Farewell Namibia!

So here it goes, my last post of my Namibian adventure. It only hit me once I had made it back to the farm that I had less than one week remaining in Namibia. Time really has flown by these past 3 months! The last week at the farm was a busy one, as I was asked to build a horse tack room next to the stables. Together with Ian (another volunteer) we spent Friday and Saturday building the tack room, which was as far as he would go as he was flying out on Sunday. With the tack room completion laying in my hands, I devoted most of my week to getting the room done. I learned a lot whilst working on the tack room, and also found out i’m more of a builder than I had initially thought! We had wooden support on all 4 corners and built the walls and roof with tin metal sheeting. I then finished the building off with a clean paint job, cementing the floor, adding a window, and making supports for the horse saddles. I did very much enjoy the opportunity to work on my own project and was desperate to get it finished before I left! The last week was also quite drama-free, the nights were spent playing cards and having a good time with friends, while my days consisted of project work. On Wednesday I took Asjas (my girl!!) for one last baboon sleepover, which was nice but also made me think of the first time I took a baboon with all the chaos, shit, and sleepless nights!

Moving two of our wild dogs! 

Baby Warthogs found on the Sanctuary!

On Thursday the 3rd of December, the day had finally come, my last day at the farm. My time in Namibia had been so memorable and such a great experience that I was dreading this day for awhile, but at the same time I felt it was the right time to go back home. I did one last tiny baby (baboon) walk, and went around to all the staff members to say my goodbyes. In the evening I packed my bags had a few drinks with some of my friends and said my “see you later’s” as I don’t believe in goodbye’s! Its a small world, you never know when you will bump into each other again. At 4:30am it was time to leave the country I was fortunate enough to call home for the past three months. The ride to the airport felt long, very long, but along with the first flight to Johannesburg it gave me time to reflect on what really was an adventure of a lifetime.

Looking back at everything I’ve done here in Namibia and the places I’ve visited in Southern Africa made me realize how glad I was to have decided to come here. It all started in March of this year whilst watching a documentary about Africa. At that time I had no idea what I would be doing in between my bachelors and masters, which is when the spark hit me. From that moment my mind was set on going, and when I have my mind set on something, I persist to achieve it! Going to Africa for 3 months is quite an adventure, not many people do it, but after these 3 months I’m glad I opened the door to Africa. Because once the door is open, it stays open, and what I mean by that is that I will 100% go back to Africa without much hesitation, whereas going to Africa for the first time takes some convincing, and A LOT of planning! Whether it be Namibia, or perhaps a country further North of Africa, who knows, but until then my mind is open to experience new cultures and new experiences. 

To those that have read my blog throughout my experience, thank you for your support and your interest in what has been happening in my life! It definitely made writing this blog so much more worth it :) 

For the last time, signing out from Johannesburg!

Part Two of the Second Roadtrip!

The Stunning Victoria Falls

After making it to Victoria Falls the night before we were all super pumped to have made it to our target destination. In the morning we headed out to the city to try and score the best deal for white water rafting on the Zambezi river at the Vic Falls. So in true bargaining fashion we went from one agent to the other, and attempted to play them against each other to get the best deal. After an hour of bargaining we had managed to cut the price down from 140 usd to 95 usd!! #Winning! You might be surprised why the price is in US dollar, and the simple answer is that Zimbabwe simply gave up on its own currency. Everyone knows about that one country in Africa where its costs a million dollars to buy some bread, and billions of dollars to buy a car, well thats Zimbabwe, and as you can see from the picture, their currency was insanely inflated to the point where they stopped using it and adopted the US dollar. But going on, we also managed to get a good deal for an evening sunset cruise over the Zambezi River, which is more commonly referred to as a “booze cruise” because it includes all you can drink alcohol! Adam had also decided to go bungy jumping, so without letting him build up his nerves we headed straight to the Victoria Falls Bridge to see him jump from 111 meters high! Although I was tempted myself, I thought the rafting would be better value for money, so I passed on the occasion. After Adam did his jump (where he nearly shat himself) we took a short stroll to the Victoria Falls national park, where we would finally see one of the world’s most beautiful natural wonders. Despite paying 45 usd for the park entrance (ridiculously overpriced for a national park…) the sights from the 18 different view points was absolutely breath taking, photos again can’t really do the real thing justice. The water falls down from the Zambian side and falls down into the Zambezi river which splits the two countries. We spent about two hours taking loads of photos (ofcourse!!) and admiring the stunning view. After losing track of the time we rushed back to the hostel where we would be picked up and taken to the Zambezi river where we would enjoy our sunset cruise. 

Look away mom!

Adam Bungy Jumping

We were welcomed by a locals performing their tradition songs/dances and headed straight for the bar on the boat. We were the only ones there until we were joined by probably the last thing you can imagine…a school bus full of children…yeah, our jaws dropped when we saw the 25 kids jump on board. We however soon forgot about them as the drinks kept on coming, while we also met the teachers who insisted that we have photos taken with them! On the cruise we saw a couple of hippos in the water, a baby croc, and thats about it. Despite the captain telling us that the more we drink the more we see, we didn’t see too much. The scenery was however very nice, especially as the sunset, and with free alcohol we were sure to have a good time. 2.5 hours later, we made it back to shore, finishing one bottle of vodka, one bottle of russian bear (no idea what that is, but hey, it was free), and countless beers whilst on the boat! We were taken back to the Backpackers hostel where we had some more drinks with the backpackers before we called it a night.

A friendly welcome

Let the cruise begin!

Jaw dropping views

They know where the party's at!!

Cheeeseee!

Hipppo!!

Our first croc sighting of the trip

With the teachers!

The next morning we woke up at the break of sunrise and prepared ourselves for what we be a very adventurous day. With no hangovers, we were off to a good start ;) We got picked up from our hostel and were brought to the main office of our rafting company. We had a quick breakfast and then were taken to the Zambezi River. The rafting started just after the Vic Falls, so we had to descend all the way through the canyon to get down to the river. The girls didn’t dare to look down, as I can tell you , it was a loooongg way down! Once at the bottom, we were given a quick briefing by our guide and then set off to take on the Zambezi River. Normally the rafts hold 8 people plus the guide, but fortunately for us we had the raft to ourselves plus two of the rafting staff to help paddle. The Zambezi River is one of the most challenging and intense white water rafting locations in the world (in the top 5) so this was gonna be one hell of a ride! For those that have gone rafting in Asia before, that “big” rapid that you face somewhere in the river would be classified as a grade 3 rapid, here at the Zambezi the we would be facing grade 5 and grade 6 rapids (the highest classification) with it being a common occurrence that your raft would flip over. In total there were 21 rapids that we would be going through. As we took on the first rapid we all immediately woke up and were pumped with adrenaline. Rafting through the canyon of the Victoria Falls is something I will never in a million years forget! After each rapid the river would get calmer again before the next rapid, which was nice when you needed a break. Rapids 2,3,4, and 5 went very smoothly, we tackled the rapids with perfect execution and managed to all stay on the raft… this all changed we got to the 6th rapid of the day called Devil’s Toilet Bowl. The guide made jokes before the rapid that the devil would consume “pieces of shit” which got us all laughing. Nevertheless as we got right in the rapid the shear force of the river completely took us out and flipped the raft sidewise. At first I found it quite exciting but this soon changed as I stayed longer and longer underwater. With the currents so strong underwater the lifejacket wasn’t too effective, so once you are out of breath you start to think….ooh shit… this is bad! This is probably one of the closest times I’ve felt like I would die! And not in the way you joke around, for example when sitting in the back of your mates car and they clearly cant drive to save their lives (Elliot *cough cough*), but the real deal! 20 seconds later (although it felt like 10 minutes) I finally broke out of the underwater current and made it back to the surface! The same had happened to the rest of group so everyone was taken away by what had just happened. A minute later we all got back onto the raft and continued going down the river as if nothing had happened. One rapid after the other it definitely gets your excitement back up. At the 18th rapid, Stairway to Heaven, we literally headed straight towards heaven and flipped over vertically, but this time we surfaced within seconds which was a lot better! The rafting trip ended with a grueling hike back up the canyon, which some people say was tougher than the actual rafting! Once at the top we ate some well-needed lunch before making it back to the backpackers hostel where we all passed out! 

Unfortunately the only rafting photo we have!

Hostel Pics

Our cute little cabin

On Sunday it was time to leave Zimbabwe after a crazy 3 days and head to Chobe National Park in Botswana where we would go on a game drive. Since our car wouldn't be able to go through the park we booked a game drive from one of the lodges, as we all still wanted to witness the sights of one of the most beautiful national parks in Africa. Unfortunately luck was not on our side that day as it had been raining the whole night before and was still raining when we went on our drive. With rain most of the wildlife doesn't need to go to the river to get water, so as a result we didn’t see too much. Chobe is known for its huge elephant population, yet the only thing we saw was their poo :( We did come across probably 100 hippos in the river which was very cool to see, as well as one very close to the car on land. As you can see from photo, the hippo might look cute and cuddly, but it is by far the most dangerous animal in Africa, with the most human kills per year! But anyway, after the game drive we drove back to Namibia and stayed a night at a fancy hotel next to the Zambezi River. We booked a double room for the four of us, so the girls took one bed, Adam the other, and I took the sleeping bags and slept on the floor. By reading this you might think we drove a lot to get from Zimbabwe to Botswana and then Namibia, but the truth is that these countries all meet at one place, so it was only really a 2.5 hour drive to go from Zimbabwe to Namibia.

Well....Ok...

Hippo's in the Wetlands

Hippo Crossing!

Up Close!

Our Ride!

Monday was dedicated purely to driving back towards Windhoek. For the first 7 days we drove at most 4 hours a day, but the return leg would have to be done in 2 days which meant waking up early and driving for hours to get to where we had to go. We did however make the decision to get the car for one extra day and go to Etosha National Park (The place I had been before) as Chobe was quite disappointing. So that night we made it to the town of Tsumeb and had a good nights rest at a backpackers hostel which was right down our alley in terms of our budget!

That Sunset!

At 4:30am the next day the alarm went and we were on our way to Etosha. It’s a well known fact that you see most of the wildlife in the morning when they are most active, which is why we made the decision to wake up so insanely early. At Etosha we were treated to another breathtaking day full of wildlife. The moment we entered the park we were welcomed by tens and tens of giraffe, with on coming right next to the car. We also spotted a hyena next to a waterhole and then drove our car next to his path to see him run less than a meter in front of the car. The highlight of the day however was seeing a leopard in the wild. At a (what seemed abandoned) waterhole we noticed that all the antelopes (The kudo’s, zebra, oryx, etc.) were looking at one direction. With the antelopes clearly not at ease, we sensed that there was a potential predator in the area. And  behold, looking into the bushes we saw an amazing leopard, well camouflaged and ready to strike if an animal went to the very small waterhole. The spectacle continued when a couple of elephants headed towards the waterhole causing the leopard to flee from its spot and disappear into the bush. For us to spot a leopard was exceptionally rare as they are the most difficult big 5 member to spot, so our day just couldn’t get any better. After lunch we left the park and headed to a small town called Outjo where we stayed at a nice german guesthouse and celebrated what a great trip we had. We clicked and got along so well, which made this trip that much more enjoyable.

Elephant Herd

Momma with her little one

Dawwww 

Spot the Leopard!

Leopard in Action

The "White Ghost"

Great Shot of a Zebra

Hyena Crossing!

Amazing to get that close to an Hyena

My Favorite!

About 40 elephants playing around

This guy just sh*t himself!

On our final day we finally got to sleep in till 9:00am and have a very nice relaxing morning (which was quite rare!) Afterwards we headed towards Windhoek where we returned the car (we spent 1 hour in Windhoek trying to find car rental place…) and got dropped back to Na/an Kuse. It felt good to get back to the farm, and we were all ready to get back to work. It hit me when we got back that I only have 1 week remaining, time really flies in Africa! That’s it for my second road trip, hope you enjoyed the post and thanks for reading ;)

PS:

After almost 3 months in Africa without a haircut my hair has gotten really long to the point where I can start thinking about getting dreadlocks! That being said, there was a white guy at the backpackers who had dreadlocks… lets just say white people shouldn't have dreadlocks because it just looked ridiculous! On the road we sometimes spotted very local barbers (in a tin shack next to the street) and stopped at a couple to see if they would cut my hair. Disappointingly no one could cut my hair… so I guess I have to go for a ponytail now ;)

Breath Taking Bostwana & Zesty Zimbabwe

Our Route around Southern Africa

So here it goes, my next adventure around Southern Africa! On Monday 16th of November, myself along with 3 friends from Na/an Kuse; Adam, Annika, and Amy, headed to Windhoek to collect our rental car that would take us around Southern Africa. This time around, I had rented a Suzuki Vitara 4x4 SUV which was a significantly cheaper but it did mean that we would be staying in lodges. Upon arriving at the rental site we noticed that the car was drastically smaller than we had imagined, which made us think in the back of our heads if it would be able to take the tough terrain in Chobe national park, Bostwana. We had already upgraded from a VW Polo (which was probably the worst idea ever) but nevertheless it was something! After signing some documents and getting the car we headed out to the Botswana border. All in good moods, we were really excited for our trip! 3 hours later and we said goodbye to Namibia and crossed the border to Botswana. We spent a couple minutes going through the border crossing formalities and within minutes of driving through Botswana we noticed the immediate change of landscape. Instead of the dry “deserty” Namibian environment, we were greeted with lush green trees and a completely different scenery. There are also some unique aspects of driving in Bostwana, firstly about every 500 meters there are hitchhikers on the side of the road trying to get a lift. Unfortunately we were already quite limited on space so we couldn’t offer anyone a ride, but hey, next time! The second obstacle is the amount of cattle and sheep next to the road and crossing the roads. The amount of times we had to stop for cows crossing the road was just unreal, and something you would only find in Africa! Anyway, for the first night we had set our sights to stay in a little town called Ghanzi. Towards the end of the day we had finally made it, and were searching for accommodation. The first place we passed by charge about 2000 ZAR (about 150 Euro) which was waaayyy above our price range, so we quickly moved on. The next place in the city was fully booked, which was not good news. With only 3 lodges/hotels in Ghanzi our cards were all on the final place. Located just outside Ghanzi we already started preparing for the worst: sleeping in the car. All signs pointed that way when we enter the gates of the lodges as it looked very, very fancy. Nervously walking to the reception we found out they had tents available for 500 ZAR (30 Euro). This was a big sigh of relieve as we told them that the four of us would fit in one tent (saving money of course!). Finding a place when we were pretty much hopeless gave us a huge energy boost and made us so happy. The tent had two large twin beds, so the girls shared one, I had my own, and Adam took everyones sleeping bags and blankets and slept on the floor. We were clearly the only ones in the area which made it quite adventurous, especially as we could hear lions rarwing outside!

When picking up our ride!

All in good moods!

See ya later Namibia!

Our first nights accommodation

And....it already looks like a dump!

After a great nights rest we continued our journey to Maun, Botswana. The drive only took 3 hours which was a nice break. In Maun we decided to get our priorities strait and find a place to sleep as soon as we got there. Unlike Ghanzi, Maun is one of the largest cities in Botswana, so there was plenty to choose from, but remember we were on a tight budget so it was a challenge. For about 1.5 hours we went into every lodge/campsite/hotel we passed and enquired about the rooms and rates, at the end we finally stumbled upon the Audi campsite which had small tents available with only a stretcher and mattress for 100 ZAR per person! What a steal! Especially as it was right next to the river by the Okavango Delta. In Maun we had planned to do a Mokoro (traditional canoe) tour the next day, so we headed into town to try and book something. We knew it would be expensive but decided to proceed anyway. Again, like the hotels, we went into every agency we passed by, and after about 5 agency it was clear that the going rate was about 70 euro per person. We were almost ready to pay, when we decided to try one last agency. The woman said she had a contact who would bring us directly to the guides without a middle man. When meeting the man he charged us less 70 euro for 4 people, which was insane! We would now be paying a forth of the price! This gave us a great feeling (saving money always feels good) and we headed back to our camp with a big smile on our face. We made some sandwiches in the car and spent the rest of the evening playing cards next to the river, which was quite special!

Second night at the Audi Camp

Just a stretcher in a tent...

Beautiful sunset by the river

At 6am we were met by our agent who would join us in the car and guide us to the Mokoro station. The drive there was very challenging, as our car was quite low to the ground, and the sand being quite deep. After sliding around for about 30 minutes we made it to our destination, and met our guides (polemen) who would be taking us in their Mokoro’s. With 2 people per canoe (along with the guide) we headed out to explore the Okavango delta. Slowly we cruised around the low river and through the long grass when we suddenly spotted some elephants right in front of us. The experience was amazing, here we were in Okavango delta, in a tradition canoe, with elephants right in front of us. After taking in the sights for awhile we continued flowing through the Delta when we came across another pair of elephants, except this time it was different as they were close…very close. One of the elephants only had one tusk, which meant it was more aggressive, as it indicated that it not only had fought before, but also that it felt more vulnerable because of its disadvantage. Standing less than 10 meters away from us, the elephant clearly had us in his sights and could have easily charged at us, leaving us stuck in a little boat! Luckily, after a couple of tense minutes the elephant decided we weren't a threat and headed back into the bush, phewww! After the encounter with the elephants, we made our way back to shore where we would be shown around the local village. The village was very basic, with small clay/mud huts, cattle running around, and most importantly a “football” pitch. To our complete amazement the village had tv and…wifi!!

Cruising through the Okavango Delta

Our first elephant sighting of the day

Best.Mokoro.Ever

Asian Pose!

Chilling with the elephants

Nerve racking moment when theres an aggressive elephant right in front of you...

Giving it a try (its very hard!)

The Village with Wifi and TV!

After an exciting morning, we fueled our car up and headed to the south gate of Chobe national park, where we would be staying the night, as we had planned to go through the national park the next day. This is where the drama comes in (theres always drama!). After driving for about 2 hours with no road signs we finally drove past a sign to a lodge, so we decided to check it out and ask for directions to the nearest campsite. Driving through a small road with very deep sand we headed towards the lodge, which was situated in another national park. 2km further and we found ourself stuck in the sand… our car was too low to the ground and couldn’t handle the deep tracks. So we all got out of the car and started digging the sand from under the car and trying to get some grip for the wheels. Two hours later we were still at the same place with absolutely no movement. This is when we knew we had to split up and walk to the lodge to ask for help. Adam and Amy would stay in the car, whilst Annika and I would trek through the bush to find the lodge. The walk was probably one of the most nerve racking walks in my life. In the middle of nowhere, in Bostwana, in a national park… coming across lion tracks, elephant tracks, and leopard poo. Not daring to make a single sound we tip toed our way to the lodge which, when we finally made it, looked like the best place in the world. We found the manager who racked up 8 bushmen to come with us to get the car our of the sand. And without much trouble, the 8 bushmen picked up the back of the car and simply set it back on track, insane! If we could’ve bought them a beer we would’ve, but with limited resources the only thing we could do was thank them. 

Well.....shit

2 hours later

In the mean time the manager called his friend who managed a campsite a few kilometers up the road. The campsite manager met us on the main road and guided us to the campsite, which is where we had a dilemma. The campsite didn’t have any accommodation options… only campsites (sounds obviously right?). The manager then offered us an unused tent in the local staff village, with nothing in it except a single (very used) mattress. With not many alternatives we gladly accepted the offer, and stayed the night in the staff village, which was truly remarkable as at night we could hear and see a hippo swim by the river about 5 meters from our tent. Without thinking twice, I zipped up the tent and went straight to the river, where there was a Hippo just doing his thing…Amazing!! 

Casual elephant crossing!

And more wildlife

Getting almost too close to an elephant the next morning

Another member of the Big 5: The Water Buffalo

The next morning instead of driving through Chobe, we decided to take the safe option and go all the way around the national park and stick to the tarred roads because there was no way our car would be able to make it through the park. At that point we also decided to go to the Victoria Falls first and come back to Chobe on the way back. By this time it had become a common occurrence to see elephants every, next to the road, at our campsite, in total we had seen over 30 elephants from up close, very close, to the point where it sometimes got a bit dangerous! We were also very lucky to find another member for the big 5: The Water Buffalo! The drive to the Zimbabwean border took about 7 hours. At the border we were greeted with a handful of officers with huge grins on their faces, everyone we had met so far had been very very nice, including these guys. Instead of the strict protocol you have in Europe and the States, these guys were laughing, playing around, and together we had a great talk about football…unfortunately he made fun of Chelsea, but hey, there’s not too much I can say about that! Whilst at the border, we were also caught in the middle of a big storm, which was the first time it had rained for months. The customs officers clearly had no intention of getting wet, so instead of searching the car for any prohibited items they simply asked me what I had, the conversation going like this:

Customs: Do you have any prohibited items in your car?

Me: What’s Prohibited?

Customs: Look at the list.

Me: *looks at list* well we have bread, meat, and cheese.

Customs: That’s prohibited.

Me: Ok, shall I take them out?

Customs: No… but its prohibited.

Me: Ok… so can I continue?

Customs: Yeah go ahead, have a nice day!

Haha, not what I expected, but then again, its Africa! By this time the rain was absolutely pelting down onto the car, which made driving through a dirt road very challenge, but at the same time exciting. With no maps, and no signs, we had to find our way to Vic falls, which is when we used a pretty ancient device… a compass! To be honest, I think I would never have to use a compass in my life, but I was from as it turned out to be very useful in guiding us North to the Vic Falls. Just before sunset we had made it to the town, where we used an internet cafe to find our accommodation for the night: Victoria Falls Backpackers Hostel. For 20 usd per person we had four beds in a room, in a very cool backpackers hostel. We took a quick shower and were invited to join the Braai, which after not eating for a long time, was definitely what we were looking for. We were also entertained by a local tribe who performed Zimbabwean dances for us, which really made us feel like we were in Africa.

Fixing the car!

Selfie in Zimbabwe

We made it!

The local dancers

Group photo :)

Practicing those African moves!

Finally... a Room!

Casually no doors for the toilet!

This is the first part of my blog of my Southern African adventure, with the second part coming later this week (two much writing!!). So far the journey has been incredible, and fingers crossed that the next part will be even better! Signing out from the Victoria Falls!