Namibia 19.09.2015 - 03.10.2015
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Day 1 - 19.09.2015
After long flights, we all arrived safely in Windhoek. Quite soon many of us had to stock up on foods and water, which would help us dealing with the desert sun. Often its the little things that surprise one the most when visiting a foreign countriy. And visiting a supermarket can very well be one of these. Here though, the supermarket did not look much different than in Western Europe, but this was in its own right a surprise for many. Apart from these first wanderings around town the first day was mainly about settling down and getting comfortable. We finished it with a nice welcome dinner at a restaurant where we tasted Namibian beer – brewed according to the German “Reinheitsgebot” – but also zebra, crocodile and kudu meat.
Day 2 - 20.09.2015
This day started with sugar-cinnamon pancake, a tiny cup of coffee and curious group of IFIL participants. After meeting our friendly driver Andrew again, we were brought to a bicycle tour to Katutura. Katutura is a part of Windhoek, which was originally built for housing and separating the dark-skinned people from the white Europeans during early 20th century. Anna, a smart and engaged local woman lead us to the most important sights of the city area with the most inhabitants, always explaining history, sociology, room management and many other topics.
After having a traditional lunch on the market (Herero bread and meat), we drove to the airport to welcome our last two participants (who had problems with their planes) and try to solve some baggage problems. The next destination was called Maltahöhe! Finally (after pushing the car up the steep road) we arrived at a lovely farm lodge, where they only keep wild animals (game) for hunting tourism and meat. The potije contained oryx, springbok, or .. just to mention a few, and we were so happy to relax after an exciting day together.
Don't forget to also check out the pictures!
Day 3 - 21.09.2015
Today was an exceptional day. We started early at the Game Lodge, where we decided to go on a little morning hike on which we saw a lot of interesting things in the breath-taking nature. After the hike we came back to the Lodge only to find an amazing breakfast buffet, which offered a lot of choices, something was in there for everyone ;-) Then we headed to the nearby town called Maltahoehe, which about 5´000 people call their home. At the Daweb Primary School we were welcomed by the head of the chair school district, Veronica. She showed us around the entire school, we also met the principal, teachers, and of course… the lovely kids. To this school kids go from grade 0 to grade 10, they´re educated in different languages as well as social science and agricultural studies. The great pride of the school consists in their choir, which only recently ran third place in a local competition, Veronica told us with a big smile. We also had the pleasure to listen to them live, and they really sound heavenly, so we can easily see why the community is so proud of them.
The project we had prepared, which was to video-interview a few German kids from a suburb of Munich about school and what they like/dislike about it, the Namibian students were happy to watch and participate in themselves as well. They answered questions from Germany and asked a few back, so that will be a great exchange.
Veronica insisted on inviting us to her home to be able to enjoy lunch prepared by real Namibian women. They even wore their traditional garn, prepared meatballs, rice and vegetable for us, which was delicious. Unfortunately we ran out of time to have a closer look at Maltahoehe, but enjoyed our time there a lot. Now we´re heading to Namib Desert Nature Reserve, where we are going to meet the lovely people from Nadeet.
Day 4 - 22.09.2015
After a very cold night (even the luckily ones with sleepingbag were cold) in the camp of Nadeet we got a nice breakfast, freshly prepared from one of the groups. Nadeet stands for Namib Desert nvironmental education trust. School classes all around Namibia are coming here to learn how to live in a sustainable way such as solar cooking or using less water. Samuel worked at Nadeet for one year and was very happy to be back, to his personal Namibia. At the moment more than 30 kids from Mariental are staying at Nadeet. We were able to participate at their activities for the coming two days.
It was still cold in the morning but the landscape in the sunrise was just spectacular. Unfortunately we didn´t have much time to enjoy the view since our morning class with the kids started. We completed a workshop with five different activities such as learning about greenhouse effect, how a weather station works and solar baking/cooking. During the whole program we interacted a lot with the kids. It was really interesting to see how eager they were to learn. We prepared the salad for the camp and finally had lunch at half past one. In the hot afternoon some of us took a nap, others had a date with the Oryx (Karin our new Oryx expert =) ). Later on Katja taught us interesting facts about permaculture. As a last activity of the day we measured our own environmental footprint. For that we read the hot and cold watertank and so we could calculate the average use of water from the people staying at Nadeet. Today we used only 16.8 liters per person including cooking, washing and drinking. This is quite good, isn´t it?
For sunset we hiked on the top of the dunes to enjoy the stunning view. We took some great pictures in the sand, even though it wasn´t that funny for Beni ;-) This fully packed day ended with another highlight: watching the stars in the clear Namib sky on the sand dunes.
You did not forget the photos, right?
Day 5 - 23.09.2015
At ten to six the next Morning the alarm went off: we wanted to be on time to see the sunrise. It tuned out sunrise is at 6:42 so we had lots of time to look at the slowly brightening sky with all its beautiful color’s. Since it was our turn to make breakfast for the group at 6:30 we didn’t end up seeing the actual sunrise. By that time we were already making fire to boil water and cook some kind of maize flour called Melipap. Instead of salt Matthias used ash as a seasoning but it did taste quite alright.
After breakfast we went on a dune walk. The supervisors handed out booklets so we were able to identify animals by looking at their tracks and dropings. He also informed us about the way the existing vegetation had adapted to the harsh conditions. Around midday the combination of heat, sun and walking had taken its toll and we were rather tired. With the sand in our shoes we could have built a whole dune by ourselves.
Since we had to leave the camp after lunch we started packing and cleaning. When we did the compulsory calculation of our footprint of the day we were rather surprised by the amount of hot water we had used. After a warm goodbye from all the participants of the camp (the guys definitely broke some of the kids hearts) we headed back to our car and as if in a perfect movie we got to see the long awaited ostrich.
During our journey to a farm near Helmeringhausen the landscape changed a lot: from red sand dunes to grey and stony mountains and we saw the first Kudus. The farmer was very welcoming and took us to a mountain plateau for a sundowner beer. There he also gave us a first insight on how the farm operates: back to how it was operated 140 years ago and as close to nature as possible. After a delicious dinner we were already looking forward to seeing and learning more about his farm the next day.
Day 6 - 24.09.2015
At ten to six the next Morning the alarm went off: we wanted to be on time to see the sunrise. It tuned out sunrise is at 6:42 so we had lots of time to look at the slowly brightening sky with all its beautiful color’s. Since it was our turn to make breakfast for the group at 6:30 we didn’t end up seeing the actual sunrise. By that time we were already making fire to boil water and cook some kind of maize flour called Melipap. Instead of salt Matthias used ash as a seasoning but it did taste quite alright.
After breakfast we went on a dune walk. The supervisors handed out booklets so we were able to identify animals by looking at their tracks and dropings. He also informed us about the way the existing vegetation had adapted to the harsh conditions. Around midday the combination of heat, sun and walking had taken its toll and we were rather tired. With the sand in our shoes we could have built a whole dune by ourselves.
Since we had to leave the camp after lunch we started packing and cleaning. When we did the compulsory calculation of our footprint of the day we were rather surprised by the amount of hot water we had used. After a warm goodbye from all the participants of the camp (the guys definitely broke some of the kids hearts) we headed back to our car and as if in a perfect movie we got to see the long awaited ostrich.
During our journey to a farm near Helmeringhausen the landscape changed a lot: from red sand dunes to grey and stony mountains and we saw the first Kudus. The farmer was very welcoming and took us to a mountain plateau for a sundowner beer. There he also gave us a first insight on how the farm operates: back to how it was operated 140 years ago and as close to nature as possible. After a delicious dinner we were already looking forward to seeing and learning more about his farm the next day.
Some photographs, anyone?
Day 7 - 25.09.2015
This day started a little earlier than the previous one. After a very good breakfast, Jörg showed us his vegetable farm on which he grows a large variety of vegetables and fruits from asparagus to fennel to strawberries to grapes. A special highlight of the farm tour was the catfish farm wich Jörg just started few years ago. The more we learnt about his farm, the more Jörg’s experience with sustainable agricultural practices in such an arid environment became fascinating. After the tour, we had to leave Dabis although all of us would have loved staying with the Gauglers for some more days. Our next destination was Sossusvlei, where we had planned our one tourist day. After several hours on the road we arrived in Sossusvlei in the afternoon. After refreshing beverages, we decided to spend some time in the camp site’s swimming pool. As soon as our tents were ready, we prepared to visit Sesriem Canyon. To our surprise, the visit was not possible without paying the full entrance fee to the park, which is why we decided to postone our visit to the next day when we had scheduled the visit to the dunes of Sossusvlei. Hence we went back to the camp site, played card games, enjoyed Namibian beer and cider, and had a Braai and enjoyed the night.
Day 8 - 26.09.2015
Having left out Sesriem Canyon the previous day, we had more things on our to do-list for this day. Our day at Sossusvlei started at 5:30. As Sossusvlei is one of the main tourist attractions of Namibia, we made sure to be among the first ones to enter the park. While some of us were striking the tents, others were preparing breakfast that we would later enjoy on the 60 km drive from the park entrance to the shuttle services that would then bring us to the dunes of Sossusvlei. Our shuttle bus driver showed us the different dunes we could climb up. Instead of going all the way to Sossusvlei, we asked our driver to drop us on the way so we could hike up a dune called ‘Big Daddy’, which has a relative elevation of approximately 300m. The whole walk took us about one and a half hours. On top of Big Daddy, we were rewarded with an amazing view over the red dunes of the Namib Desert. After drinks snacks and taking pictures, we left Big Daddy in direction of Deadvlei, a former lake with camelthorn trees that have been dead for over 300 years. The way down turned out to be much faster than the way up – some of us managed to go down in less than three minutes. From Deadvlei we fought for space on the shuttles back to our bus. After finally getting back there, we refilled our water bottles and increased our caffeine levels back to regular values. Our driver then brought us to Sesriem Canyon, a beautiful canyon on whose bottom a river flows in rain rich years. As the last year was exceptionally dry, we could walk on the bottom of Sesriem Canyon and discover hidden caves and small water holes.
We then had a long journey ahead of us: Our next destination was the desert research station Gobabeb, which was on the way from Sossusvlei to the coastal city Walvis Bay. On the way, many of us caught up on sleep they missed during the short night we had had. We also spotted different animals such as zebras or kudus. The way to Gobabeb turned out more adventurous than we had expected as we weren’t sure whether we were actually being expected at the research station as there had been several communication issues. When we got into more civilized areas again, we managed to call the Gobabeb reception. Although it turned out they had not confirmed our booking and hence weren´t expecting us, we were lucky and they still had spots for the night and their cook even agreed to prepare a dinner for us. We arrived at Gobabeb when it was already dark. A long way ended with Oryx steaks and cool beer.
Day 9 - 27.09.2015
Today, we had scheduled a visit of the desert research station Gobabeb. First, we had a nature walk with a group of students from the University of Namibia through the three different environments which the area of the research area encompasses, namely the red sand desert, the rock desert, and the oasis on which the research facility is built. On the tour we learnt about the three different ecosystems, the species for which they provide a home. The tour guide also gave us some indications of the research carried out about these ecosystems at Gobabeb. After the tour, the director of Gobabeb gave a presentation, talking about the research areas and the history of Gobabeb, as well as the new research project on the desert plant nara and it´s cultural importance for the people of the region.
After a quick lunch, our trip continued. The next destination was the city Walvis Bay, where our driver Andrew lives. We took advantage of the opportunity of a city tour with a local, so he showed us the nicest spots of this industrial center and its port. After we had spotted pelicans and flamingos, we went on to a café to enjoy the nice atmosphere of a Sunday afternoon at the sea.
Probably, no such rip is possible without encountering small issues every now and then. Today, we had one of this issues as one of the participants had to go see a doctor due to an inflammation in the eyes. While he and the driver were at the doctor´s, the other group members killed the time in a bar, met some local people and had drinks with other tourists from all around the world.
When the group was complete again, we took off and drove the final journey of the day, a short trip of 30 km from Walvis Bay to Swakopmund, where we would spend the next two nights. This eventful day ended at Kücki´s Pub, a restaurant in Swakopmund, which pleases its customers with both the quality and the quantity of food they get (the description of the burger in the menu is: “I dare you!”).
Day 10 - 28.09.2015
Although not everything turned out as expected, this day turned out to one of the most interesting cultural experiences of the trip. We met to representatives of the SWAPO Youth League, the official youth party of the governing party SWAPO. They joined us in the morning and had breakfast with us. After we had sat with them and asked them different questions about Namibia´s political system for about one hour, the two took us for a drive up the coast until we reached Cape Cross, a place where a colony of about 100´000 seals lives. We were amazed by how close we got to the seals, how big this population is, and how bad such a cute animal can smell.
After this visit, the SWAPO members took us to Walvis Bay to have the chance to have a closer look at flamingos. After a failed visit to a salt mine – they had already closed to facility for visitors by the time we got there – we tried to get another chance to get a feeling for the SWAPO Youth League´s political positions. Hence, we went to a café where the SWAPO members answered many of our questions.
It was very interesting to realize that the two behaved quite differently from youth politicians in Europe. For instance, they made it very clear to us that they were not representing their own opinion but rather the official positions of their party and that being loyal towards the party was crucial to them. To our surprise, we encountered topics about which they were not willing to talk, namely issues of societal liberalization such as prostitution or gay rights. When these topics came up, they stated clearly that these were not topics they were willing to discuss with us and that they were against their moral values.
Despite being much less political than we had expected, we had a day full of interesting experiences. The day ended with dinner at a German restaurant in Swakopmund.
Day 11 - 29.09.2015
Today, we had breakfast with Victoria and her husband Andreas, who are the heads of NaDeet, the environmental school we had visited in the first week. This gave us the chance to hear more about their motivations to run such a school, but also ask them critical questions about the long-term success of the kid´s environmental education, or the sustainability of the food served at NaDeet.
Today´s program then turned to more political issues again: We had the chance to meet the president of the Namibian Mine Workers Union. He gave us an extensive tour over the office facilities of the Association of Namibian Labour Unions and told us a lot about the working conditions in Namibia, negotiations on working conditions with international firms, his successes, and his own history as a fighter for the rights of Namibia´s workers. He even took us to his house to be able to talk in a more informal setting. After the talks, he took us on a city tour by car and showed us informal settlements as well as new buildings that are ready to be rented or bought but too expensive and hence have been empty ever since their completion.
After this meeting, we had some time to enjoy Swakopmund, buy souvenirs, and have lunch. Right after lunch, we went to buy groceries for our next adventure in the desert: Our next destination was Spitzkoppe, the mountain with the highest elevation relative to the surroundings in Namibia. There, we camped on a beautiful camp site in the middle of the stunning landscape. We arrived shortly before sunset. There was just enough time to climb a rock, enjoy the sunset.
After putting up our tents, we had our second Braai and were surprised by the progress we had made since our first try. Another long day ended, and we crawled into our sleeping bags as early as possible to protect ourselves from the cold night.
Day 12 - 30.09.2015
Many of us struggled to get out of their sleeping bags this morning due to the very cold weather. After we had managed to do so, we were happy to see that our driver Andrew had already lit a fire. After breakfast, Lazarus, a guide from the local Damara village joined us. With Lazarus, we had an impressive hike through the nearby nature reserve. He not only showed us the endemic plants and explained how the Damara were using them traditionally, we also spotted zebras that were set free in the nature reserve for the shooting of the movie “10´000 BC”. The highlight of the day were undoubtedly the rock paintings we saw in Bushmen´s paradise and in other locations of the reserve.
We had originally planned to leave Damaraland after this tour and go back to Windhoek. However, after the hurrying of the previous days, all of us felt like having some time to think about the events of the previous days and process the many impressions we had had. Thus, we decided to stay in Spitzkoppe for one more night.
After this extensive hike, we enjoyed some free time in the afternoon. While some of us explored the mountains and tried to climb up one of them, others spent the afternoon reading or catching up on sleep. We had dinner at the restaurant of the camp site. It turned out to be a culturally rich experience as the people from Spitzkoppe Village were having a celebration for the investor of the camp site.
Day 13 - 01.10.2015
Some of us started the day early as they wanted to enjoy the sunrise in the beautiful landscape of the Spitzkoppe region. After sunset, we went to have breakfast and enjoy a shower after two days of camping.
As the breakfast in the community-owned restaurant of the Spitzkoppe camp site had taken longer than expected, we had to hit the road immediately after finishing our meals. Shortly after leaving Spitzkoppe, our bus was driving on tar roads and was approaching Windhoek again. We were back in Namibia´s capital right in time to visit the German Agency for International Cooperation GIZ. Ulrieke XY, who has been working in International Aid in Namibia for over 20 years, gave us impressive insights into her work and the activities of GIZ.
As we didn´t have time to discover downtown Windhoek right upon arrival, part of our group went to the city center right after the visit to GIZ to do some sightseeing. We visited he important sights in the city such as the Christuskirche or a local market.
After our sightseeing tour, the rest of the group arrived in the city center as well and our group headed for dinner. The second-last meal of our trip turned out to be a very chaotic one. Some of the group didn’t get what they ordered, others got their food 20 minutes later than the others, and Andrew had a steak which he later described as a piece of charcoal (others stated that the meat was actually cutting Andrew’s knife rather than vice versa).
We had not quite recovered from the meal, when the group was hit by a small shock: Our bus, which was parked in a guarded parking lot, had been broken into, and two bags and a camera had been stolen. The police were there quite quickly to help us and we were lucky that all of us still had their passports and credit cards. Nevertheless, a long journey to the police station was ahead of some of the group, which only ended after midnight.
Day 14 - 02.10.2015
The last day of our journey has arrived. We had not quite recovered from the events of the previous night, when we headed out the University of Namibia. There, we had a meeting with Professor Margaret Angula and her students from the department of Geography and Environmental Studies.
The meeting was a truly intercultural experience. Members of our groups gave presentations on climate change effects, climate change perception and related issues in Central Europe. In return, the Namibian students gave presentations on the same topics from a Namibian perspective. We also had time for extensive discussions, question and answer sessions, and debates about equity in international climate policy. For instance, many of the Namibian students stated very clearly that they expect rich countries from the Global North to take responsibility for their historic emissions and help poor countries like Namibia deal with the effects of climate change. The meeting was ended by a very interesting presentation by Prof. Angula on her current research.
After this very inspiring meeting, we headed back to discover that Andrew had had the bus fixed in the meantime. As one of our group members had just gotten the very good results from an exam she had written before our trip to Namibia, we had a spontaneous celebration at the hostel.
After celebrating, all of us had to start preparing for what was coming after the IFIL study trip: Some started packing their things for heading back to Switzerland, others did laundry, or went to buy groceries for the safari in the Etosha Park that most of the group are doing after the study trip.
We decided to end our study trip the way it has started: With a Namibian dinner at Joe’s Beerhouse – but this time, with the entire group. And so, an impressive, inspiring study trip in a country shaped by its extreme geographical conditions and its fascinating history comes to an end.