26 December – Swakopmund

It’s Boxing Day today and we spend it in Swakopmund in the Kramersdorf Guesthouse. By now we have been here since Sunday and enjoy a regular bed, a delicious breakfast and a huge shower.

The last post was already a week ago when we were still in Hentiesbay at a somewhat curious campsite in the middle of the village. Hentiesbay is a small town at about 100 km north of Swakopmund on the so-called Skeleton Coast of Namibia. Almost the entire coast of Namibia consists of sand and is easily approachable for ships but the hinterland is dry and there is no tree or shrub to be found. This is why the former seafarers have called this coast the Skeleton Coast, because if you stranded there, you die. Even now there are many wrecks.

For today’s tourist, this coast is a paradise mainly for fishermen and more specifically, South African, white, fishermen. They drive around with large 4X4’s, fishing rods in front and spend the whole day at the beach, for fishing. The campsite has whole families that are busy with angling from early in the morning until late in the evening. The remarkable fact is that this village reminds very much of South Africa during the apartheid because there are only white Afrikaners around, Afrikaans is the language spoken and the work is done by the Namibians. The big difference though is that the Namibians are paid well now and benefit from tourism!

The campsite was less fun and we decided to drive South to Walvisbay, the only deep-sea port in Namibia. Walvisbay has a long history where the village was not part of Namibia but was part of, successively, the Netherlands, England and South Africa. Even after the independence of Namibia, it took several more years before the sovereignty was transferred.

We found an excellent camping, quiet and clean where mostly families came from South Africa. Lisa and I walked a lot Friday and Saturday and that could do that because it’s not so hot here due to the influence of the cold current. Because in Hentiesbay I had my hair cut (number 1) I am pretty burned and now even wear a hat when I go out.

We are amazed by the type of people who are camping and I had also had a great discussion with my eldest daughter about it. In recent months, Lisa and I have seen many Europeans, some Australians, some Americans and many South Africans. Almost without exception, whites and that is something you can think about deeply. Of course, one only goes on holiday when a certain wealth has been achieved, but it is strange that, when reaching this wealth, camping and outdoor living is a typical white man’s activity. As soon as we stayed in lodges and hotels the composition was much more a mix.

Now we sit a few days in a great guesthouse in Swakopmund and have even celebrated Christmas, together in a restaurant within walking distance. The time here we used to do the accounting of my company, wash the duvets and book a holiday house in Knysna. The latter was successful and we will be, from February 2 to March 10, in a beautiful house at the lagoon in Knysna. Even Tom thinks it’s beautiful. Tomorrow we break up again and we enter the wilderness again. I can hardly wait to get back into the desert and see the beautiful starry sky.