So this post serves a couple of different functions. First off it branches the amazing four days in Swakopmund with the rest of my life in Windhoek and it details how I won’t be around much in the month of March as we have quite a full schedule. I figure if I put all this in writing before my post I can live up to those expectations.
So when we got back from Swakopmund everyone made a mad dash for the washing machine (we only have one). Let me tell you Swakop is wet and salty and you feel it!
Then we had a regular week in Windhoek. I went to classes and my internship. In internship class we spoke to a speaker from World Teach about the program and about resume writing. In religion class we spoke to Reverend Thys of the Dutch Reform Church. This was a very interesting session in religion class as he talked about the history of the DRC in Namibia and contemporary issues. In history class we had two speakers. One we went to UNAM for and he spoke to us about apartheid history. This was really interesting because he gave the history from an Afrikaner perspective which we often do not receive in class. Then we also had a speaker talk to us about racism in the U.S. In development class we went to USAID and heard about what they are doing in Namibia and globally.
Friday we ate s’mores and got excited for the North!
Saturday night we went out to see Alice in Wonderland which was very cute and creative. Then we went to Primi, a bar and Chez Ntemba a club, where we danced the night away. I was so glad to go out with my new friend from work, Olga! She is a great girl and a UNAM student.
She invited me to UNAM yesterday to help judge the preliminary round of Miss UNAM first year! It was SO fun. We got to see first year UNAM students in bikinis and cocktail dresses and ask them questions about themselves. It was SO much fun. I also got a chance to get more familiar with UNAM which was nice. Olga is an intern at Friendly Haven too. She is studying to become a social worker and is an awesome girl!
So that’s my life in Windhoek, as it is currently.
Today I am preparing for the north as we leave tomorrow, very early. In the north we will be on an insane adventure! We start off making our way to our rural homestay families. My family is one of 7 people. Three girls and three boys, but two of the girls are older. I am so excited for the homestay! I can’t wait to meet them. I know that it presents itself with some challenges but I hope I am prepared for them, or at least as much I can be. For example, six days of no showers or bathing, no toilets and maybe no running water or electricity. I can handle it though. During the day at our homestays we are going to go to various speakers around the area. Then after six days we leave for Opuwo, another village in the north, and spend sometime there. Finally we make our way to Etosha National Park which is going to be amazing! We are going to get to see animals there. I am SO excited!
After all that adventure in the North we drive back south to Windhoek and there is where we start our spring break! Jenna and I and two of her co-workers are going to Skeleton Coast Park which will be amazing! We will spend two days there and then go to Swakopmund for the rest of the week. I’ll get back to Windhoek on Thursday, March 25th or Friday, March 26th! Then there is only one more month before my sister Britt comes to visit me!
Anyway that will explain why there will be no more posts for about three weeks, but I will have so much to report on when I get back! Wish me luck!
P.S. Check out Skeleton Coast at http://www.namibian.org/travel/namibia/skeleton.htm !
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Some of the best four days of my life!
Some of the best four days of my life!!
We left for Swakopmund, mid week! We were all pretty psyched about the trip. For me, it was at the very least a welcome escape from the house which I tire from. I love to travel and I could hardly wait to go! We loaded up the van last Wednesday and headed out for Swakop!
The drive was three to four hours! When we got there we split up into groups to live in which of the guest houses for the next three days. Then we were off to the beach which was beautiful. Our first glance at the Atlantic from Namibia was at night. The waves roared! They were very intense! It was so beautiful, it brought a contemplative mood over me.
Then we went to the Lighthouse for dinner. It was so delicious and everyone had been starving so we ate quite a bit.
The next day was full of speakers in Swakopmund. We went to the Rossing Mine which mines uranium. It was really interesting and beautiful. It also had its own precautions and safety measures, like wearing a seat belt, which is not common practice in most of Namibia.
In the afternoon we went grocery shopping. Then Jenna and I stayed in, made our own dinner and watched Shakespeare in Love. Then it was off to the beach again. The beach is so beautiful at night but at that point I was very cold and salty from the air and the waves and was looking forward to a chance to see the beach in the day.
The next day we went to Walvis Bay (often pronounced wall-fish bay here). We saw a lot of interesting things like Namport, a trading port and the Export Processing Zone which allows foreign companies to process Namibian resources here and then export them all over the world. Then we drove back to Swakopmund. Kate and I had dinner at Spurs, which sort of reminds me of TGIF except with a Native American theme which is interesting!
Saturday was our free day and a group of us went sea kayaking. This was y far my favorite activity in Swakopmund and my favorite day on this trip, hands down!! We drove out from Swakopmund with Leon and Craig, our guides, to Walvis Bay. We got to see seal colonies! They were mostly mamas and babies! They were so loud they barked and made a sound like a goat!
Then we got on the water. Lauren, my partner in the kayak, and I went out with the group. We first went to deep water to try to find dolphins which we didn’t end up seeing. Then we came further in to play with the seals. Seals are some of the best animals ever!! Their bodies jumping around in the water shimmer in the sun and their playful attitude is made apparent when they peek their heads out of the water to check you out. It was so amazing. The faster Lauren and I went the faster they would swim along side us! It was so amazing! They would jump right next to our kayak. Also one bit Lauren’s paddle! It was SO amazing! The air was clear and salty and the water splashed me which helped keep me cool! It was the best tourist experience I have had here in Namibia so far!
Unfortunately we had to come back in eventually. We had sandwiches and explored a little. Some people found a dead baby seal. Many people found seal bones. It was so beautiful.
The ride back we were all exhausted! Then, back in Swakopmund, we finally got to go to the beach during the day! It was marvelous! We also did yoga on the beach taught by our very own development teacher, Linda Raven. It was so fun but my body was exhausted. Also the ocean is very rough and you have to be a very strong swimmer to make it! It roughed me up a bit!
As amazing as this day was, the night was just as fun. My roomies and I went to Napolitana, an Italian restaurant for dinner. Then Morgan, Holland and I went out to Rafter Action Pub, which was very fun. Then we went dancing! It was so fun, even when we got lost on our way back home!
And so concludes my adventures in Swakopmund… or does it? I am going to spend from March 22nd to 26th in Swakopmund for spring break!
We left for Swakopmund, mid week! We were all pretty psyched about the trip. For me, it was at the very least a welcome escape from the house which I tire from. I love to travel and I could hardly wait to go! We loaded up the van last Wednesday and headed out for Swakop!
The drive was three to four hours! When we got there we split up into groups to live in which of the guest houses for the next three days. Then we were off to the beach which was beautiful. Our first glance at the Atlantic from Namibia was at night. The waves roared! They were very intense! It was so beautiful, it brought a contemplative mood over me.
Then we went to the Lighthouse for dinner. It was so delicious and everyone had been starving so we ate quite a bit.
The next day was full of speakers in Swakopmund. We went to the Rossing Mine which mines uranium. It was really interesting and beautiful. It also had its own precautions and safety measures, like wearing a seat belt, which is not common practice in most of Namibia.
In the afternoon we went grocery shopping. Then Jenna and I stayed in, made our own dinner and watched Shakespeare in Love. Then it was off to the beach again. The beach is so beautiful at night but at that point I was very cold and salty from the air and the waves and was looking forward to a chance to see the beach in the day.
The next day we went to Walvis Bay (often pronounced wall-fish bay here). We saw a lot of interesting things like Namport, a trading port and the Export Processing Zone which allows foreign companies to process Namibian resources here and then export them all over the world. Then we drove back to Swakopmund. Kate and I had dinner at Spurs, which sort of reminds me of TGIF except with a Native American theme which is interesting!
Saturday was our free day and a group of us went sea kayaking. This was y far my favorite activity in Swakopmund and my favorite day on this trip, hands down!! We drove out from Swakopmund with Leon and Craig, our guides, to Walvis Bay. We got to see seal colonies! They were mostly mamas and babies! They were so loud they barked and made a sound like a goat!
Then we got on the water. Lauren, my partner in the kayak, and I went out with the group. We first went to deep water to try to find dolphins which we didn’t end up seeing. Then we came further in to play with the seals. Seals are some of the best animals ever!! Their bodies jumping around in the water shimmer in the sun and their playful attitude is made apparent when they peek their heads out of the water to check you out. It was so amazing. The faster Lauren and I went the faster they would swim along side us! It was so amazing! They would jump right next to our kayak. Also one bit Lauren’s paddle! It was SO amazing! The air was clear and salty and the water splashed me which helped keep me cool! It was the best tourist experience I have had here in Namibia so far!
Unfortunately we had to come back in eventually. We had sandwiches and explored a little. Some people found a dead baby seal. Many people found seal bones. It was so beautiful.
The ride back we were all exhausted! Then, back in Swakopmund, we finally got to go to the beach during the day! It was marvelous! We also did yoga on the beach taught by our very own development teacher, Linda Raven. It was so fun but my body was exhausted. Also the ocean is very rough and you have to be a very strong swimmer to make it! It roughed me up a bit!
As amazing as this day was, the night was just as fun. My roomies and I went to Napolitana, an Italian restaurant for dinner. Then Morgan, Holland and I went out to Rafter Action Pub, which was very fun. Then we went dancing! It was so fun, even when we got lost on our way back home!
And so concludes my adventures in Swakopmund… or does it? I am going to spend from March 22nd to 26th in Swakopmund for spring break!
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