Namibia / Along the Caprivi Strip

19th Nov. 2016

After three days of exploring Ethosha NP, we are now traveling along the Caprivi Strip towards Botswana. The environment suddenly changes, as the villages of the Kawangos line the entire route from Rundu to Botswana. The small, round straw huts in which people have maintained their lifestyle to this day are impressive to us and at the same time make us think about what we really need to live. The people all seemed content and the children were undoubtedly having fun playing.

Our experience was different at our lodge in Rundu, right on the Kwando River. We were sitting on the Namibian side of the river, enjoying our cappuccino with croissant, while on the Angolan side of the river, the women were cleaning dishes, laundry, and themselves. Since we knew that Angola was in a state of war until recently, the situation was somewhat embarrassing for us.

The next day, we went to Camp Kwando with its neighboring Mudumu National Park, where we had an unforgettable experience. We observed about 50 elephants from a safe distance, as they stayed by the river. However, we did not realize that elephants were coming from all sides and suddenly we found ourselves amidst a herd of about 200 pachyderms. We were relieved when we safely got out of the situation after about an hour. But we also encountered hippos and plenty of springboks, antelopes, and other animals in this park.