and wide robes, kids, men with hunting weapons, people walking up and down the main street.
06.08.12What have you done with your tire, asks the mechanic. What shall I say? He puts the new one on the felly.I pay 1200 NAD. We go for food, money and fuel and say goodbye to Opuwo. The road to Kamanjab is paved. More than 200km. Every 10km a destination board: Kamanjab 200km, Kamanjab 190km, Kamanjab 180km. We get there in the early afternoon. Kamanjab: a petrol station, a shop, a guesthouse and a few homes. We are in the middle of nowhere. Our guesthouse, Oasis Garni, is next to the shop. The staff are very friendly. We end the day with an excellent dinner.
07.08.12We have tasty breakfast at the Oasis Garni and buy some food from the shop before leaving the village. I forgot my credit card at the hotel desk.Lucky me; the receptionist finds us in the shop with the card. Today's destination is Otjitotongwe Cheetah park, not far from Kamanjab. We arrive at the farm enclosed by a fence. Inside, two cheetahs. The farmer shows us the way to the camp. We choose our prefered camping site since we are the first guests today. We spend the early afternoon with birdwatching. More people arrive. The camp is getting fuller. At 3 p.m. is photo shooting session with the cheetahs. They're like pussy cats and we don't feel like being their food. Nevertheless we are glad once the fence is separating us from the beasts again. The next event takes place at 4 p.m. Cheetah feeding time. About a dozen of those cats live in a enclosure which measures a couple of acres. We enter by truck, standing on the load platform. The driver stops at the meeting place where the predators approach from every direction. The guide throws peaces of meat in the air. The animals catch the prey and run away with their food. We have a brai for dinner and queue for the bathrooms before going to bed. Two loos for 40 people is not much.
08.08.12After a cold night outside we hit the road to Twyfelfontein. At Khorixas we fill our food deposit, get some money from the ATM and refuel. The road is in a terrible condition. It feels like riding over korrugated iron. At the petrified forest we take a break. Black tree trunks lie around. They're supposed to be many thousand years old. And then we spot Welwitschias and forget about the trunks. These strange plants which are a couple of hundred years old are fascinating. Back on the road we reach camp Xaragu. It is situated at the shore of a dry river bed. We feel like being on the moon. At the reservation desk, they can't find our names. We haven't payed in advance. That's why they must have canceld our reservation. We're lucky it's not fully booked and they're lucky too, cause we would have complained. Before sunset we climb a small hill with an outlook on top. Table mountains in the horizon, the road, dry land, nothing, Damaraland. We have pasta for dinner and slip in the sleeping bags. It's cold.
09.08.12After another frosty night, we warm up with hot coffee and take direction Twyfelfontein. The valley is famous for its wallpaintings. We pay an entrance fee and a guide shows us various paintings. In fact, they are carvings rather than paintings. Back in the car we drive to the burnt mountain, a pile of black rocks. We could have skipped it. The scenery on the way to Uis is fantastic, the road in a terrible condition. Famous Brandberg is always visible during the 3 hours drive. We move into an enormous appartment at the Brandberg restcamp, spend the afternoon at the swimming pool in company of a singing parrot. Frère Jacques, frère Jacques, dormez vous.... For dinner we have springbok steaks and beer and watch the Olympic games.
10.08.12We are on the way to Spitzkoppe. A few red rocks appear on the horizon. Must be our destination. They say it looks like Matterhorn, I say it's Ayers Rock split in pieces. At the gate we pay an entrance fee. To reserve a camp-site was not possible. Now we know why. You can camp all everywhere. We drive around, stop here and there and climb the rough red rock. We establish our tent just below the bridge, a huge rocky arch. There's no running water. We have to cook with mineral water and clean the dish with paper. The lack of water makes us aware of how much water we usually spend. The mountain is becoming redder with the evening light. A fantastic scenery. This is real wilderness, no water, no loo, no electric light, just a starry sky.
11.08.12At 6 a.m. I get up and climb the rock to watch the sunrise. Spitzkoppe is covered with clouds. There's no sunrise today. We get our stuff packed and drive to the park exit where we quickly wash our dishes. It is getting foggy on the road to the sea. We have to turn on the wipers. Haven't used them on our journey so far. Sunshine every day, not even clouds. The endless road ends at Henties Bay. We stop at the seashore and watch into the fog. This is the infamous Skeletton coast. Driving on tarred road we take direction Swakopmund. Somewhere we spot a ship wreck, one of many, the so called skelettons. Not far from our destination, we take a couple of pictures of colourful buildings. The town is called Wlotzkasbaken, a ghost town. Arriving in Swakopmund we stop at the tourist information office and ask for accommodation. We haven't got a reservation. Hotel pension d'Avignon has available rooms. The owner is German, a very friendly lady, tells us where to go and what to do. With a pocket of tips, we go and book a trip to the sand-dunes tomorrow. In the afternoon we walk down to the sea promenade, have a beer and watch people passing by. It's quite crowded this Saturday afternoon and the sun is shining again. We haven't seen so many people since we arrived in Namibia. At 6 p.m. we walk to the pier to watch the sunset. Flamingos are flying through the twilight. We go to a seafood restaurant for dinner. The Sea Basket. Just around the corner of our hotel. We order fish, prawns and a bottle of white wine. It feels good being back in civilisation.
12.08.12Waking up in a decent bed, sheer luxury. We have a superb breakfast, a tasty buffet arranged by the German landlady. Then our sandboarding tour operator from 'Alter Action' picks us up. Half an hour's drive and we arrive at the dunes. After a short instruction we get our boards and climb the dunes. The first down-hill run is the most exciting. With sand in my mouth I walk up again. The younger members of the group use the stand-up boards. They even jump over a ski-jump. The guide mesures our velocity. My record is 68km/h. Back to the hotel we take a shower. Sand sticks in every hole. We go to a steak house for dinner, order some solid fillet steaks. Walking on the streets of Swakop at night is not that scary as some people say. Nevertheless there are not many pedestrians around after sunset, guards are observing the parking lots.
13.08.12It's time to leave Swakop. We drive along the coast to Walvis Bay, and then branch off to the Namib Naukluft desert. The gravel road is in quite a bad state. Right at the first ascent towards Guisep Pass there is a rest area. Two quiver trees are standing there. Lucky us, we thought we won't spot Namibia's famous landmark. The quiver tree forest at Keetmanshoop is not part of our itinerary. We take pictures. Then drive to the pass and down towards Solitaire. All of a sudden our car starts beeping somewhere in the dash board. We stop, check the tires, open the bonnet. Everything seems to be Ok. The bad road stresses the car and our nerves. At least the landscape is fantastic. Red mountains, golden meadows, impalas, an ostrich with 10 baby birds. We stop and take pictures here and there. Solitaire guest-farm, our destination is about 6 km away from the main road. The camp-ground is spacious. We have our personal bathroom hut. Before sunset we walk to a small hill from where we enjoy the colourful landscape and watch out for cheetahs. The owner said, there are quite a few beasts in the area. They are supposed to be shy and do not attack humans. She didn't really convince us. After having spaghetti for dinner we go to bed. It's too cold outside.
14.08.12The fog has covered the camp-site with dew. Everything is wet. We brew a hot coffee with the last bit of gas and prepare for departure. At Solitaire we refill the gas cylinder at the petrol station. Then we buy some tasty pastries at Moose McGregor's Desert Bakery and have another coffee. On the way to Sesriem the fog disappears and the sun shines again as usual. We arrive at Sesriem camp before lunch. We pay the entrance fee, set up the tent and drive to Sesriem Canyon. It is not far away from the camp. We walk along the bottom of the canyon, climb the rocks and spot a snake, curld up, about 50 cm long. We get quite close to the serpent and take some photos. It seems to be scared and snorts. Back from the canyon we drive to the Elim dune. Its sand is red and the dune is covered with spots of grass. We park the car and walk up the dune. Our target is to reach the top. We climb the hill and there's another one, higher than ours. So we climb that one. Standing on the top, there's yet another, higher one. We walk until we get lost, never reaching the top of the dune. Finally we come to a crest from where we slide all the way down. We have another pot of spaghetti for dinner. A cold breeze is blowing. We disappear in the tent quite early, as usual. It's just too cold to stay outside.
15.08.12Early morning at 5 a.m. The entire camp is on the move. We pack our stuff and hit the road. Destination Sossusvlei. We don't want to miss the sunrise. The road is tarred, in a perfect condition. The gauge displays 100km/h. Drops hit the windscreen. Rain. It's raining in the desert. We arrive at dune 45. Some cars and busses are already parked there. What shall we do here. There's no sunrise. We don't stop and arrive at the parking lot from where we have to take the truck for the last section. It is still raining. The rain ceases after half an hour. We walk to the hidden vlei, take some pictures of dead trees, climb the dunes. The sand is wet, good for walking. But we don't find the hidden vlei, how shall we, it's hidden. On our way back, we find some poles with black marks on the top. They are supposed to guide to our missed destination. We jump on the next truck to Sossusvlei. The sun shines through the clouds. We take pictures of the amazing shadows of the dune-crests. At dead vlei we jump off the truck and climb a huge dune. It is never ending and leads us on top of the probably highest dune in the area. The view from here is fantastic. We missed the sunrise but the climate is perfect to do such walks. From the top we run down the slope to the dead vlei. The black dead trees on the white ground are surreal. Salvador Dali must have been here. We take dozens of pictures and hop on the truck to Sossusvlei. There's a pond and some dunes. We thought it was more exciting. We drive back to the exit after a short stop at dune 45. The guy at the gate reminds us that we have been in the park for more than 24 hours, blinks his eyes and says good bye. Back on gravel road we stop to fill the tank and eat some pastries. It's fairly cold even in the sun. Hammerstein lodge is halfway to Tsaris Hoogte Pass on the road to Maltahöhe. A tame impala welcomes us. The owner speaks German. We get a tripple room with electric mattress heaters. There are a couple of books in the lobby, one about Namibian fauna. The snake, which we have seen in the canyon, turns out to be a horned viper, agressive and poisonous. We have a buffett dinner and the kitchen crew are singing a few traditional songs after dessert. We happily put a decent tip in the hat. Back in our room we immediately fall asleep in our heated beds. Have I mentioned it? Today's my wife's birthday.
16.08.12Our car's windscreen is frozen. Temperatures are below zero. We go for breakfast and have a fight with Daisy, the crazy impala, before leaving. Those tiny animals are fairly vigorous. Daisy doesn't stop attacking me until a guard arrives and saves my life. Back on the road we pass by Maltahöhe from where the road is tarred. Around lunch-time we reach Mariental. Here we buy food for our last camping night, spaghetti and tomato sauce, what else. Kalahari Anib lodge is not far away from Mariental. We thought, it was situated in the Kalahari desert. Not at all. The place is posh. A guard checks our reservations at the entrance gate of the estate. It takes another two to three miles to get to the lodge. A receptionist welcomes us with our names. Our camping lot is sheer luxury. There are three camp sites, one is about 300m away from the other. Each site has its private bath-hut, hot water, a fire place, light, kitchenette, bench and table. We walk a trail from where we can spot impalas, gnus, zebras, ostriches. Our last open air evening ends early as usual. After watching the starry sky for a while we crawl away into the tent. It's gonna be another cold night.
17.08.12The coldness wakes us up. I get up to watch the sunrise and boil water for coffee. After a quick breakfast we hit the road to Windhoek. Shortly before lunch-time we reach the camping renter where we return our material. We stay again at hotel Tamboti. In the afternoon we walk to the city center. It is busy with people. We like the atmosphere of Windhoek's street life. Swakopmund, the only other city we have been to, was somewhat too quiet. We eat steak and chips for lunch-dinner and buy some souvenirs afterwards. At sunset we are back in the hotel.
18.08.12We drive to the airport right after breakfast and handover our dusty, dirty Daihatsu Terios. To check in our luggage takes ages, problems with the booking system. The flights back home via Johannesburg and Frankfurt are ok.
19.08.12We arrive at Zurich airport. Two suitcases are missing....After four more days we finally get our last bag sent home.