Today we had all planned to do a flight over the Namibian Coast but as Jill relates she woke up at 5am thinking “No, I don’t want to go up in a small plane and fly over sand dunes for 2 hours”. To add to our woe Wendy is not well (has a crook back) so instead of 5 we are down to three. Fortunately the Sossusfly was able to fill the two extra seats so we did not have to pay for the five of us after all – no woe at all.
We were picked up from the Beach Hotel and headed to the airstrip via the Sossusfly office in town where we paid our money – nice quote on the wall by W Ralagh (whoever that might be): “The engine is the heart of the airplane but the pilot is its soul”.
It was a small plane – just 6 of us including the pilot and we had to sit in special spots according to our weight. Our flight took us over the Kuiseb Riverbed, a very contrast green border between the sand sea and the yellow gravel plains, Kuiseb Canyon, Tsondabvlei, the Namib Desert with 7 different dune types, via Sossusvlei (dead vlei and other vlei's in the highest dunes where we head tomorrow) to the southern Skeleton Coast, past Diamond Camps (deserted in the 1930s), Conception Bay with the most visible shipwreck "Eduard Bohlen"(1909), seal colonies, long wall, past shipwreck "Shaunee", wedged between the Namib sand sea and the Atlantic Ocean lies a unique wetland: Sandwich Harbour, past Saltpans, Walvis Bay, Lagoon, via Dunebelt back to Swakopmund.
It was a small plane – just 6 of us including the pilot and we had to sit in special spots according to our weight. Our flight took us over the Kuiseb Riverbed, a very contrast green border between the sand sea and the yellow gravel plains, Kuiseb Canyon, Tsondabvlei, the Namib Desert with 7 different dune types, via Sossusvlei (dead vlei and other vlei's in the highest dunes where we head tomorrow) to the southern Skeleton Coast, past Diamond Camps (deserted in the 1930s), Conception Bay with the most visible shipwreck "Eduard Bohlen"(1909), seal colonies, long wall, past shipwreck "Shaunee", wedged between the Namib sand sea and the Atlantic Ocean lies a unique wetland: Sandwich Harbour, past Saltpans, Walvis Bay, Lagoon, via Dunebelt back to Swakopmund.
What fascinating country. So dry. We reckon we live in a dry country in Australia. There is just no comparison! How anyone (human and animals) survives in this environment is just amazing. The sand dunes roll right into the sea and there is little natural vegetation anywhere. The only green strip is the man-made greenery from Swakopmund to Walvis Bay. As our brochure says: “Swakopmund is truly Namibia’s premier tourist and recreational resort. In the midst of these arid, often desolate surroundings, it forms an oasis for body and soul. Picture-postcard German Colonial buildings dominate the town’s central area.”
Once more on the ground we all headed to town (a few blocks away) in the hope of a bit of shopping and at least some lunch.
As it turned out by the time we found a café for lunch (the first two were just finishing up and their kitchens had closed – it was well after lunchtime) there was no time to shop. Our lunch spot turned out to be a little gem – The Village Café. The staff were very friendly and there were plenty of them attending to our every need – nice to have the staff offer the Wi-Fi code as soon as you pull out your phone instead of having to ask for it. Food was good too.
As it turned out by the time we found a café for lunch (the first two were just finishing up and their kitchens had closed – it was well after lunchtime) there was no time to shop. Our lunch spot turned out to be a little gem – The Village Café. The staff were very friendly and there were plenty of them attending to our every need – nice to have the staff offer the Wi-Fi code as soon as you pull out your phone instead of having to ask for it. Food was good too.
After lunch it was off to Walvis Bay to look at the flamingos (Ian had spent the morning getting the broken window in the van repaired). What beautiful birds - and the way they do a little dance to stir up the bottom while they’re feeding is very cute. We took lots of photos of both the greater and lesser variety (the lesser being smaller and pink and the greater larger and whiter.
We returned to the hotel just in time to catch the last of the sunset from the roof. Dinner tonight at the Hotel – excellent.
We returned to the hotel just in time to catch the last of the sunset from the roof. Dinner tonight at the Hotel – excellent.
