Okovango Delta

Saturday 20th Sept

Botswana was the British protectorate of Bechuanaland and became independent in 1960. Its 2 million people are poor, but not long after independence diamonds were discovered and the income has mostly been wisely spent.

After crossing into Botswana we drove to Sapupa where we transerred to a speed boat for a 2 hour ride up to Inkwazi our houseboat. The maze of channels is fringed with papyrus and reeds with here and there islands with palms and other trees. There is lots of birdlife and plenty of crocodiles although on the way in we only saw two. There were lots of birds - herons, cranes, fish eagles, skimmers etc.

The houseboat is fine. Sebastian, the Zimbabwean captain keeps the boat shipshape and cooks good meals in a tiny space. Another sunset and then up not long after sunrise and an excursion by speed boat and mokoro or dugout canoe to one of the islands.

In the afternoon 5 of us went for a flight over the delta. Flying at 500 feet it was a vast expanse of marshes, channels and islands. We did not actually see a lot of animals but there are elephants and Cape buffalo amongst others.

Monday 22nd Sept

We left the Inkwazi and the delta. It was early morning and there were lots of crocodiles warming themselves wherever there was a bit of sandy bank.

Boat people crossing the Kavango river the border between Angola and Namibia

Roadside scene

Botswana petrol station

Kitchen ware in a supermarket on the way to the Okovango delta

Our speed boats ready to board.

View from Inkwazi houseboat

Setting off to rendezvous at the makoro poling station.

Getting organised at the makoro (dugout canoe) poling station

Setting off

Water lilies

Island homes in the delta

Ready to go for our joy flight over the delta

Aerial view of the watery world

And another view from 500 feet. It just goes on and on.

A crocodile relaxing on the bank. It is estimated there is one crocodile everyone 100 metres.

Palmweg, Damaraland, Sept16th,2014

After leaving Windhoek we had a long day's drive through Damaraland The Damara are one of the principal ethnic groups and their women along with the Herero women wear 'missionary dress' - long voluminous skirts and distinctive turbans. It is nearly the end of the dry season and the country is very dry and we saw few people but some interesting geology. Finally we arrived at Palmweg lodge. It is aptly named being in an oasis of palm trees. As with most of the lodges the accommodation is in thatched huts scattered around with few signs. Who would guess Elephant Walk would lead to the dining room!

In the morning 16th? we went for a game drive. Palmweg Concession is 5,500 sq km and we saw heaps of zebras and springbok and a couple of hyenas. There were  guinea fowl, Ruppels Kophaan etc. The dominant vegetation is Euphorbia Damarama which is eaten by kudu, black rhino and steenbok but is very poisonous to humans

That evening at dinner one of the guides told us there was an elephant at the fence very close by so we all trooped out to see it.

17th Sept We left Palmweg at 7 and arrived at Tosharu Lodge just outside Etosha at 6.30 = 800 km drive. Howeve we did make 3 stops - first at Twyfelfontein (Doubtful Spring) where there are thousands of rock engravings done by the Bushman or San people several thousand years ago. On then to the Organ pipes rock formation - think Giant's Causeway. But to get there was about 12 km of horrendous corrugations. The third stop was a petrified forest = pine washed down in a huge flood from Central Africa in the distant past.

Tosharu Lodge was very nice with lots of bougainvillea but the lighting was far too romantic - we could not see a thing. However the buffet dinner was excellent springbok meatballs and kudu stew. As always accompanied by delicious salads and good soup for starters.

18th Sept.

Up at 5.30 and on the road before 7. Etosha was proclaimed a National Park in 1906 and was originally 100,000 sq kms. It is now only one quarter of that size.

Our first sightings were zebras galore and springbok. The zebras in this area are Burchell's and their stripes go right around their bellies.Then we saw 2 white rhino and some impala. Best of all was the Neubroni waterhole with a Noah's ark of animals all drinking. Eventually even the wary giraffe dared to drink.

19th Sept.

Another long days drive to Rundu on the Angolan border. The vegetation is different and since cattle farming has become less profitable the bush is taking over the land.

We stayed at Kaisosi Lodge on the Kaivango River complete with resident peacock.

20th Sept

Today we crossed into Botswana after first paddling through the foot and mouth mat and soaking our spare pair of shoes we carried on into the watery world of the Okovango delta.
A two hour speed boat ride took us to Inkwazi our houseboat home for two nights. 

Roadside stall

Dutch Reformed Church

Sunset near the Palmweg lodge

Zebras in the dawn light during our first early morning game drive.

Giraffes do tower over everything else.

A spotted hyena surveys the scene.

Some of the palms which give Palmweg Lodge its name. I think they may be makalini (sp?)

More giraffes posing.

Annalies explaining some of the Bushman rock engravings at Twyfelfontein (doubtful spring).There are thousands of the engravings and they include - rhinos, giraffes, waterholes etc and they date back thousands of years.

Pretty pink flowers at Twyfelfontein. One book called them pink eidelweiss.

The rather comical secretary bird which is about 80 cm tall.

The peculiar Wallachia plant which lives for a hundred years but has only two leaves (I need to check my facts)

More wildlife at Twyfelfontein

 Emma and Alfred and the truck

The connection has deteriorated so I will be back to finish this post later.
Seems faster now so  I will continue.

 Donkey cart on the road to Etosha NationalPark.

 An iconic tree in Etosha National Park.

White rhino

 Wildebeest

 
Impala

Kori bustard.  

 Easy to see why kudu were hunted for their antlers.

Social weaver bird nest. They are tiny birds but the community nests are huge

Possibly a white browed sparrow weaver bird

At the Neubroni waterhole in Etosha.

Neubroni waterhole again. It is almost biblical the different species drinking together although the giraffes were very wary.

However the rhino had no trouble keeping his personal space.

The ostriches were a bit feisty.

A lion surveys the waterhole looking for possible dinner.

A doll dressed as a Herero lady

Alfred inspects the truck. We did have a leaking tyre and as each tyre weighs 180 kg that makes life difficult.

Windhoek, Namibia, 14th Sept, 2014

We spent yesterday in Swakopomund. Although it is the second city in Namibia, the population is only 16,000, but there are 2 adjacent townships - Modesa and DRC (Democratic Resettlement Community) with at least another 26,000 people. The South African administration enforced segregation in 1960 and although since independence in 1990 anyone can live anywhere there is not a lot of mixing.

The town has fine old colonial buildings and still a distinctly German feel and look. The people are mostly Christian and English is the only official language, but most people speak 5 or 6 languages and some are the click languages like the bushmen.

Flamingos hardly need identifying

 

Cormorants

 

 Beach bar in Swakopomund

 Self  explanatory

 

 Typical old buildings

 

Lots of different colours and varieties of pigface

 The township of Modesa. There are different sections as the South African govt gave the smallest tribe the biggest houses.

Price list in a Shebeen or bar in Modesa. $1 Namibian is about 10cts Aus

Clientele In the bar.

Some people earn good money working for Rio Tinto in the nearby Uranium mine but prefer to still  live in the township as there is more community spirit and street life.

Street market.

All sorts of entrepreneurial businesses

 

Termite mound Namibian style.

 The town of Chrystal - mostly black tourmaline, amethyst, rose quartz and agate.
 

 Helena one  of the staff at Roof of Africa hotel in Windhoek shows off her fishtail pushback hair style.

I think this might be the last  Internet before we get to Victora Falls  about the 27th September and by then I  anticipate I will have plenty to add..