April 22

Namibia Day One

We began our day at the Arebbusch Travel Lodge campsite in Windhoek, the rather urban campsite where we safely arrived well after dark following our late flight from Cape Town.  The camping area is only a part of a much larger operation which offers all sorts of accommodation as well as facilities for events.  While this was not our idea of safari heaven,  I did enjoy soaking in the bathtub in the campsite "ablutions block" before bed.   We slept quite  well during first night in our roof tent, despite the hum of urban traffic. 

Our earlier plan was to visit GocheGanas, which is run by our friend Vic's friend Udo.    While in London ( at Vic's flat) we re-confirmed our interest in visiting with Udo (a 4 th generation German-Namibian) for a visit of his amazing  resort and game farm.   However, the new Air Namibia flight schedule meant we might not have arrived there until 2200 so we will have to reserve that visit for later.  Go to his website by looking for GocheGanas  .

What is a roof tent, you may ask?  It is a collapsable tent mounted on roof racks. We simply remove the cover, pull on the telescoping ladder and voilà, the tent erects itself on the roof of our vehicle.  It keeps us up off the sandy ground, away from any wild animals, and is clean and cozy! 

Our morning agenda was to provision,  get a letter of permission from the car rental company so we could drive into Botswana, and purchase a local SIM card so we could communicate via Iphone.   Navigating the urban traffic in our safari vehicle was not enjoyable - especially in the morning heat -  but the locals we met were all very friendly and helpful. 

At every stop, however, we were reminded that petty theft is rampant and we must never,  ever underestimate the quick and clever actions taken by local thieves.  A guard watched over the grocery store lot, for example, and warned us to always keep our doors shut, even when loading groceries in the back.  He could not believe that in Canada no guards watch over our cars when we park outside the grocery store!  

By noon we were driving away from the congested streets, en route east. Our earlier plan had been to drive north, but the new plan of driving east meant we would see more places, and circumnavigate the Okovango delta. 

 We drove and drove and drove, crossing the border to Botswana around 4 pm, only to discover it was already 5 pm because we had crossed a time zone. 

We were warned at the border to drive carefully and to watch out for animals on the road.  Elephants?  Zebras? Springbok? 

We thought:  Ahh, the joys of going on safari in Africa! 

But the border guard laughed:  No, watch for cows and goats! 

 And so for the next couple of hours we dodged domestic farm animals as they grazed on grasses at the edge of the tarmac.  A few times we stopped while a dozen cows crossed to see if the grasses might be greener on the other side.  As the sun went down the grasses glowed a brilliant golden yellow.  The cows were harder to see, and we slowed down. 

 We finally arrived at our destination, a lovely campsite called Thadaku Bush Camp, near Ghanzi in Botswana. 

Google it:  www.thakadubushcamp.com

We prepared our gourmet meal and relaxed  with a good red as we observed the night sky.