Namib Desert 🏜️

As soon as we crossed the border, there was not much more than desert. It was really exciting to see how dramatically the landscape changed. It didn't take long before we could see our first native animal of Namibia, the Oryx. After driving for 3 hours on gravel roads, which are the highways of Namibia, we made our first short stop. Right in the middle of nowhere surrounded by gravel desert. Everyone immediately started taking a thousand pictures, and off we went again. After another hour on gravel roads, we finally arrived at our campsite. The first afternoon was unplanned, and we could just relax. We all gathered around the pool and enjoyed the hot sun in the desert. We watched the sunset from the Fish River Canyon, the second largest canyon in the world. Wow, that was quite impressive. We then took a walk along the cliffs at the top of the canyon until we reached the sunset spot. There was a glass of wine and a beautiful sunset. In the evening, we all sat by the fire and listened to data and facts about marriage customs in Africa's indigenous tribes. The next day was more or less a day with Lando (Lando is our bus). We had a long 10-hour drive ahead of us. Along the way, we stopped in a small village to refuel and grab some snacks. Well, there wasn’t much more in that village. However, these stops are always my favorites because they show you what Africa is really like away from tourist hotspots. We had lunch somewhere in the desert next to the road alongside some goats. After a few more hours of driving, we finally arrived at our campsite for the night. After we set up our tents, a few of us first went exploring with our cameras. Then we finally had Wi-Fi for the first time in days and made the most of it. But honestly, everything around seemed so much more exciting and after letting everyone back home know we were okay, we put the phone away again and enjoyed our time together. In the evening, we celebrated one of our group's birthdays. As we sat together looking at the sky, we saw the breathtaking starry night. Totally fascinated, we sat outside for quite a while gazing at the stars. In the morning, we were awakened by the strong wind. Yet somehow, it put us all in a great mood in the morning. We had a big and exciting day ahead of us. Before breakfast, we drove to the sand dunes and hiked up Dune 45. It was just an awe-inspiring experience, though it was quite windy and sandy. After that, we had breakfast with a view of the dune, or rather, dunes. It was really exciting to see. Right after that, we swapped our Lando for Jeeps and sped through the sand. That was so much fun! We then stopped in the middle of the desert to hike to Deadvlei. We walked 2.5 km through the sand up and down. It definitely gets pretty hot during the day, but thankfully we were still early. At Deadvlei, we found a large flat oasis with dead trees surrounded by sand dunes. It was also quite interesting to see. We took the journey back and this time not in the Jeep but in a tractor trailer. The next stop was another canyon. From above, it looked quite unimpressive and barely visible. However, once you go down into the canyon, it is really impressive. It became larger and wider and was almost devoid of people. It was also impressive to see a type of green tree scattered around the desert despite the extreme dryness. We learned about these during our bush drive through the desert. After all our tents were set up and we played a few rounds of cards, we drove again with a Jeep through the desert. This time with a local who could tell us a lot about the desert. He showed us spider nests, explained the nature of the desert, and shared a lot about the wildlife here. We saw wild dogs, Oryx, and various insects. We concluded this incredibly interesting day with a breathtaking sunset in the desert. Together at the campfire, we exchanged stories. While brushing my teeth, I once again got to see a beautifully clear starry sky. I would even say it was the best I’ve seen so far here in Africa. Watching the stars in the middle of the desert is simply one of the most beautiful things ever. Unfortunately, this night in the tent turned out to be quite sleepless due to the extreme wind, which shook our tent all night. Sometimes I honestly thought we might fly away with our tent. By now, I have also gotten very used to group travel and can really enjoy it! It feels like every day it gets more incredible. On the way out of the desert to a larger town by the sea, we even saw our first zebras! 🫶🏼