We spent three days in Namibia, two in Walvis Bay/Windhoek and one in Luderitz. Near Windhoek we visited some of the world’s highest sand dunes where some intrepid folks wind-surf. On the way to nearby beaches a good time was had by all, including the seals and pelicans who jumped into our launch looking for a handout. We paddled sea kayaks to visit seal colonies. A lone coyote prowled the beach while another sought daytime shelter. There were massive salt flats and evaporation ponds, one of Namibia’s prosperous industries.
Vast Dunes:. There is a Dune Rescue Squad for people who get lost among them.
Tourist boats are good for a free breakfast
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1 Kayaks 2 & 4 Seal colony 3 Seal Pup
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5 Lone Coyote 6 Derelict boat on the beach 7 Coyote sheltering in the derelict
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8 Massive sea salt flats and evaporation ponds. 9 Namibia exports salt for industrial use all over the world
Namibia was fun and refreshing. Though it clearly has elements of poverty, it seems to be a relatively open and prosperous society. Windhoek has a mid-level mall. Luderitz was relaxing. I wandered around the small community. People looked like me and at least at first glance people paid me no mind. If I hid my camera and tried not to speak, I could pass for a local. Some people spoke English but they had difficulty understanding me, since I have a heavy American accent. I visited a supermarket, and a small department store where I tried on shoes and ended up buying a hat. There were goods typical of what I would find at home and the prices were reasonable.
Local open markets everywhere have a vibrancy and energy that stores and supermarkets can’t match. We visited a local market outside Windhoek.
I can identify only the kidneys. This smelled delicious and there were queues to get a sandwiches.
Dried Caterpillars
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1 They called it “spinach”. It looked like grass. 2 ??? ground-nuts ???? 3 ????? I have no idea ???
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4 Dried fish 5 Bigger dried fish
I doubt “White Horse” and “Old Brown” have ever knew their purported distillers.
After a busy morning of touring we went to a local restaurant for lunch.
Warm water was poured over our fingers before we sat down.
There was the “spinach”. It still looked like grass. It smelled like grass and it tasted like what I imagine grass tastes like. There was a dish that I think was made out of a millet that we saw in the market. It had a texture resembling thick grits but it did not taste like grits. There were pieces of chicken. And of course the main dish….deep fried caterpillars! I cannot tell you what they tasted like. I did not try them.
clockwise: spinach, eyeglass case,, millet,, and chicken
Deep fried caterpillars. Yummmmm!
Live entertainment after lunch was a wonderful acapella group who sang traditional regional songs, some contemporary songs and some hymns for us. I bought their CD.
We spent 3 days in Namibia. two in Walvis Bay/Windhoek and one in Luderitz.
The total population is about 2.6 million. It has a somewhat different colonial history from other places we visited in West Africa. The vast Namib desert is one of the driest places on earth and as such did not support large populations of indigenous people. So apparently the Portuguese and Spanish traders were not much interested. European settlement came largely from the direction of the interior. In the late 19th century, typical of the times, there were disputes among European powers over which would claim this area with large natural harbors. In 1878 it became a German colony and in early 20th century the German colonialist enforced brutal genocide policies in order to counter resistance from the indigenous populations. During WWI and afterwards, South Africa dominated. Their dominance was sanctioned by the League of Nations as the trustee of this country, with the stated intention of its eventually becoming independent. South Africa’s racial policies including apartheid held sway. By the late 1960’s world sentiments the were beginning to oppose colonialism and apartheid. There were armed revolutions in much of Africa and this country, then known as South West Africa, was not excluded. In 1990 it was finally recognized as an independent country. That is also the year Nelson Mandela was released from prison.
Multi ethnicities :
The history of people of this region goes back much farther than the colonial period. The Saan people of this region are an ethnic minority living in Namibia and other countries which encompass the Kalahari Desert. They do not appreciate the term “bushmen” when applied to them. DNA analysis, as well as archaeological evidence, show that they may be the most ancient homo sapiens people still in existence. Some Namibians speak English. Others spoke what I presume to be Afrikaans or one of the several tribal languages. Including English and Afrikaans, there are about a dozen recognized languages spoken in this country. This includes several “click” languages.
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1 This lady who identified herself as a Saan, demonstrates traditional herbs and products from desert life, including this sack made from the skin of a small creature. 2 This beautiful lady demonstrated traditional dress of one of the other ethnic groups of Namibia. Her people were traditional herders and her headdress references the horns of the cattle.
Neighborhoods:
Under South African rule housing areas followed apartheid practices. Different ethnic/tribal groups were restricted to certain areas. Some ethnic groups were favored and were offered somewhat better accommodations. There are still different levels of housing but they are open to everyone based on ability to pay. Mining is one of Namibia’s major industries. Uranium miners earn good wages for their hazardous occupation.
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1 Houses near the ocean 2 A housing development across the ubiquitous dunes.
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3 A typical neighborhood 4 Shared water tap and toilet
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5 Shanties 6 Hauling water 7 Deposit coins
Children:
We visited a day care center and a pre-school/ kindergarten. We were told there was no charge for them. The kindergarten children sang songs, counted, and recited days and months in English. We were told that usually their ethnic languages are spoken at home.
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8 Nap time in daycare 9 Teachers were all volunteers 10 Singing songs in English
Street Scenes:
Tuck Shops are plentiful in neighborhoods. They are kiosks that sell, phone cards, magazines and sundries.
We spent a brief day in Luanda, the capital of Angola. Angola’s history is in many ways similar to other west African countries we visited. It was heavily involved in selling people into slavery, particularly into Brazil. It was colonized by several different European powers but finally and predominantly by Portugal. It gained independence from Portugal in 1975 after more than a decade of guerilla war against the Portuguese. This was soon followed by bloody and brutal internal conflicts with various participation by the United States, the Soviet Union, and Cuba. These armed conflicts seemed to have calmed since about 2010, but corruption and political conflicts are still rampant. Angola has great oil and diamond resources and is a relatively wealthy economy, but corruption, booms, and busts leave most people poor. Still Luanda, a city of approximately 8 million people, about one third of the national population, is considered one of the most expensive cities in Africa. I am not sure I understand this but it seems that there are 2 economies: one for very wealthy people in oil and other types of industry and one for everyone else. It also seems to be a bit of a “Potemkin” village. It presents a façade of prosperity and modernity. But I am told many of the high rises and much of the great shopping mall are vacant. Some high rises are stopped mid-construction as the price of oil and corruption make them less profitable investments. At the time of our visit BBC and financial news outlets, prominently featured stories about the beautiful billionaire, Isabel dos Santos, who is said to be Africa’s wealthiest woman. She is the daughter of Angola’s recent past president and she personally owns many of Angola’s industrial and business assets. The current government has charged her with embezzlement of billions of dollars of the country’s wealth. She has been living in another country which has no extradition agreement with Angola.
We arrived on a national holiday. Most businesses were closed and most people were in their homes. However, we were treated to an escorted tour of official museums and sites. Escorted is the key word. This was the first country where we not only had police escorts, but ambulances with EMT’s and a fire truck were on the pier when we got off the ship. Our temperatures were taken, we were squirted with hand sanitizer and sprayed with mosquito repellant as we stepped off the gang way.
Government Buildings and Monuments
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1 The National Assembly Building 2 Augustinho Neto Mausoleum
Augustinho Neto fought against Portuguese for independence. When he became Angola’s first president, he aligned with the Soviet Union and Cuba. His rocket shaped mausoleum was built by the North Koreans.
It is not surprising that a country that spent more than 5 decades in conflict would have a military museum. The Sao Miguel Fortress is an aesthetically beautiful one. There are prop airplanes, cannons, guns, military vehicles, weapons of all sorts and statues of military heroes. There are pieces of wrecked enemy planes. Most impressive to me, however, were the large display halls done completely in the Portuguese style ceramic tile called azulejo. The walls of the display rooms illustrate the history of Angola from its “discovery” by the Portuguese, through its history in the west African slave trade to more modern times. It is exquisite.
Azulejo
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1 Wreckage of enemy planes 2 Gallery of hardware and heroesQueen Nzinga, a powerful leader, diplomat, and military strategist. She’s the one on the far left. The one on the right is me, with our tour guide.
Street scenes
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1 Queue at ATM 2 Grace and confidence 3 Porsche Center
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4 High rise with construction crane 5 Apartment buildings
Trying to understand better Luanda’s reputation as one of the most expensive cities in Africa, I asked our tour guide how much would it cost to rent an apartment in one of the nearby buildings. He never gave a figure, but explained it depended on whether or not the apartment had “utilities”. He somewhat reluctantly explained that some of the buildings did not have running water. Residents have to buy water and carry it up to their apartment.
Because of the national holiday, the city of Luanda was quiet and many of the streets were deserted. I am not sure I saw a good representation of daily life, but what I saw was a clean, quiet, pleasant city with a noticible degree of contrasts in life styles. Our escorted tour did not go outside the city.
Sadly, my world adventure has come to an end, a bit prematurely. Had things proceeded as planned, I would have yet another 2 weeks on board and would have visited dozens more wonder filled places in Asia, Australia, and the Pacific. But even the half-world cruise I did experience, was wonderful.
I am now home in a world much different than the one I left and I am probably a somewhat different person than the one who left. With self-quarantines and lock downs and social distancing and so on, it seems that nearly every day calls for some type of new adjustment. However, I think I am generally settled in. I am accepting that adjustment will be the norm for some time to come. I have decided to continue and conclude this blog by adding posts about the rest of the places I had the privilege of visiting. This is important because it allows me to bring this adventure to its conclusion by completing documentation of the trip. As it turns out, it may also become documentation of these places in the halcyon pre-pandemic days. I suspect important changes are coming to these places as well.
I will post in groups, as I am able to get them done. I expect about seven more. You are invited to “tune in” if you like.
I am at home, sweet home. I arrived at night on Friday March 20th. I am just now posting because I just got internet service back at my house.
The trip from Perth to San Antonio was relatively smooth. A taxi took me to the Perth airport for a 5:30am flight to Sydney. The Sydney terminal was crowded with a few people I knew from my cruise ship but many more from several other cruise ships docked in Sydney. We were shoulder to shoulder in queue for more than an hour. The airline blamed the caterer for the delay in boarding the A380. I wore a mask. I always keep a couple in my travel backpack. Once we started, the Quantas flight was fine, including good food and drink, and a lie flat bed. We arrived late to Dallas. There was no health screening that I could detect and US citizens were swiftly passed through customs. Many of us had missed connecting flights but tickets for our rebooked flights were issued as we stepped off the plane. In contrast to Sydney, the Dallas airport was nearly deserted. Most people seemed to heed the social distancing rule. San Antonio airport was also deserted. My ride home got me to my front door, about an hour before the gate to my gated community closed to all non-residents.
No “social distancing” here
The next day I got my home phone turned back on. I was on hold for 5 hours (no exaggeration) trying to reach Spectrum. They immediately got the TV going but the internet would not go. After several more long waits on “hold” it was determined that my mod had died. They sent a technician Sunday evening. My gated retirement community is in lock down mode. I think they might have let him on the property, but I felt I could do this myself. So, he left the necessary parts with the gate guard. Our security guards dropped them off outside my front door. Another long wait on hold for final instructions and I am now reconnected to civilization. I never thought I’d say it but, thank goodness for the internet.
In lockdown mode, my retirement community has closed the dining room. Meals can be picked up for take-out. There are limited items available in our tiny convenience store and there is take out available from our bistro/deli. I am voluntarily restricted from visiting these areas. Twice per day meals are placed at my front door . Boy, do I miss the cruise ship cuisine. Still I am grateful. So many others have so much less. I signed up for delivery from the local grocery store chain. The first available delivery date is April 4th. My emancipation date is April 2nd.
Sign placed on my front door by management. I am told there are others also in voluntary isolation.
I will add some posts to this blog. I have plenty of time
now. There were several interesting places we visited which I did not cover: (not
in order) Namibia, South Africa, Mozambique, Angola, Tanzania, Cape Verde,
Seychelles and a glimpse of Sri Lanka. This
was a wonderful trip, even with half of it cancelled. We are all experiencing an historic time for
humanity. When we get through it, and we will get through it, the world is already
changed.
Family and friends seem to be well and are coping. I am well and coping. Life is good.
I am still having a great time.
We were finally allowed off the ship yesterday morning March 18th. We were bussed to a hotel in Perth. It is quite a nice hotel, but admittedly, I’ve been spoiled. We were told to not leave our rooms until departure for the airport. The Australian government has penalties of $50,000 and/or 1 year in jail for anyone caught in violation. Some former passengers conspired to meet for wine and dinner this evening, since we are sure we are all Corona free. The fine and penalty are a deterrent for me. I will not do anything that might remotely impede my departure. My flight departs at 5:30 am tomorrow for Sydney. Then I go to Dallas. Once there I get a plane for home.
But surprise! I got a call this afternoon, March 19th, saying I was free to go about the city as I pleased. I took a wonderful walk around downtown Perth for a couple of hours until sunset. I will leave my hotel room to go anywhere else for dinner. Perth has 2 million residents. It is a vibrant and seemingly youthful city. There are posters advising people to stay 2 meters from others in public places. Other than a very few people wearing face masks, there was no suggestion of a pandemic. This city seems to move at a moderate pace, faster than San Antonio for example, but slower than Chicago. It was easy to achieve that 2-meter personal space.
Nightscape
I am glad to head home.
This leg of the adventure is over, but the whole is not yet done. I will self-isolate for 2 weeks at home. I found staying in a hotel room for a day and
a half, a bit trying, but I will complete the isolation. I understand the epidemiology and respect it. Corona has changed the world in some
fundamental ways and it is not over yet.
Madagascan gecko in the rain forest. about 8 inches long
This morning the captain announced that we are going directly to Perth, to arrive on 3/18/2020. The smaller ports we were to visit have been closed. Indeed all ports in Australia will be closed to cruise ships by midnight. We won’t get to any of them in time. Reliable sources on board said there are one or more large cruise ships also trying to find a port in Australia. No wonder Australia closed its ports! Reportedly our cruise line is trying to negotiate an exception for our ship since we are small and have already been isolated since March 1st. It still seems that the target for actually getting off the ship is March 21st. Many of us have begun packing so as to be ready whenever an opportunity presents. I am packing, in a separate suitcase, anything I might need for a period of quarantine…just in case. I don’t think I will need any more formals for a while.
Centipede in Madagascan rain forest…about 6 inches.
Stay tuned.
Madagascan python along the trail….about 3 feet visible.
I am about 600 miles from Broome, Western Australia. We are scheduled to reach Broome on March 16th. It will indeed be welcome since I have not set foot on land since March 1st. On March 18th we will land in Exmouth, Western Australia and on March 21st we will dock in Fremantle (Perth), Western Australia. With the exception of Perth, even many of the Australians on board have not been to some of the towns on our current itinerary. I joked that it was like a mail run, stopping at every little town with a harbor. The gourmet meals, the excellent entertainment and extraordinary service on board have continued, unabated and undiminished.
We are all pretty much seasoned travelers. As a group we are pretty adventurous. So, we have continued to enjoy our floating luxury bubble with calm good spirits. When we communicate with family and friends back home, we feel fortunate to be safe from COVID-19. We have already had a 14-day isolation from any other human contact. There is no Corona virus here. Perth remains a major disembarkation point and there has been continuous speculation among the passengers about how many new passengers would care to get on a ship these days. Who would be allowed to board?
Then this morning, as I was doing my daily 5K run around
deck 5, the captain made an announcement: Our “World Cruise” will end on March 21st
in Perth. All passengers must
disembark. They will, of course, assist
each of us in booking passage back to our homes.
No surprise here. Country after country had closed its ports. Samoa had dropped off our itinerary. New Zealand had announced stricter entry requirements. We knew we were running out of options and in some ways, it was a relief. It brought some closure, but not really. Now we have a whole new set of questions and speculations. How will they find airline reservations for everyone? Will we now be exposed to COVID-19 in airports? Will we be tested? Will we have to be “self-isolated” or quarantined when we get back to the USA. I am not worried…yet. We had a “black and white” ball this evening, followed by a formal dinner. There was a Las Vegas style floor show. I am scheduled to visit a pearl farm in Broome and I will swim with whale sharks in Exmouth. So far, these ports are still open to us and these excursions are still on the schedule. But this could change…
I have promised to keep you updated on Corona virus and
terrorists. I am happy to say:
There has been no active terrorism for this trip…so
far.
Now about Corona:
First of all, there has been no evidence of Corona on board. Although there does seem to be a “cold” some people have been willing to share. No one has been seriously ill. All recover quickly. Generally, we all seem healthy and happy.
We are currently sailing the Indian Ocean on our way from
the Seychelles. I started this post last
night before I went to bed intending to complete and post it today. I have had to start over because of continuing
updates to our itinerary.
First, we had to cancel Mombasa, Kenya due to terrorism…no
problem we added days to Zanzibar and to Seychelles.
Next the captain announced the decision to add extra days in the Maldives and Sri Lanka, because we would not be going to Asia…at all. We passengers were gearing up to skip Hong Kong and we were hearing rumors about skipping Singapore, but eliminating all the Asian ports was quite a surprise and a disappointment. We all agreed that we did not want to become one of the cruise ships wandering the oceans because no country would let us dock after having been to some Asian port or other. The cruise line offered a changed itinerary: We would visit the Seychelles, the Maldives and Sri Lanka. Then we would make a hard right and “high tail it” straight to Australia where they were sure we would be welcome. We would do a detailed tour of western Australia, Tasmanian Australia, New Zealand and then on to Pacific islands and Hawaii. Not what we signed up for, but not bad. Plus, they offered significant incentives in the form of deep discounts on another cruise. (I immediately signed up for the Amazon in 2021.)
The wine, gourmet food, and lavish entertainment have
continued undiminished…so far.
On the way from Seychelles to Maldives, the captain has
informed us that the Maldives have closed their port to ALL cruise ships. Not to worry.
We still have Sri Lanka.
At brunch today the captain confirmed that we will be
docking in Sri Lanka, but Sri Lankan authorities will allow no one off the
ship. The ship will take on fuel and
provisions (gourmet, we hope) and be on our merry way.
We are still fine and having fun. One woman became a bit panicky, tearful about ever seeing her family again. Most of us are fine as long as the food and drinks keep coming. I just left a 6-course brunch, with 4 different cocktails and champagne. The captain is hosting a cocktail party and there is a fashion show this evening before formal night at dinner.
There are logistics nightmares which fortunately are not my problem to solve. However, the crew is carrying on mightily to be sure we pampered passengers are not impacted. For example, we were supposed to get fresh provisions in Mombasa. When that was cancelled the provisioners had to catch up with us in Zanzibar. There is abundant fish and produce at local markets in Zanzibar, but health, sanitation, and “gourmet” standards are not always met. So, the ship got provisions shipped from the Netherlands to Zanzibar. Apparently, we will provision in Colombo, Sri Lanka. We are now anticipating a leisurely 10 days at sea to Perth, Australia. I hope Australia will still be welcoming when we get there.
At Seychelles about 90 people got off the ship, either as
pre-planned or deciding not to continue with the changed itinerary. Only about 60 got on, including crew change
and entertainers. The ship is now at about
75% capacity. I don’t know if passengers
or crew will get on at Colombo. There
was to be a major crew change in Singapore which was also to be a major embarkation/disembarkation
point. People were already scrambling to
change plane reservations and hotels for people who now would not be getting on
or off in Singapore. I was supposed to
leave the ship in Colombo to fly to India and then rejoin the ship just before
sailing to Viet Nam. The next
embarkation/disembarkation point will be Perth, then Auckland, New Zealand, then
Sydney. If at each embarkation/disembarkation
point more people get off than get on, it will be interesting to see how this
plays out. I think I will continue the
journey to the end or until they pay me to get off.
I started this journey with a seeking an adventure. I have surely seen and felt new things, but I could have never anticipated this almost surreal situation. I plan to carry on. I will continue to post entries. I am still having a great time.
Linda
P.S. The photos are
from the national botanical garden in the Victoria, Seychelles.
