Published: 11.04.2025
We are now on the second day between Tsunib and Grootfontain. Unfortunately, we have no cell reception at our remote camping site with a small stone house with a shower and toilet, so I am writing today's blog entry in advance and will post it tomorrow when I have a network connection again.
What has happened in the meantime? In Tsunib, we first visited a shop that sells local handicrafts directly. The very black, well-groomed older saleswoman knew about every piece we bought, where it came from, and told a story here and there about it. We spent almost an hour in the shop. The invention of slowness had its origin there! While packing, the kind woman literally said goodbye to each ticket strip personally! Afterwards, we visited the local museum, which is dedicated to German Southwest, the time when Namibia was a German colony. Quite interesting, but of course also somewhat one-sidedly German...
Then we decided to drive to Ghaub, a nature park that also offers camping sites for 3 cars. That's something for us!
The campsites are located in the forest (we hadn't had that on this trip yet) and consist of a spot for the car and a stone house with a toilet, shower, and shaded roof. There is, of course, a fire pit as well. A huge troop of baboons (which is a large species of baboon) circles around the site constantly. We are very careful not to leave anything behind, but aside from making a lot of noise occasionally, the monkeys do not bother us further.
After a cool night, we take an extensive walk the next day on a marked trail and see quite large herds of various antelopes.
Upon our arrival, we were offered to go to see the rhinoceroses with the wildlife rangers in the afternoon. The 200 square kilometers are indeed a rhino protection area. So we signed up for the trip and at 4 PM it began: first, we saw some giraffes, waterbucks, and kudu antelopes, then we drove over really very bumpy roads with our guide to a relatively open area where they were grazing! In total, we saw 5 rhinos (white rhinos) with unshortened horns (in Southern Africa, their horns are often shortened so poachers can't do anything with them). We held quite close to the rhinos, and I started taking photos. Suddenly our guide says: 'Let's have a little walk!' Incredulously, we look at him: Get out? Here? With these dangerous creatures?
He means: yes, no problem, please come!
And so we get out and come within a few meters of the rhinos, who continue to graze peacefully. They are obviously accustomed to the two wildlife rangers who suddenly appear and our guide.
It is an incredible feeling to get so close to the animals and not be perceived as a disturbance. The animals graze for a while longer, then peacefully trot away, and we continue our ride, seeing a few Tik Tiks (the smallest species of antelope) and other antelopes, and finally return to our car full of impressions. This trip was truly worth it for us! It will stay in our memory forever!
Tomorrow, we will go all the way north to the Okavango.
