CHRONICLE DHow can I explain the beauty of the savannah? How can I describe the effect of the wind when it sways the grass and turns everything into a golden carpet of movement? I would like to be able to explain what the light is like in Namibia. It is like a constant dusk, from sunrise to sunset. I would like to be able to explain the sound of the grasses when they are caressed by this African breeze. It is like returning to the origins that you do not know, but you can recognize them in every stone, every plant. In your genetic memory, you recognize the silence of the meadows, the tranquility of the landscape… you remember in your DNA what it was like to comb the prairies in search of game. The wind, your spear and your prey… An eternal landscape that will be here when I leave for the city, the years pass and I grow older… in this place will be the same acacias twisted by thirst and wind… and at their feet, the oryx will graze attentively around them… and the sun will rise again to dye everything gold and mystery backlit, always backlit, the dry grass will adorn the plains with its dance and its pale yellow.E NAMIBIA – AUGUST 2011
JULY 31ST – AUGUST 1ST, 2011 – DESTINED TO NAMIBIA
We have 3 stopovers ahead of us. BCN-MADRID-JOHANNESBURG-WINDHOEK. We meet at the airport. First we meet Carme and Joan and in Madrid we meet Oscar and Miguel. We resign ourselves to the inevitable flight to go to solitary places. There is no other option. It would have been nice to go down to Namibia by road, for a month…but the dreams of an intrepid traveller are interrupted by the endless messages in the cabin “…we will take off in 5 minutes, we remind you to fasten your seatbelt until further notice, the outside temperature is…this is the captain speaking…thank you very much for travelling with…” The same message…6 times.
The stopover in Johannesburg gives us time to smoke like crazy outside the airport and get to know each other a little better. There’s nothing like greasy food and a 6-hour stopover to start a conversation.
We arrived in Windhoek at around 7pm. Taxi to the hotel and straight to Luigi’s restaurant. Very interesting, we all chose a bunch of dishes. International cuisine with African overtones… would be the most accurate definition I can think of.
Upon arriving at the hotel, a blessed shower, after almost 48 hours of travel.
DAY 2 AUGUST 2011 – AFRICAN MODE ON
We wake up feeling refreshed after a shower and a good night’s sleep. We continue to relax with a full breakfast: toast with butter and jam, scrambled eggs, coffee and orange juice. I think I’m going to gain weight on this trip. The car to take us to the agency that rents the 4x4s has to come and pick us up. It arrives 1 hour late. When we arrive at the agency, we have to wait 6 hours until they give us the cars. It is at this point that we decide to turn on the African mode and let ourselves go. After all, we are on holiday, there is no need to get angry.
We set off in our cars, 3 Nissan Navaras that have been converted: 2 into campers and one into a storage car + a tent on the roof. We do our first food shopping and head towards Sossusvlei. We can’t get to camp at the campsite because of the delay in delivering the cars, so we camp freely in the middle of nowhere and promise to get up at 5am to get to the Natural Park as soon as possible.
It’s nighttime and very cold. With our fingers numb from the cold, Alex and I set up the tent and decide what to have for dinner. Pre-cooked chicken thighs, sausages, cheese and tomato sauce. Not a bad start. Fortunately Miguel and Oscar are not lazy to make a soup and we all end up grabbing the hot dish as if it were the last! Juan is so cold that he gets a blanket and puts it over himself. He looks like a caveman with a bear skin on!!
We turn off all the lights we have on. We want to see the Milky Way. We curl up in our chairs to watch the spectacle: millions of stars are falling on us. We can almost touch them. Shooting stars appear. We talk about the western world and its flaws. About having lost the stars in our country. We want to go back, but who is willing to make the sacrifice? We debate about good and evil… “it’s the landscape,” I think. “It has the same effect on everyone. Africa is like that, it shakes you from within for the first 24 hours.” Two gin and tonics later we decide to turn off the battery-operated lights, because the ones in the sky will be with us for a few more hours, while we sleep.
AUGUST 3, 2011 – SOSSUSVLEI, FOREVER IN MY HEART
With sleep on our backs, we break camp to reach the Sossulvlei nature park as soon as possible. We quickly take track 47. The landscape is enchanting. Yellow meadows, like velvet, one after another, follow one another on either side. We cross this landscape at the foot of the Naukluft mountains in silence and respect. We see the first springboks running and jumping on the plains. Free. As we approach Sossusvlei, the first red dunes appear on either side of the track. Red sand contrasts with the yellow of the dry grass. A feast for the eyes.
When we arrived at the campsite, we decided to have a coffee and stretch our legs. We are at the gates of one of the most beautiful landscapes on the planet. Those landscapes that I have seen so many times on National Geographic and have dreamed of visiting. My time has come and I am eager to see the famous dune 45.
We leave the campsite towards dune 45 and the landscape becomes of incomparable beauty. Immense all around us, the contrasts of colours astonish us. More springboks, running and jumping as we pass. I don’t know how to take photos. Suddenly I don’t remember anything about light and apertures…
We reach dune 45. Large, red and aligned with the other dunes around it, it offers us the chance to climb it and admire the view from above. I get out of the car excited, my hands are shaking! It’s a historic moment for me. I’m in a place I’ve dreamed of so many times! I’ve imagined myself here and now I’m here. I’m eager to memorize every frame that passes in front of me. I don’t know whether to take photos or simply enjoy the landscape. I’m confused. I grab a bottle of water, my backpack and the camera and Carme, Miguel, Oscar and I begin the climb of dune 45.
The sun beats down on us, but every step gives us a splendid view. As far as the eye can see, the plain stretches out, between ochres, yellows and greens… they draw waters that end at the foot of the sand. Another desert to contemplate. How different and how much in common… I continue the climb. I can’t see if the photos are coming out well. “It doesn’t matter” I tell myself, “It’s in my retina.” Before a landscape like this, I am always amazed and marveled by the same thing: the immensity. The space before you until your eyes get lost in the horizon. Sometimes it seems like a set. A picture in front of you, like when you have a desktop background on your PC. You don’t assume it as something real. You’re not used to it. But when you become conscious again, you see it. You notice it. You notice all that space in front of you. It’s even dizzying if you think about it. It’s as if the sky were higher.
I descend the dune along the wall, sinking into the sand up to my ankles. I quickly descend to ground level. The summit is far away again. I leave the place with nostalgia… I would have been up there for hours contemplating the landscape.
We are heading to Deathvlei. You have to walk for about 15 minutes through the desert to see this dead and dry lake… walking through the sand reminds me of other steps in other deserts. The same sneakers have walked through the Sahara. The same feeling around me: silence. A beautiful and peaceful silence as we walk under the sun. We reach the dry lake and look at the dead and twisted trees, like statues that once moved. Like a photo taken suddenly. The dry, brown trunks let themselves be photographed like museum pieces. I walk away towards the lake. My feet step on dry and cracked ground. It is very hard. Once again the desert wind reminds me that I have been here before. The same wind rocks different grasses. Amidst so much desolation, life makes its way in the form of a beetle… busily sheltering in the shade.
Retracing our steps through the sandy river, Miguel and Oscar’s car runs out of clutch. Some local men in a converted Defender offer to help us… in exchange for $100, of course. Finally, we let the tires go and drag their car to the campsite about 40 km away.
We agreed with the company to leave the car there and take Miguel and Oscar in our car to Walvis Bay, where they would leave us another car the next day. So we squeezed into our Nissan 2-seater and continued the track as the sun sets. In silence, the 4 of us watch as the light fades over the mountains of Naukluft. Against the light, we see the flashes in the grass according to the direction of the wind. It reminds us of the sea when it gets dark, with the swaying of light on the water, now to the right, now to the left. A wildebeest pulls off the road, frightened as we pass.
We have been driving at night for several hours when we punctured a tire. Juan is ahead of us and does not hear us on the station. We started the “wheel change” operation. We are missing the star-shaped key that Juan is carrying. In the end he comes to meet us and we manage to change the wheel by taking out the second spare, since the first one was punctured! We continue the march dodging the rabbits that cross the track.
We arrived at the hotel in Walvis Bay just in time to take a shower and go to the restaurant we had booked. It is built in wood on top of a dike, suspended above the water. We enjoyed fish and wine from South Africa. The gin and tonics are not long in coming and while we joke, Carme confesses that Juan ran over a rabbit! From now on he will be known as “Juan the rabbit run over”. “The rabbit was coming for me, the bastard!” The culprit confesses. What a great day and how well we rested in a clean and comfortable bed.
AUGUST 4, 2011 – THE DAY MY SPIRIT FLEW HIGHEST
Walvis Bay is a horrible town. It has no interest whatsoever, apart from the restaurant on the dike and a 4×4 tent which is spectacular. We head to Swakopmund, about 20 km away to walk around the city, exchange money and… Getting on in a small plane!!!!
While it’s time to go to the airfield, I spend a few minutes in a nice bookstore while the group has a coffee. As I know I’m going to get dizzy, I prefer not to drink anything. I finally buy a book about mammals in Africa.
The van parks in front. He will take us to the plane. I admit that I’m a little scared of flying in that junk, but have you ever dreamed of flying over the desert? I remember an issue of National Geographic with aerial photos of the Murzuq desert in Libya… with the dunes in a row… and another one precisely from Namibia, the same place I am going to fly over today.
The pilot is very young… I hope you have enough experience! The plane looks like a six-hundred-year-old with wings. It makes the noise of a small plane… It seems obvious, but when it’s in there it doesn’t give much peace of mind. Hit the ground running and here we go, taking off in the middle of the runway! We climb little by little, tilting, I see the geography of the Moon Landscape below. Impressive rock formations. I have a knot in my stomach, it’s not nausea, it’s emotion, accumulated emotion. Out of Africa comes to mind… although the driver is not Robert Redford, I remember the images and what I thought when I saw them… I thought “someday you’ll do that”. All my dreams in a plane, concentrated in those minutes, as if it were a pill. Logically I was excited, I was excited with satisfaction for achieving my dreams and I felt capable of doing anything, of flying again in another place, in another country. My spirits rose a little higher that day.
After this momentous moment with myself, I admit that I got dizzy. I will omit the details, but I recovered in time to marvel at the sea of dunes that we flew over, with the remains of the Eduard Bohlen, stranded in the sand since 1909, when it was shipwrecked on these coasts, and with the wonderful Kuiseb delta, in red, brown and green tones, so dark, drawing ink on the sea, like an occasional spill. I saw the seals from the air, and the waves against the wall of sand that this desert is at the gates of the sea. A terrible fate for the survivors of any shipwreck, who died in the dunes without the possibility of crossing so many kilometers on foot, without water.
After this dream for an hour and a half, we got off the plane hallucinated. We can still feel the swaying of the wind. Like when you get off a ship. Another walk in Swakopmund, some shopping and an excellent dinner at the Crazy Mama, closed another perfect day of vacation.
DAY 5 AUGUST 2011 – DIRECTION TO THE BRANDENBERG
I wake up rested and happy. Other scrambled eggs and coffee. I already knew that on this trip I would get fat! We headed to Cape Cross, to see the seal colony. It is very windy and cold and the seals smell very bad. We entertain ourselves by taking photos. They are very funny moving awkwardly in the sand. There are many puppies with magazine faces. I love to see animals free, in their habitat.
Leaving Cape Cross, we turn off onto an unmarked track, heading for Messum Crater. At first the track is of no interest, but as we get closer to the messum, the landscape is overwhelming. Rocks and grass, almost a lunar landscape. We advance through golden and silent valleys. We decided to stop for lunch in an absolutely spectacular place. From where we are, a golden valley opens up, silent, in motion, like the sea, due to the effect of the wind on the grass. Nothing can be heard but that faint rustle of grasses. The light is golden. I have already said it. But the light is golden. It is a sunset at 1 p.m. A sunset forever. It’s so beautiful that I feel sad. It’s that anxiety that comes to me sometimes, when I see a landscape that overwhelms me and I think that that moment is very ephemeral, that I would like to extend it a little longer… and I think of all those hidden places, like this one, that don’t appear in magazines or tourist guides… and I feel like going out into the world to look for them and keep them all in my head. I took pictures. But I thought it was useless. A phrase from a report on Al filo de lo imposible came to mind and that is that this place had a soul “… of the soul that only places that have transcended space and time possess.” There are many places like that.
We continue along the grassy track, barely perceptible the tracks of another car that must have passed through here a long time ago. On the horizon, more plains. On the track, flocks of birds rise as we pass. Hundreds of birds flee and return. They are like confetti at a party. It is a festival of authentic nature! It’s moving. Judging by the silence of the station, all the travelers in the group were immersed in the same thoughts.
We approach the Brandenberg, the mountain that inhabits these places. The savannah takes over the landscape, the acacias, the burrows, the tall grass… More sprinboks in the distance. We camp on a plain with the mountain in front of us. I have seen her all day mysterious, almost against the light, it seems like an unattainable dream. Perhaps it is an illusion, a transitory madness… tomorrow I’ll look again, to see if it’s still there… tomorrow I’ll look again.
AUGUST 6, 2011 – TO ALL THE JUSTUS IN HISTORY
As I leave the store, I see that the Brandenberg is still there. Yes, it’s for real… but it continues to be against the light. It seems so far away and so close at the same time… We pick up camp. It’s cold. Every morning it is very cold. We cross the track around the mountain. Again I ask myself the same question: How can I catch the wind that rocks the grass? I approach with the camera, from different angles, but it’s impossible. When I look at the photo on the screen I don’t see the same thing. I give up. I will continue to contemplate it without a goal in between.
We arrived at a place to see the White Lady. They are cave paintings. We are accompanied by a local guide: Justus. Justus is very tall and thin. He looks like an Ethiopian tribe. He wears official clothes: safari shirt and pants. It is very big for him. I go after him. From the back, I see him so thin… The legs are literally two sticks. He guides us between the forest and the river. It rests on a wooden hook. Walk slowly. I realize that the only one who makes noise when walking is me. I see him walking slowly, looking straight ahead and to both sides, attentive and calm… so thin… I imagine him naked, with an antelope skin on his hip, with bracelets on his ankles and wrists, I imagine him with a spear in his hand, instead of that staff, I imagine him a hunter, walking discreetly through the savannah, going unnoticed. Patrolling their territory. It wasn’t so long ago that we were all Justus. It is not long before Justus’s ancestors ruled this land without sophistication. It fascinates me to think about it. “Look!” Justus points to a red and blue lizard. The cave paintings are well preserved. They are like all the cave paintings I have seen before. That worries me. Why are the paintings of Akakus in Libya exactly the same as these 8000km away?? I don’t get it. There are many things I don’t understand.
We arrive in Korixas. We are in the depths of Namibia. What a pleasure a hot shower and clean sheets. What a privilege to appreciate the comforts with such intensity! I feel lucky, because happiness is in everyday things.
AUGUST 7, 2011 – FROM KORIXAS TO SESFONTEIN
We left the lodge clean and perfumed. Today we will have a day of transit to Sesfontein, where we will make a loop between the Hoanib and the Hoasib rivers. We see different animals such as zebras, giraffes, oryx, mongooses, springboks and elephant perches.
We also visited the petrified forest and other tourist entertainments that the truth is that they don’t say anything to me.
When we stop for lunch, a young mother approaches with her two small children. I can’t eat quietly while she watches us from a safe distance. They don’t seem to be hungry, but I guess some cookies won’t hurt them either… So I approach and in exchange for the package of cookies I ask permission to take a photo. In fact, I make several.
In the afternoon, we stop to buy firewood, and a few children run up to see the white foreigners. They are all charming. On the outskirts of Sesfontein we look for a camping spot and Carme prepares us a potato omelette, which tastes like heaven!
AUGUST 8 AND 9, 2011 – GOING UP THE RIVERS IN SEARCH OF ELEPHANTS
We start the track to loop for two days along the Hoanib and Hoasib rivers. We spent an hour and a half looking for the passage to enter the river, since the rains of the wet season have destroyed the land. Finally we entered the river. There is practically no water left. The bed is very wide and there are reed beds on either side with the mountains in the background. It is a typically African landscape.
I’m excited because we’ve seen elephant droppings and recent footprints. I really wanted to see the African elephants, and in this area, they are desert elephants, different from the others in that they are taller and larger in general. They only live in this area and that is precisely why we were here. To see them. Before the trip I thought that when I saw the elephants in the desert I would cry. I don’t know why I thought that… I got goosebumps every time I imagined it.
I’m very attentive. Alex tells me to look among the herbs as well, as they may be half-hidden. Suddenly, before my eyes, I see a male eating among the reeds! I didn’t cry when I saw it, but I did feel enormous satisfaction and satisfaction.
fascination. There were no fences in the middle, no bars… That animal was free, it was in its habitat, eating reeds and I came from the other side of the world to see it.
On the other side we saw two young females. How exciting it was to follow the excrement and footprints, more and more recent, closer. If we were hounds, we would be smelling the elephant closer and closer.
We left them alone at their lunch and continued our walk along the river. Oryx, giraffes… It’s funny because you don’t realize how well they camouflage themselves until you see them in their natural habitat. There were giraffes every now and then, but you didn’t see them until you passed right next to it… And they are more than 3m tall and are very big! But they remain in the shade of the acacia trees and the spots on their skin are confused with the shade of the trees. The same thing happens with elephants. Being gray in color, you think they’re going to be easily identifiable on the ground… but no! Because there are so many big, gray, round things in the landscape! For example, termite mounds are the same color as elephants and can rise up to 2m off the ground. The same with the surrounding rocks. So we are very attentive.
After a few kilometers, the river is drier and the environment changes from reeds to acacias and sandbeds. We located an older male under a tree that is missing a tusk. He looks tired and calm. A few meters ahead, there are 3 younger males. In fact, one of them still has the gait and profile of a small elephant. We follow them and take photos… They start to get angry! One of them “screams” and runs away… a short distance away it looks straight at us. He approaches quickly angrily and another one a little bigger appears on the scene! The two of them get together to make more of an impression and head towards us at high speed… they kick up dust and everything! Alex starts the car quickly… better not to provoke them! How funny.
The journey along the river takes us about 4 hours of concentrated Africa. I particularly feel ecstatic with so much visual stimulation. I spend some time contemplating this spectacle and I am invaded by a feeling of emptiness for everything I have not seen and it must be spectacular. That anxiety to devour all the landscapes in the world. I wish we had 7 lives, like cats.
We leave the river through a plateau. The oryx and giraffes watch us from above. The flat, once again golden, contrasts with the dark brown track marking. Another festival of birds accompanies us in our slow and respectful advance. We are heading towards the mountains. About 60 km away is a range of rocky mountains. As we get closer I wonder where the track will go, as they seem impassable.
Edge after edge, I see them in the shade at the end of the valley. The track heads straight there. As we approach, I see the narrow pass opening up, a gorge directly into the river. This step leaves me speechless… As we go in, there is plenty and we drive under the heights, following the sinuous mark of what the torrential rains leave until we reach the river. There is a palm of water. I get out of the car to look at the river crossing on both sides. It is very wide and continues under the mountains, making its way between the rocks. We decided to camp next door to enter it early in the morning.
This campsite is the most authentic of the entire trip. To one side, we see the gorge coming from the valley. A large space between the mountains. On the other side, the river flows and passes by.
Little by little, the light goes out. And the sounds of the savannah are lit up: frogs, birds and other noises impossible to adjudicate are frantically interspersed. That night I light the fire. I make a hole in the sand, some thin twigs, some fatter logs on top and a magic ignition tablet result in a camp fire. That night, it’s time for barbecue. At dusk, the cold returns and penetrates our bones. Around the fire, we comment on the day, we explain jokes, we review the photos, we drink beer… how many times throughout the year do I remember these camp fires.
Before dinner, something amazing happens. We hear the sound of hyenas. Yes! They are hyenas… I seem to see myself with a poker face… his mouth open, his eyes wide and his face tilted to hear better… yes, yes, they are hyenas! They can be heard nearby. Maybe they’re half a kilometer away. Everyone laughs at me when I tell them that I am not going to go more than 2 meters away from the fire, nor that I feel like going to the bathroom!
After a memorable dinner and the usual gin and tonics, we decided to go to sleep. At about 4 in the morning I wake up with a tremendous desire to pee. I try to hold on. I walk around in the store. I convince myself that it’s cold… but I can’t take it anymore. I decide and open the store, which is on the roof of the car and has a small ladder to go up and down.
When I poked my head out I saw the fire almost extinguished. I stick out one leg and then the other. I sit on the edge of the store and the whole universe unfolds before my eyes. There is no moon anymore, it has hidden on the other side of the mountains… millions of stars are lit. The entire Via Lactia at my disposal.
Oh my God, how wonderful. For a moment I almost forgot that I had the buffet about to burst. I remembered the hyenas. How scary! What if I get attacked when I get off the store? I’m alone and unprepared, everyone is asleep… And yes, I’m going to confess something: I peed from the stairs!! This caused quite a bit of laughter among my classmates when I told the anecdote the next day! Haha But when you’ve been in Africa for a week, you’re kind of wild and you’re focused on covering basic needs. No qualms. That’s why I like to go.
I went to sleep with a firm promise: to leave the window of the tent open every night, to contemplate the sky at dawn.
The sun rises next to the river. We entered it at 7 in the morning. There is more water but you have a good time. Vegetation, water, reeds, apes, birds… but no sign of elephants. We see some footprints and droppings, but they don’t seem recent.
The gorge is beautiful, but there are no elephants! Finally we leave the mountainous section and appear in another valley. A few kilometers away is Purros. A town that should rather be called a village.
We head to Opuwo, but the journey will still take us the whole next day, as we must cross a mountainous area, with the track quite complicated and slow. We climb a hill, we become more and more isolated, towards the mountains. This runway is not traveled. It is an old Himba area, where abandoned Himba villages follow one another. How exciting to think that we are going to see African tribes, with their ancestral clothing and traditions. But all the villages are abandoned. The Himba people are semi-nomadic.
At sunset we look for a place to camp. In the middle of the savannah, among acacias and pinto cows, we set up camp.
Around the fire, we tell stories and experiences, jokes, drink gin and tonics and dream of a better world. As I retire to the store, I remember the promise and leave the window open. The prospect of meeting the universe again does not let me sleep, but I surrender to exhaustion. In the early hours of the morning, something wakes me up, I don’t know what it is, but every night I wake up several times. I look out enthusiastically and there they are. All of them. They greet me. What a reconciliation. I curl up in the sack, with the image of the galaxy shining. What satisfaction and what a privilege. No one should leave this world without seeing the real starry sky.
AUGUST 10, 2011 – MEETING WITH THE HIMBAS
The sun rises again in the savannah. A herd of cows can be heard passing by. Little by little we wake up… we make coffee, we eat a couple of cookies… I go over to watch the cows go by. They are African cows, with long horns. The morning light illuminates them against the light.
We resume the crushing track. A track that goes up and down the hills. We found a Himba hut. It is a very exciting moment, because we see a young woman approaching, covered in red, with soft and hydrated skin. She wears bare breasts and ornaments on her neck, hands and feet. With her, several children of different ages approach. They are very exotic! I don’t know how to behave, we can’t communicate in any language, but they seem delighted to see us. I ask your permission to take photos… I find it difficult to take photos of them as if they were animals, the truth is that I feel bad… But they are happy and ask me to see the photos on the camera screen.
After a while, another older woman appears. He also smiles. They ask me for a T-shirt and I exchange for one of the bracelets they wear. What a great memory! He takes it from his wrist and gives it to me. I’m impressed, I can’t stop looking at them. They wear their hair braided with mud.
We say goodbye as best we can and continue the track until we reach Opuwo. We haven’t showered for 3 days and we can’t wait to get some dress… It’s also very hot. Arriving in Opuwo, civilization makes an appearance… It looks like the bar from Star Wars: exotic tribes, mixed with each other, cars, animals, tourists… It’s a very strange mixture.
We arrive at the campsite that has permanent tents set up in an acacia forest. They are comfortable and clean and the shower is outdoors, fenced with reeds. They prepare something quick and cold for us to eat… God, what a good bread they make in this country! A quiet afternoon, in Opuwo, watching the exoticisms and paradoxes: himbas with Nokia, himbas in the supermarket, himbas drinking beer at the top of their lungs… in short, globalization.
AUGUST 11, 2011 – THE EPUPA FALLS
I wake up as good as new. In addition, I am awakened by the sounds of nature: strange gurgling and screaming… Mix between birds and monkeys!
We have 2 hours on a fast track until we reach Epupa. The Epupa waterfalls are a natural border with Angola. Large gaps in the earth through which millions of liters of water gush out. It’s like Eden.
From one of the cliffs, we can see in the distance a small beach that overlooks the river. We decided to go there and take a bath! Along the way we find messages written on the rocks warning not to bathe in the river… I am beginning to think that perhaps it is not a good idea because there will be currents or… Crocodiles!!
After a good walk we arrive at the beach. Miguel is the only intrepid one who bathes, but carefully and next to the shore.
On the way back, we take the cars again to go to Oshakati. On the track we found a car with problems. When we stop they explain to us that the spare wheel they have underneath can only be removed with a key and that they do not have that key, the car rental agency has not given them any! A few minutes later a tourist bus also stops. Between them, they manage to saw the belay and the Germans can change the wheel!
We continue along the track until we reach the edge of the Kunene River. On the other side, Angola. The river is immense, calm, dark… On the banks there are surely crocodiles. Again, the reminiscences of the past come back to my head. Other large rivers such as the Nile, the Niger, the Amazon… come to my mind as well as its people. Men and women who have been born and have died around the great rivers of the earth.
I go to the shore to take a photo. I approach very slowly, looking where I step. “I’m in wild Africa,” I tell myself. “I don’t know what animals live here.” My Jiminy Cricket puts me on alert. What calm and deep waters. So many stories, on the other side.
When they return to the car, a man and a woman Himbas appear on the scene. She is very young and beautiful. The man, old and
attacked by cataracts. I give them a packet of cookies, because they ask me to.
We move away from the Kunene along a track that goes up and down hills. A straight brown track, in the middle of the forests. Before arriving in Oshakati, we punctured a tire… we are tired and hungry… but we are rewarded with a great dinner in an Angolan food restaurant!
The clean sheets and shower taste like heaven, again.
AUGUST 12 AND 13, 2011 – WE ENTERED ETOSHA
The next day, and following my tradition of having scrambled eggs for breakfast, I find myself like a queen! It is the day we arrive in Etosha. Natural park where all the wild fauna of the savannah is. We are very excited and looking forward to seeing animals. Above all, lions and elephants.
Before setting off, we take a walk around the local market (it sold worms… larvae!!! Dry and disgusting…), repair a wheel and buy in the supermarket.
About 50km away, the entrance to the park has us absolutely amazed. As soon as we enter, a few kilometers away, we find the first elephant. Immense, slow, he watches us while he eats the herbs along the way. Sprinboks, giraffes, jackals, kudus, impalas, wildebeests… The park gives us its best gift: to brighten our eyes.
This corner of the world seems like the promised land, there is an abundance of animals everywhere, free, happy and… exposed to predators! I wouldn’t want to be an impala after 7pm!
The campsite is great. Well prepared, with supermarket, swimming pool and pitches with plenty of shade and a great barbecue! That night, grilled entrecote and delicatessen several that Carmen prepares, without a doubt, one of the joys of the trip!
We get up at 5.30 a.m. to see the animals. From sunrise until 10 am is the best time to see them all, as it is very hot afterwards. So, dawn breaks in Etosha. It reminds me of those reports from Africa, where they explain the story of a group of animals, for example elephants. Of their customs, their limbs, their tragedies… And the documentary ends with different views of the savannah at dusk, with its landscapes, its sunset… No voices, just the sounds of wild nature. That’s Etosha.
We head to a waterhole that is nearby. A pond where it is easy to see the animals approaching
drink. We observe the impalas drinking, the zebras approaching and moving away… Their stripes reflected in the water… Farther away, a hyena watches the scene, perhaps her last chance to eat that day…
Later and during the day, we see elephants, the rhinoceros, more giraffes, more zebras, more antelopes… we arrived at Halali at 12 or so. The pool invites us to take a dip and the water is really cold. While the animals take refuge in the shade, we decide to relax at the campsite, eat quietly, bathe… In the afternoon we attack the savannah again with our cameras.
At night, back at the campsite, we go for a while to the waterhole in front. When they arrive, a white rhino and its calf are drinking water. The orange light from the spotlight makes everything more interesting. Quietly, they leave.
The pond is lonely again. The people who are there, watching, are silent and hold our breath, hoping to see another animal appear. Suddenly, from the darkness of the savannah, something moves. It appears little by little, like a ghost… An elephant, white with the dust of the road, is slowly approaching. It’s like an entity from another planet, so white, so big, approaching slowly, swinging its trunk… a murmur is heard among the spectators… when he reaches the pond he raises his trunk. It smells like us. Start drinking water, making noise. He doesn’t like us, he walks away annoyed to the other side of the water. My hands are shaking. I want to photograph everything. Satiated, he walks away again. Quiet, majestic, it vanishes again among the acacias.
AUGUST 14, 2011 – THE LIONS AT LAST
The next morning, I still had the spectral vision of the white elephant in my head. We went out in search of more animals.
A few kilometers later we spot a group of lionesses. They are 2 females and 4 cubs. They are resting. They have eaten recently, as they have traces of blood on their chests. We stayed for a long time watching them… they are so pretty… they move, they relate to each other… It is a dream to see them a few meters away.
Absolutely hallucinated, we continue the march until we meet the male. A young and large lion. Overwhelming. It roars in the savannah. All antelopes watching his steps. There are no words. We leave Etosha happy and satisfied.
On the way to Windhoek we stopped at a cheetah conservatory. An interesting visit that allows us to see this animal up close, even if it is behind a fence!
Camped. The last night. We decided to make a feast with all the leftovers! Wine, beer, food! A festival as a tribute to the end of the journey. We tell each other the anecdotes. We show each other photos… Miguel confesses that part of his wildness in the savannah has been using an old underpants as a cloth. Necessity sharpens ingenuity!
LAST DAYS: RETURN
It has been a great journey. When I dreamed of the savannah, lions and wildebeests, zebras and antelopes appeared… elephants… How impressed I have been by elephants! I have seen all of them up close. In their habitat. For me it has been a dream come true. A privilege that I will never forget. And the stars, so close, so numerous… and the noises of the night, and the African rivers, and the plants of the savannah… and grasses… how I have been captivated by the golden meadows and their light… and the plane, how many sensations on the surface… and the seals, so close, so authentic… Africa in concentrated capsules. Straight into the bloodstream, pumped over and over again to every cell in my body. And I remember every sound, every feeling… I remember perfectly how it smells in the savannah when there is a native plant nearby. It is a sweet and pungent smell. A perfumed atmosphere. So nice… everything seems to be done on purpose to make you enjoy. Always Africa.
