Namibia (cont)

It wasn't moments after I wrote my last post I found out my car had been fixed and was ready to go. Although already quite late in the day I decided to get on the road anyway and make my way towards Soussevlei. If you haven't Googled it already, Soussevlei is supposed to have some of the oldest sand dunes in the world. The dunes number in the thousands, are bright red, and can reach heights of 1500 feet. You may already be familiar with Soussevlei if you have seen the Desert background on WinXP.

Anyways, after driving for what seemed hours on a road I could have steered without arms, my good fortune continued when I ran full bore into the biggest lighting storm I've ever seen. With lightning bolts literally striking the ground all around me and the sky lighting up like the 4th of July, I just kept shaking my head and wondering what else could go wrong on this trip. Now I'm quite sure lightning has never struck a moving vehicle but without being absolutely certain, it did have me a bit rattled by the time I finally arrived at the campground still 3 hours from Soussevlei.

So the next morning I was up at 4am and making my way to Soussevlei for sunrise. Unfortunately my woes only seemed to get worse as I ended up taking a wrong turn which took me 50km out of the way and had me watching sunrise from the window of the car. In the end it all didn't matter as the views were absolutely amazing once the light began to expose it all. I hitched a ride with a nice couple from Germany who had a 4x4 that would get us thru the sand for the last 5km or at least I thought. The couple, who were both deaf, got the truck stuck a couple times and trying to get us unstuck became quite a funny ordeal. After a little work, we sorted it all out and all climbed one of the dunes together.

The views from the top of the dunes were absolutely amazing and seemed to stretch on as far as the eyes could see. With my sign language being a little rusty I had to resort to making ridiculous facial expressions to let the couple know what I thought of it all. It made for a good laugh and the silence made it all even better. My pictures do no justice to the beauty so if you're interested in seeing more, you'll have to find some better pics on the web or come here yourself. Just make sure to get a good car :)






So after 3600km of driving, a busted head gasket, a sizzler of a lightning storm, a massively missed turn, was it all worth it? Absolutely!! Next time I'll just take a little more time and go with someone I can share all the beauty with.

So I head back to Tanzania in a couple days via Johannesburg and am looking forward to getting back to volunteering. My six week African adventure has finally come to a close and it will be hard to forget the amzaing scenery, the cool people, and all the up's and down's that have come with it.

Namibia

Its been awhile since I posted so just a quick update on whats happenng with me. Three days ago I decided to travel up to Namibia to check out two sights everyone says you should visit while in Africa. (Fish River Canyon and Sossusvlei.)

I called the car rental company to ask if it was okay to drive the VW Golf on the dirt roads up here, got the go ahead, and off I went. After driving 12 hours feeling as if I was the only one on the road for hours I finally made it to Fish River Canyon. It was beautiful but a little bit of a let down as I expected something simlar to the jaw dropping and awe inspiring Grand Canyon. Not quite the same but glad I checked it out anyway. I spent the night in the car at the camp ground just outside Fish River and was all too eager to leave come 5am the next morning. One hour out and my car broke down. Now imagine being out in the middle of the Namib Desert, 105 degrees, and expecting to see no one for hours as I did the day before. The thoughts of buzzards circling overhead came across my mind once or twice as I waited for what seemed hours. Luckily a nice eldery couple who are sheep farmers finally came by and were nice enough to give me a lift to a small town called Keetmanshoop which is where I now sit. Been here two days now waiting for the garage to fix my car. Just checked in with them and it might be the engine block which might force me to cancel my trip to Sossusvlei and find alternate transportation home. Joy!

Anyway, its 107 degrees today and the bar across the street is calling my name. You know what they say.....1/2 the adventure of traveling is just getting there. :)

South Africa

Arrived in Cape Town last Thursday and feel as if I've stepped off the continent of Africa. Johannesburg for starters has one of the most modern airports I've ever been in and refreshing after 106 hours of cumulative bus and train rides the last two weeks.

Unfortunately I started getting ill the moment I arrived in CT most likely due to something I ate in Zambia my last day there. After five days of my own personal lower Victoria Falls and lots of vomiting, I'm finally starting to make a comeback.

With one eye always on the loo, I did take some time to explore the city my first couple days here. Now I've been to a fair amount of cities in my day but CT is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful I have ever come across. The city is surrounded by white powdery sand beaches with sand so fine you find it in nooks and crannies you never you knew you had. The Atlantic has incredible surf and although absolutely frigid (due to the current coming straight up from Antartica), is as blue as the sky.




Within a quarter mile of the beaches there are mountains with names like Tabletop, Lions Head, and the 12 Apostles that have sheer cliffs and hiking trails galore. After a day spent walking around CT I somehow found myself at the beach wanting desperately to get in on a game of volleyball. However on second thought decided not to as I don't think the other players would have appreciated toilet breaks every 10 minutes.

Just outside the city limits and only 45 minutes by car, you find yourself in South African wine country. I spent Sunday afternoon driving thru and stopped into one winery for a quick tasting. The wines have a much higher alcohol content then the wines back home and weren't really to my liking. The area reminded me a lot of Eastern Washington.

The last two days I've spent in the Cape Reserve. I thought a tough hike would cure me up good and after hiking a grueling 15K on the first day realized I was sorely mistaken. I parked my car at the top of the park and proceeded down the Indian Ocean side of the Reserve. For those of you unaware, the Cape Reserve is also where you'll find the Cape of Good Hope, the most south western point on the African continent. To the east of the reserve is the Indian Ocean and literally footsetps to the west is the Atlantic Ocean. The Cape of Good Hope is where the two oceans converge and is home to some of the foulest weather on earth.

Lucky for me I was hiking in perfect weather with perfect views of both oceans. Unfortunately, I was not feeling 100% still and decided after reaching the Cape of Good Hope to call it good. I hitched a ride back to the car rather then slog another 20K the following day. Great idea on my part! The hike was absolutely gorgeous and followed the contours of the Indian Ocean to a tee. Almost too much sometimes which was frustrating as I seemed to go up and down, up and down, up and down.

Today I'm lucky enough to be shacked up in a lovely home in a small town called Scarborough just outside the reserve. The house has a beautiful view of the Atlantic and a magical sunset every evening. A big thanks goes out to Phillip and Susan back home for letting me crash at your home. It's exactly what the doctor ordered.


My only worry now is what to eat and when to surf. :) Life is good here!