Namibia, Zambia and Beyond!

 The group at Devils Pool at Victoria Falls

 Hanging over the edge of Vic Falls

 Chilling at a castle overlooking WIndhoek

 Sand dunes in Swakopmund

 Bungee jumping at Vic Falls

 Game drive at Chobe in northern Botswana

Skydiving in swakopmund!!

***There are a ton more pictures on facebook if you wanna take a good look. It is a lot easier to upload them to fbook than blogger. Friend me if we aren't friends already, Jules Brice*

So the time has come for me to do a quick wrap up of the most amazing, most fun, craziest week and a half I’ve probably ever had during my midsemester break vacation. It comprised going to four countries, crossing two rivers, jumping out of one plane, jumping off a bridge twice, swimming on the edge of a waterfall and more. I’ll try to keep it brief but not sure how successful I am going to be with it as we did so much.  It’s easiest for me just to go day by day but I will once again say please just skim a lot of it as I put in so much detail because I just love writing about what I’ve seen and done here but realize that it can be way overboard.

First off, the logistics. I traveled with five other Americans that are in the same program as I am in Bots. Quick recap of the kids just so you have a general idea of who I am talking about. Ashley-senior from UC Davis originally from California. Kylee-senior from Washington goes to University of Colorado. Charlotte: junior from Guilford but from Atlanta, Georgia. Kim-junior from Keene College, originally from New Hampshire. Richard: Junior from George Washington but has lived all over.  We had a week and half to travel so our basic itinerary was to travel from Gabs to Windhoek and Swakopmund, Namibia then to Livingstone, Zambia by Victoria Falls and then to Chobe Park in Kasane in northern Botswana.

DAY ONE: This was basically a travel day. So got up around 5, out of the house by 5:45 and off to RailPark to catch our bus to Windhoek. I was lucky enough that Elt was willing to wake up early enough to drive us (me and a friend who lives nearby) over to Railpark which saved me from having to try to get on a combi with a huge backpacking backpack. The ride to Windhoek from Namibia took about 12+ hours but we had a great time on the bus talking, reliving our childhood by playing MASH, seeing different parts of Botswana and Namibia and stopping at various rest stops throughout the ride. However, only in Africa would a bathroom break entail the bus pulling off the road in the middle of nowhere and all the men getting out and peeing on the side of the road..what??? As we neared Windhoek we couldn’t believe that in a couple of minutes we would see a huge city because all we could see was endless desert and huge hills. Did get to see a gorgeous sunset over those hills with the sky turning a beautiful purple color, something I have never seen before. Before I knew it we were entering a city that kind of resembled the US with paved roads everywhere, shops on every corner, street lights and more. I immediately felt at ease and comfortable with the city cause it reminded me so much of home. We were lucky that the bus driver was willing to drop us off right at our hostel, Cardboard Box Backpackers which was amazing! I loved it!!! We were able to get a room for 6=perfect and they had a pool, bar and kitchen. We had already eaten so just got some beers and played cards to unwind after our long day of traveling and in preparation for tomorrow’s adventures around Windhoek.

DAY TWO: Got up bright and early to find the closest ATM which allowed us to walk down towards the center of town and go to our first Namibian mall which again looked just like the US. Headed back to the hostel for our complimentary breakfast of cinnamon pancakes which were basically crepes with cinnamon sugar and butter on top: not too shabby for Julie (Friends quote for my Friends friends).  Then we were off to explore this amazing city. It is basically Africa meets Germany. Germany colonized Namibia until WWI when South Africa, under British rule, attacked and pushed Germany out and assumed control of the colony. Therefore this is a huge German influence seen mainly in the architecture and there is a huge Afrikaans presence in Windhoek and Swakopmund. We were able to visit the Christuskirche, the famous “gingerbread” church made from sandstone, walk around the Parliament garden grounds, take pictures in front of the Supreme Court, visit the National Museum which was housed in an old German fort and go craft shopping. Windhoek also has three castles so we were able to find one on the top of this huge hill that is now used as the Italian ambassadors private residence. To be honest it was kind of a let down after walking up a huge hill as the only castle like feature of the house was a turret. However, from up there we got a great view of the city and were able to see another castle that looked much more castle like so we headed in that direction. We thought we found a shortcut through a field but in reality the field turned out to be homeless people’s houses and toilets as there was toilet paper and feces everywhere-gross. Finally get to the castle and it is absolutely gorgeous. It’s been turned into a hotel and restaurant and we were able to get a table and have Windhoek Lagers as we overlooked the city of Windhoek. The whole time we just kept thinking, “We are hot and sweaty, just tracked through a field of human waste and yet here we are in a castle drinking Windhoeks overlooking Windhoek. Our lives are awesome.”

After exploring a bit more and heading back to the hostel to rest for a bit, we headed out to Joe’s Beer House a local tourist attraction. It was fantastic not only in food but in atmosphere as well. They had everything from a koi pond to stuffed baboons to tiki torches. Plus we were able to have the most interesting foods. A lot of us got the Bushman’s sosatie which had cornfritters, bacon wrapped pumpkin, chicken, ostrich, crocodile, kudu and zebra! I had to say the crocodile was much fishier than I thought it would be but I think that or ostrich was by far my favorite. Also tried my friend’s springbok which was really good too! Great way to end our first day in Windhoek!!!

DAY THREE: We had half the day in Windhoek and then the second half was going to be spent traveling to Swakopmund. So after finishing our breakfast we headed out to this Hofmeyer Walk through Klein Windhoek Valley. Although Windhoek was already ten times better than Gabs (cleaner, prettier, available toilet paper) it was still Africa so finding the trailhead took forever and when we did it was a really old rusty sign that was falling apart. Needless to say the path was not well marked at all so we kind of made our own path up to the top of a mountain to overlook the city again. The views from the top were gorgeous and gave a great idea of how big the city really is and how enclosed it is by the surrounding mountains. After taking our fair share of pictures we headed out to the Windhoek Rail Station which was the cutest building, heavily German influenced, from 1912. Then it was time to catch our shuttle to Swakopmund located on the east coast of Namibia right on the Atlantic Ocean.

By the time we showed up it was dark and the town was deserted and there really wasn’t much to see so we started getting a bit nervous. Even the closest Food Lovers was closed so we had to walk aways down to get groceries to make spaghetti and veggies at our hostel, Villa Weise. Villa Weise was so cute and was a historic mansion from 1905. So great!!

DAY FOUR: Up early to explore and find this beach as there is no water in Gabs and we were all desperate to see that refreshing H-2-O. It was really cloudy and rainy yet still so great to finally see some water! My friend and I had reservations to go skydiving but unfortunately after waiting a half hour, called and was told it was pushed back to the afternoon because of the clouds. So after building up my adrenaline and getting pumped, I had to return back down to earth and explore Windhoek. Kylee and I just walked around, found the pier, saw the famous sand dunes, found a great café and did some shopping. Then it was time for skydiving which was incredible. First there is a 25 minute scenic flight where I could see the salt pans, the ocean, the city, the sand dunes, the moon landing mountains. It was breathtaking! Then we jumped and it was awesome! I loved that feeling of just jumping out of the plane where you  feel like you are floating. However, soon my instructor, Jack started spinning us during our freefall which I liked but my stomach did not. Before I knew it, he pulled the parachute and we shot upwards, the wind stopped and I could think clearly again. When we were floating back down to earth I was able to take control of the parachute and turn us one way then the other way. You could also make it so you basically went parallel with the ground and were spinning and spinning.  Made it safely back to the ground where I was on cloud 9 even though my stomach was still spinning for most of the afternoon. Not only was the actual experience of skydiving amazing, but it made me, in a way, feel more empowered and proud of myself that I had the courage to actually just jump out of a plane! Go me!

DAY FIVE: Now that I had a massive adrenaline rush I was ready for more so in the afternoon we had reservations to go quad biking on the sand dunes which is basically using an ATV (All Terrain Vehicle) to zip around the massive hills. However, before leaving for our quad biking adventure we all just spent some more time exploring the city and shopping. It is such an interesting and cute city with a strong Afrikaans population. In fact there were more white people there I think than black people, at least in the city center.  2pm rolled around and it was time for quadbiking which turned out to be so much fun (not as much fun as skydiving but great, nonetheless). We all wanted to be extra cool so got the helmets without visors believing our sunglasses would suffice. Boy were we wrong. As we whipped around, the sand pummeled us to the point where a majority of the time my eyes were tearing up as they tried to rid them of sand. That sand just exfoliated us to the max. Even when we stopped to take pictures it was so windy and cold that we could barely hear each other. As we drove around though it was obvious that quadbiking is one of the only ways in which you can really appreciate the vastness and magnitude of the dunes. When skydiving they looked really small but when we stood in the middle I felt like we were in Lawrence of Arabia and in the middle of nowhere. It was such a fun activity in itself but even made it more fun that we were all together and since we drove in a straight line we were able to see each other and comment on how much air someone got or how someone almost flipped. So much fuN!

Still high off our quadbiking adventure we headed down to the beach to watch the most gorgeous sunset over the ocean , which for east coast Americans isn’t something we get to see. I never really thought about it but I only ever see sunrises over the ocean so this was, I think, a first. It was b-e-a-utiful!  Finsihed the night up with some fresh seafood in town before crashing for the evening.

DAY SIX: Back to Windhoek we go to travel from Windhoek to Zambia on a 20 plus hour bus ride. Not much to say here except that we were lucky because the bus ride to Zambia wasn’t that crowded so were each able to get two seats to try to get comfy to sleep. Around five in the morning the next day I am readjusting in my seats when the driver slams on the breaks. I look out the front window only to see a herd of elephants crossing the road. A herd of ELEPHANTS!!!!!  All I can say is Wow, Africa rocks!

DAY SEVEN: We showed up to Livingstone, Zambia and found our Jolleyboys Backpackers hostel pretty easily. This hostel was awesome too: a bar, a pool, pool tables, a sofa lounge..aah. Only downside to it, if this is a downside is we had to share a 16 person dorm room which was actually a really cool experience and something I’ve never done before. Since we arrived to Livingstone in the early afternoon we still had time to do some exploring of Victoria Falls so off to Vic Falls we went. It’s only about a 15 minute bus ride to the falls so we were there within no time. It’s a very interesting setup because the Zambia-Zimbabwe border runs perpendicular to the falls so its not like on one side of falls is Zambia and one is Zimbabwe but rather there is a border cutting the falls in half. Then the river that flows from the falls creates a gorge and the gorge is divided into Zambia and Zimbabwe. Really confusing and hard to explain without a map. Anywho, there is a bridge that goes over the gorge connecting the Zambia-Zim side and this is where all the bungee and gorge swings take place. I really wanted to bungee jump so bungee jump I did. However just to give an example of how different the US and Zambia-Zim are to get on the bridge you have to go through immigration and the Zambia border post. You walk up and say you are going on the bridge, they hand you a small piece of paper that lists how many are in your party and then you give it to the guard at the post. That’s it!!!

After handing the guard our number we walked down towards the bridge. Even the walk was crazy as there were baboons EVERYWHERE; on cars, on trucks, in trash cans, just in the streets, crazy! And there are all these salesman introducing themselves, asking your name and then trying to sell you stuff. That alone is an experience.

After signing all the release papers and getting weighed I headed off to the bridge to wait my turn to jump. Waiting was for sure the hardest part as I had to watch everyone jump which didn’t really scare me more but made me really anxious.  Finally it was my turn! They wrap huge thick towels around your legs and connect you up. Walk towards the edge so your toes are over the edge of the platform, arms out like you are flying, then 5-4-3-2-1-bungee and you jump out as far as you can. Just like with skydiving the first couple of seconds are very scary and your body just yells at you, “what are you doing??” but then it calms down and I really enjoyed it until the jerk of your body when you get caught and swing back up. I swung back up pretty far but at this point couldn’t tell in what direction I was moving. I think my favorite part was probably the end where the bouncing is less extreme and you literally just feel like you are flying. I loved bungee so much more than I ever thought I would!!

After bungee all six of us got harnessed up to zipline across the gorge from Zambia into Zimbabwe. To be honest I barely remember the zip as I was still racing from just having bungee jumped. But it is pretty cool to have swung from one country into another. Pretty awesome

That night we were all exhausted so just got dinner from Jollyboys and hung out at our hostel all night.

DAY EIGHT: Today we were actually going to go into Victoria Falls Park and our day started with a tour of Livingstone Island which sets off from the 5 start hotel, Royal Livingstone. Before our tour we had the opportunity to look around the grounds which was right on the Zambezi River and on a game reserve. I literally got to be within 5 feet of a zebra, 10 feet of a giraffe and like 10 feet from a lot of impala. What a great way to start the day!

Toured the grounds some more then got put in a speed boat to be taken to Livingstone Island which is right on the edge of the falls and I believe only accessible during the dry season when the falls aren’t in full swing.  Since it is the dry season instead of a huge sheet of water, there is a lot of rock face exposed and just a couple huge falls sprinkled throughout. However because the falls aren’t in full force you have access to Devil’s Pool which is a natural pool literally right on the edge of the falls. They even hold your feet as you edge over the falls and look down! It was amazing!!!!!! Not to mention at Devil’s Pool there is always a double rainbow which was the cherry on top! After swimming in the pool for a bit, the most beautiful and delicious breakfast was provided; muffins, crumpets and eggs Benedict! AHAH!!

They shuttled us back to the hotel where we hung out for a bit listening to an accapella group that was singing. At this point our group split up with some people going off to the falls and four of us hanging out listening. I stayed behind to listen and after about a half hour we decided to head on out so asked the front desk how to get to Vic Falls Park. They said they had a free shuttle service so we hopped right in. Before we knew it we pulled up to another hotel where a man in traditional African garb opened the door for us and welcomed us into another 5 star hotel. We walked through the lobby and there in front of us was the most gorgeous pool and four lawn chairs with towels so, being as we were so hot, we just jumped right in. It was fantastic and soon a band started playing the steel drums and xylophones. This was the life; sitting in a five star hotel, sunbathing, listening to African music and all for free/borrowed. Eventually we were able to drag ourselves out of the pool and on our way out asked how to get to Vic Falls. “Are you residents here at Zambezi Sun?”..”No, not exactly.” “Well are you residents at our neighboring hotel, the Royal Livingstone.” “It’s okay, they shuttled us here.” “Well, are you guests?” “We took a tour there.” So they figured out we weren’t guests at either hotel and were asked to leave the grounds. Oh well, what a great afternoon!!

Headed to the falls park where we took the Boiling Pot hike which is a steep decline to the bottom of the falls where water is continuously swirling around just like a boiling pot of water. We swam there for a bit then hiked all the way back up and went on another hike, Knife Bridge. It was nice but not as extraordinary as I might have thought simply because it is dry season so there wasn’t too much water.

We still had some time before dark so we went back the bungee bridge where I did the gorge swing! Since I bought combo pack I got a bungee, zip and gorge swing for $160 but didn’t have time to do the gorge swing yesterday so went back today. This was the most terrifying thing. You are harnessed up to a huge rope, you walk to the end of the platform you bungeed from and then you just step off. There is a lot of slack in the rope for the swing so you just free fall and plummet until the rope tightens at which point you start to swing back and forth. The swinging part was nice but have to say the freefall was terrifying and I screamed so loudly! Still a lot of fun and definitely a must-try-before-I-die kind of thing!

After shopping at some of the booths set up, we headed back and once again had dinner at Jollyboys.

DAY NINE: Today was  our last day exploring and adventuring before heading back to Gaborone and we were going to spend it on a safari in Kasane, Botswana. Our tour group picked us up from Zambia (after a lot of confusion about time and payment options) and drove us to the border where we actually had to use a ferry to cross. The border is actually right where the Kambezi and Chobe Rivers meet and is the point at which Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Namibia all meet too!

As soon as we crossed into Bots, matata (problems)!! It took a while to get through immigration because they were unsure how to process our visas that we had for Bots, there was no toilet paper in the bathroom and things just moved so slowly. After stepping on a wet mat to prevent the spread of disease, we got into our safari vehicle and were transported to the Chobe Hotel right on the Chobe River where we would depart for our 3 hour boat ride. We set off and then after about a half hour, the engine stops workly fully. Back to the hotel we go to switch boats, ahah, Bots!

We start again, an hour and a half into our boat ride. Even though it was frustrating to have the tour start that late it was awesome. We got within feet of elephants, saw elephants crossing the river, crocodiles, hippos in and out of the water, water buffalo..It was so cool. We start heading back to the hotel for lunch when the speed boat engines starts to give out. Ayy. There was another boat next to us so our driver tries to throw a five foot rope to them and pull us closer. After several failed attempts she managed to get the rope onto the other boat but when she tries to pull us closer almost falls in. Again only in Africa would the speed boat engine give out, there be no rope, no life jackets, no communication back to the hotel, no safety precautions given, all in hippo-infested water with hippos that could easily tip our boat! The driver gave up and tried the engine again which would work for like 5 min then stop, 5 min then stop. Needless to say we eventually got back to the hotel for lunch. Lunch was awesome, a huge buffet right on the water==WONDERFUL!!!

Then we headed out on our game drive. This was really great too as it allowed us to see more giraffes right by the truck, more elephants, elephants taking mud baths, three female lions and warthogs! However since the boat had problems in the morning our game drive (just like our boat ride) was cut really short. Oh well!

The company then dropped us off at our lodge for the night which was basically a little camping site in the middle of nowhere with small 2 person cabins spread out. But we show up at 5:30 and our cabins still aren’t ready. Okay?? We finally get to our cabins and it is sweltering inside!!! I was unpacking and literally had sweat bulleting off of me.  Then we try to get dinner  at the bar but there is no one in sight, no food, no drinks in the bar. When we asked the reception if we could drink the  water he said no. We asked if they had any taps for drinking, No. Do you sell water, No.  Can we go buy water somewhere? No because it’s late and the elephants are out. Okay, guess we will just wait for morning. Luckily Kylee brought iodine tablets to purify the water but still. Ish!

DAY TEN: Our original plan had been to use this morning to walk around Kasane but after showing up to our lodgings and realizing we would have needed a car to get anywhere instead just hung out, played cards and journaled. Decided to head to the airport early so we could stop on the way to buy food and we were just too hot in Kasane.

After stopping for food and chilling at the airport for a bit we finally boarded our plane. Shocker, it was boiling on the plane and everyone was just covered in sweat! It’s about a 2 hr plane ride from Kasane to Gabs so we got back to the city by around 5.

We walk out of the airport in Gabs to try to find a taxi and of course there are no taxis whatsoever. We asked and the airport security said “Sometimes there are taxis and sometimes there aren’t. Today there aren’t.” Matata. However it was still a public holiday since yesterday was independence day! We called one of our cab guys to give us a ride but still, oyy Africa!

Well, that was my whirlwind of a trip! In short, AMAZING! Got to see and do so many different things that I never thought I could. In a way, all the adrenaline things I did boosted my confidence so much and I feel so empowered after doing them. I did it!!! A girl who has only been on like one baby roller coaster, who loves the indoors watching TV, backpacked around southern Africa, snuck into a hotel, jumped out of a plane, jumped off a bridge, stood next to a zebra. It’s just ridiculous!!! Life is good!!!