Welcome to Uganda!

We left wonderful Namibia on the 22nd early in the morning flying via Johannesburg to Entebbe, where we arrived at 19:00. Our aicraft was flying over the giant Victoria Lake and we virtually landed on the runway, surrounded by water, pretty cool!

When we had to pay $100 at the Immigration counter, the officer refused Shelly's good old American dollars since they were older than 2006 and could have been counterfeit. So I came to the rescue and paid with the strong Euro of 80€ and everything was fine. Shelly actually got away with changing one of the old bills but with a bad exchange rate. (1$=2450 Uganda Shilling, like always a little bit worse when in town, where you get 2500). During the flight we get to know our neighbor,Don, who was a lawyer in Kampala. He had a driver waiting for him and he gave us a lift to our Karibu Lodge. We felt our first bit of luck here in Uganda.

Next morning we had a great breakfast, overlooking Lake Victoria. We decided to visit the famous Mabamba Swamp to see the big Shoebill Bird. Never heard about it??? Me neither, but I am sure our bird friend Joern from Hamburg has and would be thrilled to come here!

So we hired a cab for a day and drove through muddy roads and passing little villages in the rain. Shelly was making fun of me for not bringing my raincoat but - told her not to worry and I was right. Finally the rain stopped, when we arrived at the little town and took a boat ride going for a hunt for the Shoebill. We saw a lot of other birds and wonderful swamps, but there was no Shoebill to be seen. Later we heard, that only nine of those birds are living at the lake and today they must be on holiday as our crew laughed and shrugged their shoulders.

When we arrived back at the dock, there were several boats unloading sacks of coal from the boats onto little 100cc Honda motorbikes. They were attempting something unbelievable in our eyes, they were loading three giant sacks on the motorbike's seats and fixed them with a rope. The driver had very little space on the tank and could barely reach the gear or Brake shifts...We talked to them and one guy said, that he is a Senior Driver and you need to be tall and good balance to drive! Our guide Peter laughed and said I am too short and that's why I am your guide.

So one after another left this little harbour, leaving us back completely speechless.... On the way back we witness a man driving a sofa horizontal on his motorcycle as he passed us. The more we saw the more it aroused our curiosity to explore our new and strange surroundings. We decided we needed to rent a Boda Boda to take pictures after our tour.*A boda boda is a motorcycle driver who will take you around quite cheaply.

After a great dinner at our guest house we decided to go pack and get ready to sleep. Frank saw the towels and a little treat on his bed. Hmm Genuine Leather said the package as he ripped open the package greedily, white chocolate danced before his eyes as he plopped the bar into his mouth. Within seconds he was spitting it out choking and at the same time realizing he was trying to eat a bar of soap. He ran frantically to the bathroom to brush his teeth while I laid on the bed laughing myself to tears....

The Himba People - graceful and gentle

For kilometers we have been driving through a red desert which was scattered by small shrubs a few trees and a lot of people covered in red clay. These people which once were united with the Heroes tribe but then separated about 200 years ago and moved into Kakoaland.  The Himba tribe is an ethnic group that has been photographed more than any other tribe. They are renowned for their beauty as well as their simplistic lifestyle.  We wanted to see how they lived but wanted to avoid the normal tourist experience on gets from the hotel. 

In the small town by Ft. Sesfonstein we met a guide who could speak several languages and headed off into the bush after buying the goods we would offer the tribe.  Flour, oil, Vaseline, tea and sugar.  I also brought some of my pencils and donated them to the children.  I sat in the mud hut with four women and two children as we exchanged stories and questions about our cultures.  It was quite a challenge to explain where I was from and my description of snow made the women laugh. I was impressed how they constantly creative they were and how they could live with so few items. They grind down red stone and mix it with fat (Vaseline) and apply it on their skin constantly which proves to be quite a good sunscreen as well as keeping their skin wrinkle free. They also explained how hard has been since the two year drought. A lot of cattle has been lost and life is harder to live.  I told them I would pray for rain and I was happy to see that two days later it started to rain which I hope gives them some relief to their situation. They then offered a huge array of things to buy and it was difficult to find the right thing to by because everything was so wonderful. Settling on a few necklaces we then headed off to the more difficult roads which were awaiting for us.

It is difficult to compare their culture with ours, as they are so different from us. For me it is unbelievable how they can survive with so little things: no shoes, almost no clothes, no water, only little huts (build from wooden sticks, clay and mud) and some animals (goats, cows and chicken). On the other side they seem happy and very much used to their lifestyle. They looked very beautiful, despite the fact, that they only take a shower once or twice a year! And they don’t even stink! They have a life style from the past but it could be that they have the life style of the future as we watch all the resource

Campsite made in heaven shared with big cats!

Driving from Etosha we quickly arrived at Africat, an organization which rescues lions, leopards, wild dogs and cheetahs. This unique game park tries to educate farmers and the community by reaching out to schools in order to explain the value of these predators. They also have a clinic where the animals in question are checked and operated on if necessary. They rely on voluntary work from around the world.

The campsite here was unbelievable. There were only four sites each having two showers and two toilets that were architectural using nature to its advantage. The only fear Frank had was that we might run into a black Mamba while heading off to the toilet especially when we were told it is sure death in 15 minutes. We also heard that they are quite shy.

This is the campsite in the morning:

 Here is where we saw leopards and cubs, ate a fabulous dinner at the bush lodge and had a giant swimming pool to ourselves.

Many suprises at Etosha

Early in the morning we entered Etosha from the northern gate (King Nehale Iya Gate). After checking in we drove the gravel road to Namokoni (one of the three camps on the east site of Etosha). We immediately saw giraffes, zebras and a bathing elephant. What a nice welcome to the Etosha National Park which means the Great White Place.

We were camping at Namutoni (an old reconstructed German Fort) and due to the hot, hot very hot weather, we enjoyed the swimming pool. The water hole of Namutoni at the evening was a huge disappointment since no animals showed up.

Next morning we got up very early in the dark, packed everything together and left the camp by 6:00am. We drove to the water hole Chudop which was marvelous!

We spotted a pack of spotted hyenas which were having a wild time at the watering hole. There were several teenage hyenas that were curious and testing each other by playing various games. One was so curious that he pacing around our car and he really could smell the meat in our fridge! His mother called him back several times but he clearly decided to ignore her. Later we heard, that it is quite rare to see a whole pack at a water hole; so we felt really lucky!

We slowly made our way from water hole to next ending up at Halali camp. We saw Springboks, Kudus, Oryx, giraffes, and even two cheetahs racing to cross the road right in front of us. The nature park has grasslands, and a huge salt pan in the north, which actually covers some 4731sq.kms. When the outside temperature increases, you can see mirages in the distance before your eyes.

In Halali we needed a break and we had a late breakfast, before driving to Okunguejo. Just before the campsite we visited the water hole Nebrowni where several elephants were joining a herd of zebras and ostriches. The zebras and ostriches immediately stepped back, when the big guys arrived. You could really see the pure joy that they had while they drank water and threw dust and mud on their bodies. There is nothing like a white elephant as one by one they covered themselves in white mud looking like pieces of a graffiti master piece. It was wonderful to watch!

As it was incredible hot (about 40 degrees in the shade and 58 in the sun) I decided to spend a relaxing afternoon at the swimming pool, while my crazy wife decided to drive around some more. In the evening we visited the local water hole, which is really nicely made. We could even see a Black rhino drinking water!

Next morning we were again very early on the road and drove to our favorite water hole Nebrowni where we saw elephants and a huge lion family, consisting of four female lions and nine cubs(!). They were so cute playing with each other while three elephants were drinking water. One of young lions even tried to catch an Oryx, but of course the Oryx was much faster than the young lion.

 We spend a long time there since it was a fantastic view before driving 120km back to Namutoni.

That same afternoon we left Etosha and drove into the Onguma Lodge, where we stayed at the tree top lodge. Wow, pretty amazing! It is a luxurious lodge, made from wood, where you have a kind of hut built up among the trees with a free view to the water hole. It was architecturally brilliant with a bedroom which had three walls and one side open to the water hole. It also cleverly integrated a shower and toilet in the space as well. It was unbelievable...So you see the animals, even if you are in bed! All night long we saw animals and even work up to an owl catching its prey while two black birds were doing their best to chase it away. The dinner and breakfast were also excellent, but it definitely commanded a high price for its charm. We could only afford one night, but enjoyed it very much!

A cultural visit

Welcome to Ongula Homestead! After driving the hardest roads of Namibia we headed toward Ongula Homestead covering 293km in total. The landscape quickly changed before our eyes.  The vast and unpopulated landscape quickly evaporated into a dense and chaotic atmosphere. The driving for me has become increasingly more dangerous. I now had to concentrate on the moving objects that were scattered along the road; most of them being donkeys, cattle and goats. At the same time more and more people would appear and were randomly crossing the road without giving much thought to the passing traffic. Boy do these people believe in God! Soon we were close to our destination and I began to relax.  This of course was the wrong thing to do. As we exited two more roads which were considered D roads we then saw a sign that sent us once again into desert driving. The sandy road at first seemed to be okay, but within minutes the road became a crazy deep off road with multi-lanes of deep sand with sparetic signs of encouragement guiding us the way to the homestead.  It became increasingly more difficult since they had a rainstorm the night before leaving pools of sand and mud at many of the turns. In the end we were successful and Selma our hostess was impressed since she said most of the guests get stuck and have to be pulled out. The biggest surprise to most of the Namibia people that we have met are all assuming that Frank is the driver and are always surprised to see a woman getting out of the driver seat. We had a wonderful place to sleep with authentic African style food from this region. 

The tour of the cultural experience was a vacant village where two or three women played the various roles displaying the type of work which is done within the tribe.  We both left with the feeling that we had visited a fake Chinese communist village or a former DDR cultural center. Our favorite part was that a group of young girls sang and danced for us and then talked a bit about their schools. Then the next morning we then had to make our way out again through the desert which had turned to quicksand due to the rain fall that happened in the night.  Thank god we didn’t get stuck and as we slowly made our way to the Elegant Guest house.  Here is where we met a woman whose grandfather started Helmringshausen and explained a bit about the politics of Namibia. Born and raised here in Namibia she hopes she will never be forced to leave. In fact her family has plans to try to buy the farm back if possible. From there we returned to Windhoek, we returned the car after filling it with gas and much to our surprise they hardly inspected our muddy vehicle.  We had accomplished our self-driving section of our tour covering 5000 km. Spending one night at the Oliver Grove we then flew off to our next adventure Entebbe Uganda.

Driving gravel roads in Namibia

I have a 4x4 Car in Germany, but frankly I do not really use it and hence I have no clue about it. I have to learn it from Shelly, who learnt it in Colorado.

So first of all, there are A, B, C, D roads in Namibia. A is not existent, maybe a place holder for the future autobahn....

B is usually a tar road with 2 lanes, easy to drive. C roads are gravel roads and depending on the local grader group they are good, sometimes not so good. We have seen perfect Cs going straight for a long time (Skeleton Coast), where you can easily drive 100KM. In the mountains you will find often rocks, dips, herds of sheep or cows or dry riverbeds (sometimes not dry...in this case you should look for the tracks of the other cars). As there is virtually no traffic and rarely a construction place, you can achieve an average speed of 100KM/h, faster than on German autobahns....

A typical C road is usually at least 10-12m wide and contains of several tracks (if the grader wasn't recently there). As the traffic is very, very low, you can choose the best tracks, left, middle, right. The condition changes often, so you will change from time to time the best track. You have to be careful at a dip going up, as you do not see a possible other car directly. It is very rare that a car comes and you ALWAYS see them from the dust miles away from the car. So you shall be prepared to be on the right side (left).

A D road is smaller, but the condition varies. We have seen D roads, which are like a C. Others can be REALLY challenging (D3200). But that's Namibia, you never know....

Usually you do not need 4x4, only in rare conditions you want to activate it. For the popular Toyota Hilux you have a second gear stick, which is like an L. Per default it is on 2H, meaning two tires are connected to the engine. Next one is 4H, where all four wheels are driving. L4 is a very special gearbox, where the gears are very low, e.g. For the sand dunes in Soussusvlai (last 6KM). If you get stuck, do not to try to drive with higher gas, usually you will be digged in more. Take a breath and analyze the situation and react accordingly.

Maybe differential lock helps you to get out in combination with 4L. That means all tires are connected to power with a low gear box and the axe in the back is locked, so if one tire is deep in the sand and the other not, the free one will push hopefully the car out of the sand.

If you cross a riverbed, be very sure, that your car can drive through it and that your exhaust is not in the water. Sometimes you have cemented parts in the riverbed. Unfortunately they are not very wide, so be sure that you do not slide from them. A local guy told me that often somebody checks the riverbed with a long stick to find the best way through. If you get stuck and your exhaust is under water DO NOT start the engine, as the water will damage your engine!

D3700 The road to Ruacana

After a short visit to the Himba people (where Shelly came back with a traditional red face, swearing this helps the Himba women not to get wrinkles) we left Kuneme River Lodge to Ruacana.

I am alwas getting a little bit nervous, when your rental company has written into the contract, NOT to use D3700, "due to extreme road conditions", "own risk" "all mechanical repair and recovery costs will be on the renter's risk"....But it was only 48KM vs 160KM going around.

Well, Shelly took the challenge and drove trough holes, around big stones, did not hesitated to cross little rivers, dips, crossing jungle paths... Until we finally made it to the main hill. She drove to the top and you cold see the Ruacana waterfalls and the power station.

Unfortunately you could also see a very, very steep gravel road going into the valley, washed out from the rain and a lot of stones and gravel. I have to admit that my heart beat was for sure not good and my doctor would be not happy with me, as a slight mistake really means, that you are gone into the valley.

So Shelly was starting the decent, driving around holes and avoiding to hit rocks and - very important - not to slide! Thanks to her driving skill we made it, but boy, that was not one of my favorite moments in life, despite of the great scenery!

What a great moment when we got to the power plant and the tar road started...

Kunene River - Zeltaufbau

Nach zwei Wochen Camping sind wir Zeltauf-abbauexperten geworden. Wir koennen problemlos morgends um 4:30 das Zelt abbauen (Sesriem: 10min) oder dieses abends um 20:30 in voelliger Dunkelheit aufbauen. Hier die Anleitung:

1. Baender an den Seiten loesen, Cover runternehmen
2. Leiter anbringen, das Zelt aufrichten
3. Langsam runterlassen
4. Vier Zeltstangen anbringen

Fertig! Zusammenbau dauert etwas laenger.

Hier endlich die Bilder:

Kunene River

Wir fahren die D3701 nach Kunene, die Gravel Road ist ueberraschend gut, nur eine kleine Flussdurchquerung. Am Ende wird's etwas holprig, aber Shelly ist ein guter Fahrer!

Wir uebernachten in der wunderschoenen Kunene River Lodge, an der Grenze zu Angola. Wir schlagen unser Camp mitten in einem dschungelaehnlichen Zeltplatz auf. Da wir die einzigen Camper sind, erhalten wir den riesigen Campno. 7, ganz herrlich am Fluss gelegen.

Es gibt sogar Internet, aber wir die Lady vom Camp korrekterweise sagte: "Very slow, interrupts, drives you crazy and works only in this hut." Alle Suechtigen versammeln sich nachmittags in der hut und lechzen nach Neuigkeiten.

Abends beginnt es zu regnen, der erste Regen seit April (!) Und alle Gaeste versammeln sich im Hauptgebaeude fuer einen interessanten Drink und Gespraeche. Trotz Regen und vielen Urwaldgeraeuschen gut geschlafen!

Epupa Fall - End of the world

Waking up at Ft Sesfontein with only one other couple was an amazing moment to enjoy this old German fort to ourselves. After breakfast we headed to Opuwo,a long sandy road with its occasional dips and Himba people hiding in the shade waiting for us to drive by. At that moment they would jump out waving their arms. They either got apples or pencils and then we continued on. Our impressions of Opuwo is that it was some kind of border town which hosted different tribes.

Good place to bank and get gas but you felt that you could lose your belongs if you weren't paying attention. Onward we went to the end of the world where the Crocodile sleeps. Epupa Falls which lies between Namibia and Angola is a breathe taking site after driving hours through the desert.

We were amazed to find our camping company consisted of four old men from the holy land aging from seventy four to eighty. On the other side was the road crew waiting for twelve motor cross riders who were also from Isreal. The German crew was getting worried since they were long over due. The group arrived haggard and had damaged several of the bike. Two bikes didn't have functional clutch anymore. We went to the bar and enjoyed a Rockshandy (Recipe: mix tonic water and lemonade and add some drops of 44,7% Angostura and a slice of lemon)

Our evening ended in a wind storm as we feel into a deep sleep in our tent on top of our car, listing to the waterfall sounds of Epupa.

My Birthday at a German Fort

Today is my birthday and we are driving 350KM through the mountains from Twyfontein to Sesfontein. Shelly was so nice to reserve us a very nice room in this old German Fort. We checked in and drove to "town", where we found a nice guide for visiting the Himba people. Also we bought some presents for them, like corn flour, tea, cooking oil,and vaseline.      

When we drove to their village, which consisted of some huts surrounding the goat corral in the middle. Several women and children were greeting us and Shelly started to talk to them (through our guide), while I was looking around their huts. Oh boy, do they living simple. We give you an update on them later.

In the evening we had a nice dinner with another German couple and we really enjoyed the mild weather! What a Birthday!

Waving the Dunes

Arriving at the park, we decided to tank up and adjust the tire pressure for the sandy roads. The parks here are expensive but that's just like everywhere else in the world.

Our campsite was great. We were far from everyone and had a small bathroom/shower which was hardly used by the other campers. The food provided by the park service was mediocre and the swimming pool was so badly designed that it was hard to find any shade after getting out of the swimming pool.

Each night we trekked up the dunes to watch the sun go down and we did the same each morning waking up at 4:30 to get to the gate first so we could drive the 66 km of tar road to the end where the deep sandy road begins. There is where the fun really begins. I learned it is important to make sure you are in low gear and not trust your husband who hands over the car to you and says everything is ready for you. I am actually amazed how far I got in the wrong gear before I got stuck. Frank said just go backwards and then forwards but I knew that I would just dig my way in. Luckily a cool Dutch guide with dreadlocks jumped in and freed the car up, gave me some tips and we were off and running again.

At the end of the road, I met an older gentleman who we met in Fish River Canyon. He had travelled Africa the last 35 years and gave me good tips each time we spoke. He smiled at me and said what are you waiting for- Go climb that dune before all the other tourist show up! And that is exactly what we did along with the Dutch tour guide's group. This was a highlight for me. Breathe taking-red sand dunes lite up by the morning sun. It just doesn't get better than that. Heaven on Earth! And that's where I found my new adrenaline sport that just made me so happy! Running straight down a sand dune. Yeahoo! It was so much fun we did it two more times that day and woke up again the next morning to do it again. On that morning we clearly started a trend since we were the first and then all the rest followed!

The Best Apple Crumb Cake in Namibia

From Aus next came the grueling 360km drive through shades of color changing sands.

The sand change indicated a change in road conditions. We were excited every time the sand was grey or white. We discussed how this alien landscape would make a perfect science fiction movie and then we proceeded to discuss the different plots that could be developed in these different ever changing desert mountain settings. Once in a while we see cows or a house and then nothing for miles.

We finally end up at Helmringhausen.

A place that looks so surreal that it is hard to believe that aliens did not pick us up and set us back down on the earth again. The street contains a tire repair shop a hotel/restaurant and a couple of other little shops. The hotel had one of the most beautiful gardens that we have ever seen. The sign in front indicated that it had the best apple crumb cake in Namibia.

We can testify to that! So eat your heart out Rene' the best cake is here and not in Keetmanshoop. The service was fantastic and we were on our way again traveling the dusty road to Serierem National Park.

Wow! At the end of our trip we actually met the granddaughter of the man who started Helmringhausen. She also told the story of how the farm was sold and her grandmother was forced to leave in 12 days. She also said that all the farmers came and gave the man such a hard time that he gave her more time. The new owner lasted on year. Since then there have been two other owners and now the town is for sale for 7 million Namibian dollars and her family wants to buy it back but it is a lot of money!

Aus Eagle Nest - Tyre change

At a gas station in Luederitz we checked the pressure of the tires. One had only 1,0 of initially 2,5bar. We got pressure in the tyre and drove to our camping place in Aus Eagle Nest, which is by the way beautiful. Next morning the tyre was pretty much flat...

So, when did you change a tyre the last time in desert sand???

Like always we got up with the birds around 5:45.Like a true engineer, Frank took his shower and faster than a speed of light. he had the spare tyre in his hands. He explains the following: You open first the nuts (but only a little bit, otherwise your tyre would later fall off), put a board in the sand and lift the car with the jack. When the tyre is loose, unscrew the bolts and exchange the tyre. Put the bolts on slightly and release the car. Finally you tight the bolts. Voila, changed in 20 minutes!

By the way: 2,5 are way too much for gravel, it should be set to 2,0, max. 2,2. And there we are, heading off to Sesriem National Park with a full set of tires. As we drove down the road we noticed several tyre repair shops and a tyre repair clinic but we needed to wait for Walvis Bay to use our voucher.

Update from Shelly:
What a beautiful campsite!

We got the last one #10. We were situated under a massive birds nest which forced Frank to wear earplugs to bed. I wasn't worried because I knew the minute the sun went down they would settle down. Besides a leaking tire, our back hatch wouldn't open. We enjoyed our dinner under the tree and the showers were nice and warm. Since Aus has an altitude the night was cold. We were the first up and the first rolling out of Aus despite the fact that Frank had to change a tire while I packed our things.

Next came the grueling 360km drive through shades of color changing sands. The sand change indicated a change in road conditions. We were excited every time the sand was grey or white. We discussed how this alien landscape would make a perfect science fiction movie and then we proceeded to discuss the different plots that could be developed in these different ever changing desert mountain settings. Once in a while we see cows or a house and then nothing for miles.

 We finally end up at Helmringhausen. A place that looks so surreal that it is hard to believe that aliens did not pick us up and set us back down on the earth again. The street contains a tire repair shop a hotel/restaurant and a couple of other little shops. The hotel had one of the most beautiful gardens that we have ever seen. The sign in front indicated that it had the best apple crumb cake in Namibia. We can testify to that! The service was fantastic and we were on our way again traveling the dusty road to Serierem National Park.

Arriving at the park, we decided to tank up and adjust the tire pressure for the sandy roads. The parks here are expensive but that's just like everywhere else in the world.

Our campsite was great. We were far from everyone and had a small bathroom/shower which was hardly used by the other campers. The food provided by the park service was mediocre and the swimming pool was so badly designed that it was hard to find any shade after getting out of the swimming pool.

Luederitz - a German flavour in Africa

Diese kleine Hafenstadt liegt einsam am atlantischen Ozean und man muss Hunderte von Kilometern zum naechsten Ort fahren, da es von Wueste umgeben ist. Der Ort wurde 1884 gegruendet und war der erste deutsche Vorposten in Namibia. Man findet hier viele alte, sehr gut erhaltene Jugendstilhaeuser, die problemlos in Deutschland stehen koennten (Woermannhaus, Felsenkiechre, Bahnhof, etc).

Warum ausgerechnet hier in der Einsamkeit der Wueste eine Stadt gebaut wurde, ist mit schleierhaft. Es fuehrt genau eine Strasse schnurgerade zum naechsten (sagen wir grosszuegig) Ort, Aus und dann weiter nach Keetmanshop. Wer hier wohnt, sollte ein Faible fuer einsame Orte und alte Jugendstilhaeuser haben...

A German Ghosttown in the Desert - in the search of diamonds

We started with a very nice breakfast at sunrise at the wonderful Canyon Lodge. When Shelly really hit the metal to the pedal and was flying over the gravel road back to Seeheim (!) and than an the tar road she was going up to 125 KM, our internal speedlimit, before a warning sound starts beeping. And she made it 350KM in 4h to Kolmanskoop, just before they close.

This German city was build 100 years ago, when they found diamonds there. So they started to build a German Town about 10KM from Luederitz IN the desert. After 40 years they abounded the town and the desert was taking over. As there is very little rain and low humidity the buildings are surprisingly in a good condition.

It is really amazing to see Jugendstil elements (like our house!) in the desert. There is still the old casino with an old gym, as well as Schule, Eisfabrik, Baeckerei, Schlachterei, houses for the Buchhalter, Architekt, etc. Every house has a little wooden sign, indicating the function.


Truly a highlight of old architecture fans (Joern) and I would recommend to visit it. Attention: the area closes at 13:00.

The rocky road to Fishriver Canyon

We headed down to Fish River Canyon making a stop at Keetsmanhop. Getting gas was successful but finding the museum which was in an obvious place was too difficult for us since we were nervous about driving into a town and our attitudes were on edge due to the lack of food. We ate at the central hotel and continued on. At the Fish River Canyon we had our first D roads which included washboard conditions combined with scattered rocks the size of your fist.

We passed Ostriches and Wilder beast along with Impales seeking shade in this extreme environment. We finally entered the National Park and had a look at the second biggest canyon in the world. It was beautiful in its austere color formation which was different shades of grey. Due to the two year drought, the river was practically non-existent.

Although this canyon is magnificent it lacks the splendor of the Grand canyon. We met four other Germans who gave us tips to see the other two lookout points and then continued to the Canyon lodge which was one of my favorite places to stay.

The cabins were nestled in the rock formations and the swimming pool was designed to give the feeling that you were all alone at the edge of the desert. I made the decision to get up at sunrise and swim in that pool alone. I found my heaven on Earth that morning.

A night at the wonderful Bagatelle Farm

Leaving Windhoek was a challenge due to left-hand driving, filling the gas tank and then grocery shopping. We made a stop and found out Frank's pack was stolen. I continued to drive to Mariental while Frank was still in shock. We finally arrived at the cheetah park at Bagatelle. Our beautiful campsite had a small tree and a nice shower and toilet. Our next camping neighbor was at least 500m away. In Croatia they would place possible a 100 people here...

We then attended the cheetah feeding. Three cheetah males sat on hill looking at us. The animal keepers had thrown some meat to them while we could take photos. It was a very odd and fake atmosphere for me to see such majestic animals being reduced to the status of a domestic cat.

Our dinner was very special where we met the young boy Bjorn who wanted to show us the stars with an amazing telescope but was cut short due to a woman falling down and had suffered a severe concussion. But the dinner was fantastic!

Since we had a long walk back to our tent we decided to leave. They said we would lose our way but I assured them it would be ok. Then they warned us about snakes. I laughed as we took off. but they were right,the next day I saw the snake tracks and realize we should take more care.

When we woke up in our tent on top of the roof, we could see the sunrise shining over the red desert!!! What a mornoing start...

Windhoek - Am Spar

Hallo Leute, leider hatten lange keinen Internet Zugang, deshalb kommen jetzt etwas verspaetet die Updates...
Windhoek: wir wurden um 9:00 von Fahrer abgeholt, erhielten unserer 4x4 Toyota Hilux mit Dachzelt und fuhren zum Spar (!!!) um einzukaufen. Shelly kaufte ein und ich sollte den Wagen bewachen. Das gelang mir leider nicht so gut. Waehrend ich meine Schuhe wechselte, fuhr ein anderer Wagen auf der anderen Seite daneben und parkte. Ehe ich es bemerkte, oeffnete er die Beifahrertuer, wo mein Rucksack lag. Schwups, war mein neues Acer Tablet, eine EOS 450 und ein Camcorder weg! Das war aergerlich, da unsere Reiseroute und alle Buchungen weg waren. Da auf dm Tablet auch verschluesselte Passwoerter waren, bat ich Matthias, diese zu aendern (Vielen Dank, das gibt spaeter einen Kasten Bier)!

The warning horn

Well, we made it! After a 30h trip door to door (for our world travellers: ham-lhr-jnb-wdh) we arrived in beatiful and warm Namibia. We are staying at a nice and relaxing farm and enjoying the sun.

The only thing that is a lilltle bit strange is this:

For what reason do you need it??????

My Birthday Party

There is nothing like celebrating your birthday on a plane with hundreds of your best friends like the 300 pound man sitting next to Frank or to mention the couple with four children sitting next to me.  Two of kids were twins under the age of two who were contantly  screaming the entire night. I wanted to give the couple an award for patience.  The party really got into swing when the staff insisted on me putting my shoes in the overhanging cabinet and in doing so, the boots landed back onto my head. Then when my water accidently rolled out onto the floor, they gave it to the guy behind me who drank it dry! A day full of plane switching:-)
Birthday quiz: Can you  recognize which countries these cities belong to without cheating?

Price: We will invite you for a coffee in Bali.

Sind 3 Monate Urlaub viel?

Der erste Urlaubstag ist immer toll! Alles liegt noch vor Einem, dieVorfreude ist gross. Leider brauche ich immer lange, bis ich die Arbeit und den Alltag vergessen habe. Dieses ist bei 3 Monaten anders. Man kann nicht einfach weggehen, sonders es muss eine Uebergabe erfolgen und ich hatte schrittweise alles abgegeben (danke Edwin!). Dadurch bin ich schon richtig entspannt!

Na ja, und 90 Tage ist auch soooooo lange, so dass das Ende weit weg ist.

The departure - auf Wiedersehen

Kaum zu glauben, nach 3 Monaten Planung sind wir am Hamburger Flughafen und warten auf unseren Flug nach London! Die quaelende Frage ist: haben wir etwas vergessen???

Antwort: mit Sicherheit, hoffentlich nichts Wichtiges....

Nach kurzer Nacht verlassen wir UNSER HAUS und Ruegen, dem groessten Rueden auf Erden:

Das Wetter ist November typisch und offen gestanden, beneide ich die Daheimgebliebenen nicht. Oder vielleicht doch, wenn ich schwitzend den Berg in Uganda bei 100% Luftfeuchtigkeit und 30 Grad Hitze empor schnaufe, auf der Suche nach unsichtbaren Berggorillas...aber wir werden sehen.

Adventures into the Unknown

When deciding to take a long journey into unknown territories, I thought the preparations would be the easy part. It never occurred that the organizational months would throw us into total chaos the night before.  For me, the stress started a few weeks before when the girl who was all gung ho to take care of our house and dog, suddenly would write a lengthy letter excusing herself saying that the stars had the wrong constellation, and then suddenly vanished from the scene, leaving me to find another solution for our 64 pound dog. Since we had decided to leave for three months, it was clear that this would be no easy task. I wanted Rügen to live at home in his own territory and that he would get enough excerise to keep him happy and fit.Things started to looking up when a good friend of mine decided to move in while an experienced dog walker agreed to step up to the plate and deal with our crazy Rügen dog!

Weeks past and our trip was beginning to take form. I had booked all our hotels fro Namibia while Frank took care of the the car with a tent on top.  Here in Hamburg the weather was changing from cold to warm and back to cold. The leaves turn brown and were falling fast. I and my neighbors were working around the clock trying to keep the leaves under control. A day before Halloween the wind storm hit.  We lost tiles on the roof and our satellite dish was hanging upside down by on screw.  In the bitter cold, Frank and I managed to fix the tiles but the satellite dish refused to cooperate. he finally came up with a quick fix and now our house sitter gets only 10 channels instead of the 130 channels that it had previously.

Then came Halloween's Eve! Our house was set for the Halloween spirits to come by and indeed they did. 57 little screaming monsters ran up and down the street while we enjoyed pumpkin soup and sipping wine.
Our final disaster happened when the refrigerator/ ice box began groaning. After deicing it the motor quit.  On top of it, one of the hotels cancelled our reservations while at the same time I got a warning note from my mastercard saying some criminal activity was taking place due to all the crazy hotels I was booking over two continents. Finally Frank fixed the motor while I dealt with the hotel and the credit cards.

November first was a day where people came together for the final organizational talks. And we had everything together except my bacpack is still too heavy. I guess I will have to see what I can give away to lighten it up along the way.