Well, I hope the black rhino got your attention. The vagabond teddy bear is back on the road, this time in Namibia in Africa. My trip to Windhoek, the capital of Namibia took the best part of two days as I flew with overnights in Amsterdam and Cape Town, to where I will return for a few days at the end of the trip. The next morning, I returned to the airport for the two hour flight to Windhoek, and had the chance to meet a fellow celebrity.
My arrival at Windhoek went much less smoothly. My flight arrived just after a huge A, and getting through immigration, buying a sim card, and collecting my car took three hours. Two immaculately dressed men in suits then demonstrated how to change a car tyre β something that many tourists will need to do. I spent the night in a small guest house in Windhoek, and had dinner in a local restaurant, finding that the steaks were good and the wine cheap β always a good start for a holiday.
The next morning, I set off on the long drive north to Etosha National Park. The road was straight, asphalted, and monotonous, with one lane each way.
Every 10km or so the road had a rest area consisting of a table, chairs and a waste bin located under a shady tree β except for the tree, each one is identical to all the others all through Namibia. I finally arrived at 4pm at the Mushara Bush Camp, a lodge located just outside of the park. As soon as I had driven inside, a new world opened up. Antelope and giraffes stood nonchalantly by the side of the road or sometimes in the road , as the bush began to come back to life after the heat of the midday sun.
Like most newly arrived visitors, I spent a lot of time photographing giraffes, springboks and zebras β animals so common that after a couple of days I barely noticed them anymore. The concentration of wildlife, so close to the road, was amazing. I spent a couple of pleasant hours driving around and trying out the settings on my complicated new camera. I was pleased that towards the end of my visit, I bumped into this elephant.
