Alright! You actually want to hear all that I have done since I lovingly embraced my mom’s arrival into Namibia? Well, we have done so many things I am going to break up the blog into legs of our trip.
Mom trusted me to plan the entire trip including a variety of sleeping arrangements. I of course checked with her first, but this meant her first night sharing a dormitory room with me and four other strangers. She was tired, so she slept well but it was something she has never done before. She was quite a trooper! We had nights we were camping, but I have bummed off of other volunteers and didn't have any camping equipment. So on Sunday, July 5th we quickly bought all the necessities (my Christmas presents to keep!) including sleeping bag, mat, tent and cooler. We gave a ride to one of my most beloved volunteer friends, Sinthu, back to her home since we were passing through. We ate lunch at one of her local diners in Mariental, took a tour of the hospital she works in and a home tour before departing to our second night in this interesting looking lodge.
This establishment was family owned and ran. Dinner was homemade in what seemed to be her grandmothers dishes. It was welcoming and had a comfortable bed after a 6 hour drive. In the morning, the male owner was trying to teach me Afrikaans and surprised I did not know it already after being here a year. We also got to pet a cheetah and wart hog!
Just within the lodging is the quiver tree forest and giants playground which were interesting natural sites to see. Then off to lunch with another volunteer! We got a driving tour of Keetmanshoop by Katie and ate some pizza. Got groceries and were off on another long drive, but this time with the added challenge of being on a dirt road. We drove through Fish River Canyon and made it to Ai-Ais Hot Springs! After some tiresome hours of beautiful scenery we reached the gate right before sunset enough time to get our tent up, eat pb&j’s and get some rest. After cooking breakfast by fire, we took a hike through the canyon. We then relaxed by the outdoor heated pool. There were so many white tourists none of which were speaking English to each other. This was a bit of an adjustment to my life in Khorixas and realized I was about to see the same country but through tourists’ eyes. Mom was so thoughtful that she brought fixings for s’mores which we ate that night which were oh so delicious! The next day we spent its entirety by the pool. Luckily the south is typically quite cold especially during the winter, but this week it was nice cool temperatures – not too hot nor too cold. The next morning we woke up at 5:30am to pack our tent and depart because we we knew we had another full day of dirt road ahead of us!
We woke early in the morning darkness to be picked up for our adventure in the sky. After a 30 minute drive with fellow excited balloon passengers we arrived to two balloons getting aired up. The basket was divided into 5 compartments, 4 of which held 4 passengers each and the middle held the captain. This balloon is 4 times bigger than your typical hot air balloon. The entry into the basket surprised me because I thought it would be a latched gate or they would have some box steps to enter – but it's a climb! The steps are in the basket, there are only two and the first one was at my high upper thigh. It also took us a good while to get off the ground, hovered over the ground then our view expanded into the great vast before us. My eyes savored the unforgettable scenery and inhaled the most beautiful sunrise of my 24 years of life.
