On Namibia

No picture today. Picture uploading isn't allowed in many internet cafes. I've tried to get around it only with limited success. So I'll just talk for a moment...

...about how great I think Namibia is as a travel destination. This country's geography and population is quite diverse, and I believe you could get similar experiences in this one country to all (save Ethiopia) of the other countries I've visited combined. Yes, Namibia has it all. Sure, it may be a little more expensive. Come to think of it, sometimes it's less. Regardless, you get a much higher quality of everything. The infrastructure is fantastic compared to points north and east. In most towns, you'd think you were in a European or American city. I think I've missed the developed world as sad as that sounds. I've missed the less hassled life. I've missed the get what you pay for, not having to worry about being swindled at every turn. That's Namibia.

Even though I know Namibia offers such diversity, I've only really taken advantage of one aspect, one unique to this land: the endless desert. One day I'll upload the photos which might do some justice to the amazing experience that is the desert. I was often reminded of the deserts of the American southwest. However, every desert is unique. Though they always seem to call me. Their vast expanses, endless horizons. The play of light and color as the day progresses. I'm enchanted.

We rented a car for our exploration. Bruce and I split the driving, quickly learning to handle shifting gears left-handed with steering wheel on the right. It won't make much sense without pictures and since I only have a few minutes left at this internet cafe, a laundry list:

-Sossusvlei. Tons of sand dunes and valleys where rivers ran long ago. Camping at Sesriem was super cold, hot, windy, and dusty all at once.
-Naukluft mountains. Above the desert. Views to mesas. Awesome hike. cf. Bruce's blog.
-Swakopmund. German resort town on Atlantic. Windy and cold mostly. But nice the morning we went quadbiking and sandboarding. Again cf. Bruce's blog.
-Windhoek. The capital. Hot hot hot. Make arrangements. Get stuff done.

sunset

sunset
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

Goodbye Botswana. Don't know what to say about you. If I hadn't done all the awesome safari's in central and eastern africa, you would be pretty worthwhile. But instead, you're just expensive and a repeat. No fault of your own, of course. You're not here to amuse me. I just wish I had skipped you for more time in South Africa or other greener pastures.

Robbed!

Couldn't be in Johannesburg for one night without some mishap. We were staying in a hostel right next to the airport to catch our very early morning flight to Namibia (where I'm writing from).

We stupidly left our luggage next to our dorm beds and went out for a few hours. (Security had been so automatic on our trip for so many weeks, we had totally let our guard down when on our own. Not that we could have done a whole lot since the place didn't have lockers-- a must for sleeping in a dorm room in a hostel.)

When we woke up, Bruce found his trusty (expensive) fleece missing, some money gone, and stuff in his bags thoroughly out of place. The zipper on one of my bags was broken fully unzipped, so I only lost the easy use of one bag-- I tied it up for the flight here. I think they must have gotten scared off when they got to my bags because I could tell they were invaded only superficially. (Also my iPod and camera weren't stolen.)

So that sucks. More for Bruce than for me, but both of us are a bit shaken up. I'm looking forward to a great time in Namibia. The desert is calling. I guess we're fortunate something more serious didn't happen in Jo'burg, given its reputation as a very dangerous place.

Zimbabwe dollars

Zimbabwe dollars
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

So yeah, Zimbabwe. Poor Zimbabwe. Well really, rich Zimbabwe (compared to its northern neighbors) going through an economic period rivaling Weimar Germany.

So listen, changing money on the street is illegal. I read some time ago that police were really cracking down on this practice, effectively stamping out this black market. BUT the reality in border tourist town Victoria Falls is totally different.

Official exchange rate Zim$29,000 = US$ 1. This is the official rate you get at the bank and the only legal rate in Zimbabwe. But we gave our money to our Zimbabwean cook/guide and he traded it (on the street) at Zim$250,000 = US$ 1. Illegal it may but if you know what you're doing a must. That is, in places that charged USD, they would require the Zim$250,000 rate if you paid in Zim$. And unless you want to pay US$10 for your soft drinks, you had better find a way to get a lot more Zim$ for your US$. Amen.

So (yes, I say "So" alot. so sue me.) the photo shows the 80+ bills we used to pay for a dinner for three. Exciting I know, carrying a money brick in your pocket to pay for one meal.

Whitewater Riverboarding

zambezi
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

Riverboarding is awesome!

What is riverboarding? Strap yourself to a boogie board, don a lifejacket and fins, and ride through the rapids instead of on top of them.

I rafted in the morning and riverboarded in the afternoon. I wish I had known how much fun riverboarding was. I would have done it all day. If it weren't so expensive, I would have gone each of the last few days I've been chilling in Livingstone, Zambia.

It's such a rush the first time through the rapids. I bet it would be still fantastic on repeated trips. You don't know how long each rapid will be, how many times you'll get swallowed in the waves. With the floatation devices attached to you, you don't stay under for long. But long enough to make it exciting and fun. Awesome, awesome, awesome...

There were even a few standing waves that you could swim into and "surf" for as long as you can hold the position. I totally am going to look into this when I get back.

Victoria Falls

Victoria Falls
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

So Vic Falls is one crazy place. From the picture you can see it's quite a waterfall, even in the dry season. The pictures of the fall in the wet season looks like a wall of water falling miles long. This photo was taken from my 15-minute helicopter ride, my final costly "adventure" booked in made-for-tourism town, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.

"Zimbabwe?" you say with a look of surprise. Yes, Zimbabwe. Not real Zimbabwe, just the border town where they milk visitors. The tour truck took us directly to Shearwater Adventures, where I forked over $220 to walk with lions, riverboard/whitewater raft, and ride in a helicopter over the falls.

Welcome to the animals

welcome
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

There are now lots of picture of animals on flickr. I don't know the names of any of the non-super-common ones. If you can identify them, make a comment, please.

At 6am, I was amazed by the number of different animals we saw and by the numbers of the animals themselves. Watching the pack of elephants cross the street in front of us was unreal. I kept thinking of deer-crossing signs in the US for some reason.

At 8am we went for a walking safari. We mostly saw a lot of tracks and even more scat. You can learn a lot from scat, but there's only so much scat you can take. I don't know quite how to explain the ecology of termite mounds, but they look like they're really something. Sounds a bit like bees with a queen and all. After all the scat, we were treated to some close-up zebra and giraffe viewing, including a nursing baby and mother.

At 4pm, we got to see many of the same animals in the beautiful dusk setting. Once, we turned a corner and an elephant family was right in front of us-- a little scary, but exhilarating. The flock of red birds was brilliant, much more so than i can show in the picture.

At 6pm, we started the night drive. We saw very little in the dark for the first hour and a half. Then we got treated to civets and a family of lions just before heading back. I don't know quite what to say about seeing a lion in the wild other than amazing. Even at a distance under the flashlight the lazy male looks so regal.

Another perspective

Please take a look at the blog of my old friend and traveling companion, Bruce Jang.
http://bruce-africa.blogspot.com/

Zambia

So I've made it to Zambia. We're camping in South Lungwa National Park.

We've decided to sleep on a platform in a tree. Find out later whether this got us closer or further from the animals. It reminds me of Yosemite camping, in that you have to lock away the food. Unlike Yosemite, though, at any time an elephant could walk through the middle of the campsite. Fun. Much more fun than my treatment for Bilharzia from Lake Malawi.

It's hard to believe this campsite is so nice, sporting a swimming pool, hot showers, and beautifully executed buildings. It's even more odd in the context of Zambia, a relatively poor country-- the was a marked decline in the condition of the roads when we corssed over from Malawi (and Tanzania for that matter).

I'm really excited to be here and off the beach. Lions, hippos, giraffes...

Meal time at the truck

Meal time at the truck
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

I have two minutes to write this, but I just wanted to say camping in Africa is fun. We've spent a lot of time at beaches and are now heading into the bush. Stay tuned for some game pictures!

Descending from the top of the waterfall

Descending from the top of the waterfall
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

It seems like everyone else in the world knows the word abseiling except Americans. If they had only said rappelling, I would have had some clue what I was getting into. No matter. It was a great experience boun(c/d)ing down the cliff face, getting sprayed by the waterfall. I chased the children who were my guides from the pool at the bottom back up to the top to do it again. I don't know why I never tried anything like this back home. I think I want to start climbing as well.

Friends, reunited

We arrived in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania last night. And so did all of our bags. It's nice to know I'll be starting the camping overland tour with all the camping supplies I packed. Stay tuned for some great pictures from the island of Zanzibar.

Lutheran Church wedding band

Lutheran Church wedding band
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

What a strange and wonderful turn of events today! Just goes to show how far learning a little Swahili can take you. People's indifferent looks ("oh another tourist") change to smiles the moment you say one word in Swahili. I've found "Mambo!" works wonders-- it's a slang greeting.

After we finished seeing the National Museum, we happened upon the Holiday Inn. I went in and asked them if they had a piano I could practice on. They didn't but the gentleman there sent us to the Lutheran Church. We wandered the long way over, walking along the coast (my first glimpse of the Indian Ocean), to eventually find the Lutheran compound. It didn't look promising at first, but we met a nice young man named Raphael, who, after going to check on the situation, told me they had a piano. Bruce went for a walk while I was to practice.

Raphael and I talked a little, and he was excited to hear whatever Swahili I could muster. We went in after a little while to find that there was no piano but a couple of organs and some digital keyboards. Oh well, but better than nothing. I got to practicing for a bit, but I had a crowd around me so it was a bit difficult to concentrate. They told me there was going to be a wedding, and I felt a little odd intruding in the sanctuary. However, that feeling was not shared by anyone else. We certainly don't share the same cultural norms of what's intrusion and what's not.

So anyway, after I practiced a little bit. Some of the crowd started playing guitars and one gentleman came over to play the keyboard. I stepped aside to watch them jam on their four-chord progression. Some others started improvising vocal lines. This was some moving church music. I started playing a bass line on the keyboard and eventually the guy who was playing treble had me take over and he started singing too. This was some really fun, really unexpected improv.

To further the sense of the unexpected, The wedding processional happened while we were playing. When we stopped, i went with Raphael to a pew to witness the wedding. After each important step of the wedding, the trumpets would blare, the drums would roll, and everyone would cheer. I never would expect such outbursts. And at a Lutheran church to boot!

I later saw that the processional band consisted of two drums, a few trombones, and a whole slew of trumpets. It was an awesome noise. A truly joyous music for a joyous occasion-- what I imagine they might play in New Orleans. It turned out that on Saturday's they have one processional after another, since the weddings are back-to-back all day. But in between, I got some good practicing in, not that my practicing is what made this day special.

Bet Giyorgis

Bet Giyorgis
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

A Lalibela Icon.
A Tribute to St. George.

Holy ceiling!

Holy ceiling!
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

Many of the rock-hewn chruches of Lalibela have little to no lighting. This church, Yemrehanna Kristos, had none. It was an incrdible surprise to point my camera at the ceiling and, with the help of the flash, see the beautiful patterns illuminated. Take a look at the flickr photostream to see more!

Where am I?

Where am I?
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

Follow some of the places I've visited in Ethiopia on the map if you like

View my photos

My photos are posted on flickr at the following address.

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/28133177@N00/

 

The connections have been extremely slow, but there's been enough lag time in Ethiopia to allow posting. I will try to keep it up as I head south.

Lost Companion

Lost Companion
Originally uploaded by arutgers03

I miss you, bag. I last saw you on 19 Aug 2007 at SFO. The nice people at Virgin Atlantic checked you and put you on the conveyor belt, but I have yet to see you or have any information on you for a week now. Don't worry, though. The authorities know you're missing. They won't help me try to trace you, so we just have to hope they'll do their best on their own. I really would like to have you for my camping trip which starts in a few days; you have so many nice conveniences inside. But it not, I'll do my best to replace your contents and enjoy the rest of the trip. It won't be the same without you, but I'll manage and still have a great time in Africa.