We headed off mid morning to the first of 3 wineries.......& oh how good the wine was! That was until we got to Fairview & were introduced to the delights of their goats cheese. I think Celia & I made the rounds of the cheese platters about a dozen times...& that was before the wine had even been tasted! Who knew the wine was supposed to be tasted with the cheese, we just thought the cheese was an appetiser. That meant that we needed to go back to the cheese with wine glass in hand to really get the full experience. What can I say....we really got our monies worth!
By the third winery we were all feeling pretty happy with ourselves so it was time for some lunch & maybe an afternoon nap! Before we knew it we had to leave for Stellenbosch....& the hostel for our first night with the group. There is nothing like getting to know someone on an intimate level by sharing a dorm room with them. Well, that's how we met our new family.....& Andrew didn't disappoint....he snored like a train all night! Welcome to the tour guys!!
In the morning we were introduced to our home for the next few weeks......the truck! Now the truck didn't have a name so after a few days she was christened "Sparkles" after my new favourite lolly!! We left Stellenbosch & headed to Citrus Dale. It was here that we met an interesting character by the name of Skokkie - a local bushman who took us on a nature walk near the campsite. When I say nature walk I really mean nature bush-bash as old Skokkie led us up & over rocks, through bushes & along narrow paths. Every now & then he would dart off into the bushes & return bearing some sort of creature who inevitably got the shits & couldn't wait to scamper off to safety. Some of the things he "found" included a turtle who did the running man mid air, a baby puff adder, a couple of scorpions, some caterpillars & a giant worm thing! He also showed us some really old rock art......but most of all it was all about how nuts he was!!
I've also forgotten to mention our awesome guides Peter & Bernie....well his name is Bernhard but that is a bit of a mouthfull so I christened him Bernie.....& it stuck!! They are both Zimbabwean & have the most luminous smiles with infectious, hysterical laughs to match. The rest of the group consisted of 2 Belgains (newly engaged), 2 Aussies (newlyweds) & a South African chick....(newly sex-ting!!).
Next morning it was up early....a theme that will be repeated throughout the next few weeks....& by early I mean 5am.....aarrrggghhh!! It was already time to leave South Africa & cross over into Namibia. This border crossing was like no other border crossing we have done before - & that's saying something cos we crossed from Zambia to Zimbabwe last year on foot & in the dark. It was like we stepped over the border and went from Earth to Mars. The change in landscape was incredible. There were massive rock formations followed by miles & miles of nothing.....not a tree or bush in sight. Then there was sand dune after sand dune.....& then there were a few more sand dunes!!
Photo: The first photo taken out the window just over the Namibian border......
Our first night in Namibia was spent at the most beautiful campsite called Felix United. It had a pool that looked out over the Orange River. What was funny though was checking out all the other "campers" who were also travelling around Africa "overland". So it has come to light that I have turned into a camping snob...or maybe that should be a reverse-snob. See, we are travelling pretty rough.....fantastic fun but rough. These other "campers" arrive at their campsites, have their tents set up for them (complete with camper beds), have their dinner cooked for them & then enjoy it sitting at clothed tables laden with platters & lit by candles. I think you get the picture. We, on the other hand, get to a camp, set up our tents, roll out our mats, start cooking dinner & then enjoy said dinner on our laps, under the romantic light of our head torches. BUT I wouldn't trade our experience for all the sand in Namibia.....which is a lot!!
The next few days saw more early starts, sand, rough roads, rocks & more sand. We walked around one side of the Fish River Canyon. It is the second largest canyon in the world behind some unkown one in Arizona!! It measures 160km long, 27km wide & up to 550m deep...mega vertigo!
We also stopped off in Sesriem where we were taken on a beautiful sunset, canyon walk by Bernie. There really is nothing like sunset in Africa!
Before we knew it we were getting up at 4.30am for our excursion to Dune 45 for the most beautiful sunrise I have ever seen. The dune is so named because it is 45km from the Sesriem Canyon & they say that the sand is over 5 million years old.....Phwoaaah!! We drove out there & began the 170m climb to the top. I will admit that we didn't actually make it to the top before the sun started to rise so we parked our butts on the side of it & were wowed by the sun slowly rising in the distance. It was also around about then that I realised I had mobile phone reception for the first time in Namibia...so I got to call Bec for her birthday - a massive highlight! I may have shed a few tears following that phone call....but what a surreal thing to call your best friend while she's having her afternoon coffee on the other side of the world & you're watching the sun rise over picture perfect sand dunes in Namibia......pretty memorable!
From Dune 45, we jumped in a Land Cruiser & headed out to explore some more sand dunes. First stop was Sossusvlei, a large clay pan which on the odd occasion floods but is mostly a dry, unihabitable expanse of sand & undergrowth. As we began our walk (which our guide Peter had kindly volunteered to lead for us!) we began to discover that some creatures actually thrived in this environment. Everywhere we looked we could follow tiny little beetle tracks across the dunes....the funniest being the ones that went straight for a bit then did a little loop like maybe they were trying to lose a predator!
From here we went up one of the hundreds of sand dunes and were confronted with a spectacular sight - Dead Vlei. A huge salt pan with 1,000 year old, dead trees dotting the barren landscape. It is so hot & dry out there that the trees have literally dehydrated. We had a ball running around in the 35 degree heat like idiots taking stupid photos & carrying on. It was amazing.
After exhausting ourselves in the Dead Vlei, we climbed yet another sand dune to get a glimpse of Ostrich Vlei...but the real highlight of climbing this dune was the run back down it!! Fun, fun, fun :)
So it was back in the jeep & then on our next stop - Swakopmund......& that's where the fun really starts...... ;)
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