Namibia in Fifty Observations
Namibia in Fifty Observations
1. Cheetahs meow.
Not "sort of" like house cats.
Exactly like house cats!
2. Rhinos are surprisingly chill. Hippos are not.
3. Hippos are among the most dangerous animals in Africa.
This is very important to know because,
They look kind of friendly, like oversized water balloons.
4. The tallest sand dunes in the world are even bigger than they look in photographs.
5. Sand dunes meeting the Atlantic Ocean looks like nature at its most dramatic, creating a breathtaking border where the ancient desert meets the immense sea.
6. Water is precious here.
You understand that very quickly.
7. Coming from the humid American South, the single-digit desert humidity actively strips moisture from your skin. Every bathroom sink has a bottle of pump lotion for this exact reason, and I used it constantly.
8. I spent fourteen days in Namibia and saw exactly one piece of litter.
It was an Orange Crush bottle on the sidewalk in Windhoek.
I remember it because it was unusual.
9. Public restrooms are astonishingly clean.
Some require three Namibian dollars to enter.
This seems like a bargain because that is only about .30 cent usd.
10. Putting a five-dollar coin into a three-dollar restroom turnstile is not recommended.
Trust me.
11. I ordered French Toast for breakfast in Keetmanshoop. What I got was a piece of wheat toast with an egg, tomato and cheese on top. It was pretty good - especially the tomato.
12. The cleanest grocery store I have ever visited is a Super Spar in Walvis Bay.
I was not expecting Namibia to win in that category.
13. The steering wheel is on the right side of the vehicle.
The vehicle drives on the left side of the road.
Your brain eventually adapts.
14. Good company makes six hours on a washboard dirt road much more tolerable.
15. Quiver trees are not actually trees.
They're giant aloe plants.
People once used their branches and trunks to make quivers for arrows.
Hence the name.
16. I emptied what seemed like a pint of sand from my shoes each night. Weeks later and back home in Georgia, I swear I can still feel the desert in my hiking boots.
17. Jackals look like friendly dogs with oversized ears.
Nonetheless, do not try to pet them.
18. Giraffes approach a waterhole with extreme caution and zero grace. Because lowering their heads requires a precarious, wide-legged stance, they look utterly defenseless and entirely out of their comfort zone. In order to drink, they must practically do a split.
19. Zebras are the comic relief of the Savanna.
They are also remarkably curious and photogenic.
20. There are two kinds of zebra in Namibia.
Plains Zebra and Mountain Zebra.
The stripes on the Mountain Zebra go all the way down it’s legs.
I think they are both beautiful.
21. Elephants are enormous.
They are also somehow capable of disappearing behind minimal vegetation.
22. I touched an elephant named Millie.
She felt rough and covered in coarse hair.
Nothing about the experience matched my expectations.
23. Flamingos spend most of the time with their heads down.
That is frustrating for a photographer.
24. There are many surprises in the town of Walvis Bay. For example, the streets are made of salt and there is a pink lake!
I did not know that salt roads and pink lakes were a thing.
25. Seals can leap out of the water with surprising athleticism.
26. A Lilac Breasted Roller bird doesn't just fly from tree to tree; it puts on a clinic in aerial acrobatics, twisting and rolling the entire way.
27. Instead of diving from the sky, the secretary bird hunts snakes and lizards on the ground, killing them by stomping on them with a force five times its own body weight in a fraction of a second.
28. There are approximately 2500 elephants in Etosha National Park.
I saw somewhere between 60 - 80 of them all at once gathered around a water hole.
29. The night skies are stunning.
Outside Windhoek, real darkness still exists.
The kind of darkness that allows stars to show off.
30. Champagne on top of a giant dune overlooking the Atlantic Ocean is a memory.
So is sipping a mimosa at sunrise at the lighthouse in Walvis Bay.
31. There are many deadly snakes in Namibia.
I saw none of them.
For this, I remain deeply grateful.
32. Understanding the exchange rate is important. Local tipping customs differ from the US; a standard and fair tip for a bag carrier is $50 NAD, which translates to about $3 USD. Using the currency conversion feature on your calculator helps you tip confidently and respectfully.
33. Before traveling to Namibia go online and buy an E-visa for roughly $100 US. It will still take a very long time to go through customs when you arrive at the Windhoek Airport.
34. The best omelette I have ever tasted was made by a woman in the town of Luderitz!
35. A “Dune Drop” in a 4x4 in Sandwich Harbor is a thrill!
36. Many restaurants and resorts in Namibia cook and serve bush meat (oryx, kudu, springbok).
37. Walking through the ghost town of Kolmanshoop feels like discovering a secret world frozen in time. Abandoned by the Germans in 1956 when the diamonds ran out, this old mining settlement outside Lüderitz is slowly being devoured by the sand. The way the desert wind forces its way inside, filling old bedrooms and hallways with massive, perfect dunes, makes it an unforgettable landscape.
38.The accommodations, the dining experience, and the ambiance at Dead Valley Lodge are the definition of desert luxury. It isn't opulent or flashy; instead, it offers a quiet, understated elegance that feels simple, relaxing, and perfectly tuned to the wilderness around it.
39. One of those details that catches you off guard: in the Southern Hemisphere, the sun tracks through the northern sky on its way from east to west.
40. Namibia is roughly twice the size as the state of Montana. It has a population of 3.3 million people. It has one of the lowest population densities in the world.
41. Before entering Etosha National Park, you car will be inspected to confirm that you do not have any plastic bags or raw meat.
42. Tips for photographers in Namibia - don’t change lenses in or near the desert and/or dunes. Bring two camera bodies. Carry drinking water. Afternoon heat haze will frustrate you and make your photos look unsharp if using a long lens. Picaridin is the bug repellant you should use; if bug spray contains deet, it could come in contact with your camera gear and ruin it.
43. Giraffes will not approach the watering hole if elephants are there. Springbok and Wildebeest will.
44. You can buy an eSim after you arrive in Namibia. None of the US cell carriers will work there, even if they say they do. Go to see Nancy at the MTC store in the Windhoek Airport. She will set you up with an eSim. Tell her that Edwin sent you.
45. Leopards, like hippos, deserve your full respect.
Neither one should be underestimated.
46. In Namibia, the seasons are reversed from the Northern Hemisphere. Traveling during our summer means arriving at the beginning of the Namibian winter. Even so Namibian winter days are still hot and extremely dry, but the nights can drop to a chilly 45°F.
47. In Etosha National Park the rules state that you CANNOT get out of your car for any reason other than a flat tire. Apparently having a fender bender is also an acceptable reason.
48. In Deadvlei, time seems to have stopped completely. The iconic camel thorn trees standing in the white clay pan have been dead for nine centuries, but the lack of humidity prevents them from rotting. They don't decompose; they just stand there, scorched by the sun, defying the ages.
49. The flight from Johannesburg to Atlanta is 17 hours long. I passed that time by reflecting on this wonderful trip and writing down these observations.
50. I have come to realize that I am not really a photographer.
I am simply a curious and grateful person who happens to have a camera.
My lens is simply how I share the beauty that has already been painted for us. I hope to produce images that invite others to look closely and appreciate God’s creation.
After a experience like this I feel kind of obligated to end the trip with a profound life lesson.
But I don't really have one.
Namibia did not reveal the meaning of life.
It did not transform me into a new person.
What it did do was give me fourteen uninterrupted days to pay attention.
To wildlife.
To landscapes.
To friendship.
To silence.
To stars.
To sunsets.
To a place unlike anywhere I had ever been.
To God’s perfect creation.
And I think that's enough.
Actually, I think that's everything.