Date: Jan. 31, 2007
Location: Walvis Bay, Namibia
Next Port: Cape Town, South Africa, Feb 2-4
Quick Summary: Another fairly rough, cloudy day…delaying our arrival in Walvis Bay by a bit, but not enough to impact the planned evening in the desert by the dunes. Though we missed the stars (it was cloudy), this complimentary event was terrific. And, we each got to ride a camel!
Report: Larry skipped his workout because he’s caught the cold bug going around. We had a quiet morning attending the devotionals session, eating breakfast and doing some reading and writing.
Soon after lunch, we arrived at the busy port of Walvis Bay. It is the only deepwater port between Angola and South Africa. Namibia was a German protectorate and only received its independence in 1990. It is often called, “The Land God Made in Anger” because of its stark, surreal landscapes, untamed wilderness and harsh environment. It has a barren, shipwreck-littered coast, some bird-filled lagoons and vast desolate deserts. In places, small towns and villages cling to the shore-line, behind which are massive, shifting sand dunes. It is some of the most desolate scenery in the world.
Karen took a tour to Swakopmund, 20 mi. north of Walvis Bay, where this distinctly German outpost clings to the edge of the continent. It has done so since the first 40 German settlers and 120 colonial troops landed there in the 19th century. This Bavarian style village has a seaside promenade, cafes and colonial buildings. The tour visited the Kristal Gallerie where crystals pulled from a Namibian mine weighed up to 14 tons. The group also visited the beautiful Swakopmund Hotel. On the return trip, they visited the Karakulia Carpet Weavery to view how carpets are made form the wool of Karakul sheep. This creative workshop was established in 1979 and has grown to train and employ more weavers as its success grew. The rugs were colorful and very beautiful. (Along the way, they also passed the Burning Shore Resort where Angelina and Brad waited out the birth of their daughter.)
Larry took a bus tour of the sights around Walvis Bay that included the Lagoon – where the promised “thousands of shore birds and flamingoes” numbered in the 10s. The north wind and high tide were supposedly to blame. Then we visited Namibia’s largest salt mine. Here pools of sea water are allowed to slowly evaporate, and once a year the remaining salt is scraped off and refined into large white mountains (used mostly for industrial purposes). No one was available to explain the process used. The last stop was to Dune 7 (yes, they number these shifting monsters). It’s the second largest dune in the world; number one is also in Namibia. But no one was telling us exactly how tall it was. All in all, not a very “spectacular” tour!
“Spectacular” was saved for the evening. This desolate area is not set up for handling tourists. A combination of buses, vans and off-road vehicles had to be brought in to handle our tours and the 600+ of us who attended the dinner in the desert. We took a 25-minute ride into the desert where we then changed into smaller 4-wheel drive vehicles for the last mile into the dinner site. This was a temporary area of three tents nestled amongst soaring sand dunes. You can see from the photos that it was a first class, table cloth, crystal affair.
We were greeted with champagne as we alighted from our vehicles. Women in native dress standing along a carpeted path led us to the entertainment area and fire pit. A beautiful, 30-person youth group performed a variety local songs before dinner and a 10-piece combo played excellent music during and after dinner.
There were camel rides for everyone who wanted this African experience. The photos prove that we had fun doing it.
You could also walk up the dunes…which were more stable than Dune 7, so it made climbing much easier. The colors of the dunes would have been so much better if we had had a sunset, but their vastness and shapes were still impressive.
Our caravans arrived back to the ship between 9:45-10:15. Some of the ship’s staff, including our sweet stewardess Cecilia, were lined up to welcome us “home” with friendly smiles and hot hand towels – the end of a terrific evening in the Namib Desert.
Tomorrow is a sea day as we head down the west coast of Africa to Cape Town where we will spend two overnights. It will also mark the end of the first segment (there are 6) of Regent’s World Cruise. Some new friends will be departing at this juncture and we wish them well – whether they are taking a safari or heading straight home.
Karen and Larry
A reminder: Photos of our cruise are now available at the following web site:
picasaweb.google.com/larryworldcruise
Photos of our stop in Walvis Bay, Namibia, have been added.
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