Back from Namibia

Hello everyone,

Long time since I have been writing, has to do with my busy life and no access to internet. We have just arrived back from a 2 weeks trip in Namibia, and there is no such thing as quick internet there…or internet access at allJ
This will be a long one so get a cup a coffe and enjoy….here we go!
For over two weeks ago we had our bags packed and a long drive to Naimbia was ahead of us. The girls,Liina and Viivi, did not join us on this trip, they stayed behind with oma& opa in Potch. As we left early in the moning from Potch, 5am, the girls where still sleeping and there was no sad goodbyes, but I must admit I did cry in silence, 2 weeks is a long time to be away from two small princesses.
We drove trough Botswana to Namibia,and even if we left early in the morning, we did not arrive at the Namibian boarded post until late that evening.The road trough Botswana was as straight as a line can be, and no houses or people next to the road, only donkies and cows. So after a hot long day without proper toilet stops, we arrived at a lodge in a town called Gobabis( in Namibia) and the town was as close to dead as something can be, not even a restaurant open at 9pm, so we ended up eating at the petrol stationJ
Following morning we drove that last 200km to Windhoek and had a day of relaxation before the rest of the people arrived. We visited Nicos cousin Pitt and he was going to make a braai, what we did not know is that his braais takes 10 hours to get readyJ that means we ate only after 9pm!
The next morning we picked up the guests from the airport and did a city tour of Windhoek during the day. The following day we started our driving up north, but first we visited the Martti Ahtisaari school in Katutura, a poorer area of Windhoek, the school has 1400 students as gets a lot of support from OAJ in Finland, we also gave a small donation. It was a pleasant visit. From there onwards we drove north , 250km to a lodge called Indongo lodge, owned by one of the richest businessman in Namibia , Dr Frans Indongo, an ovambo man. It was a peaceful an inviting place, we had dinner outdoors and listened to grasshoppers and frogs.
The next few days we traveled about 200-30km a day, first trough Etosha National Park, the most amazing thing to see there was the Etosha Pan, it stretched out further than the eye could carry, I will add a few pictures from there. And Then we did visit a Himba village, in Damaraland there is only 6000 Himbas left( and they do not live anywhere else) , They are friendly people and very concerned about their beauty, women do not wash themselves with water, in the mornings before sunrise their washing process takes 2,5 hours! And that is with smoke first and then they put a new layer of ochra mix on ( ochra+ homemade goatbutter) and as perfume they use a mix of herbs.Quite interesting, maybe one should try to open a Himba spa in Vasa…J Just joking!Because the smell is a different story.
We slept in tents one night , first we drove for the whole day trough bush and mountains, and there was no proper roads to drive on, it was a slow slow drive, in an area where desert elephants roam, we did not see any, maybe better so as they are very wild and can be aggressive. As we didn’t have much rain at all during our whole Namibian trip,of course it rained this specific evening, because we where sleeping in tents, luckily not more than a few hours and it freshened up the air after a hot day.And we all slept like rocks in the desert.
After a few days on dusty, sandy roads, we headed towards Swakopmund, our first touch with civilization again. You can imagine, only sand roads, no villages or houses for over 400km , in many days, and you come to the first town with 30 000 people. Here we all had time to relax for a few days. We did a cataraman cruise in the morning and saw some seals, a few dolphins from far away and enjoyed oysters and other snacks and wine to smooth it out. Then it was again time to dust it up and hit the sandroads towards the sand dunes at Sossusvlei. That is definitely worth a visit if coming to Namibia, some of the dunes are as high as 300m, we did climb up one, the sand is nice and soft on the feet , but heavy to climb up, but down one comes very easy.
And after the dunes we enjoyed the day by the pool, and in the evening we had a great dinner under the stars, a very deserted feeling far away from everything,but very peaceful and the brightness of the stars amazing. Once again we slept like never before. The nice thing , even in the heat of the desert, is the cool breeze coming trough in the evening, cooling everything down.
After the days in the desert we headed back to Windhoek , and the last night we stayed at a small lodge set in the mountains, no sounds from the town or lights, only us as guests , and again a clear sky and silence.
Then it was time to say goodbye to our guests and wish them a safe trip home,and for us to start the looooooooooong journey back to South Africa. I don’t think anyone of us looked forward to that, the least my husband Nico, as he had been driving the whole tour, already 4500km behind and still 1400km to go. And as most of the roads had been bumpy sand roads, taking lots of concentration, he had a very soar neck/back, he will need a good neck massage this week.
We drove until 2am in the morning, me and Kira trying to sleep in the back , where we had lots of space. When we stopped we had mattresses and sleeping bags in the back, and my dad and Nico slept in the front in a sitting position, so looking at the circumstances, me and Kira slept like queensJ The thing is that the Botswana road is not safe to drive at night, even if straight, there is so many donkies and cattle on the road. Nico actually saw a donkeyhead lying on the road, rest of the body missing, a truck had probably hit the poor donkey, so sadL
Before sunrise we where on the road again, and then I decided that I never ever again drive this road to Namibia, next time I have a tour in Namibia, I fly to Windhoek!
A huge hug to Nico for taking us safely trough 6000km and back to our small princesses, waiting eagerly for us to come back. We are so happy to be with them again, 2 weeks is a very long time.
Now we are 3 more weeks in South Africa before packing up and coming home to Finland. We are missing home and hopefully get to enjoy some snow. Home sweet homeJ