As we passed Wanaheda, Hané refreshed my memory by pointing out that the name was formed with the first two letters of Wambo, Nama, Herero and Damara. A little further on we turned into Eveline Street which has earned various reputations – famous, infamous and notorious. Driving past the numerous bars, car washes, hair dressers and other informal businesses, Hané said that the street was named after Meme Eveline who became famous for the vetkoek (a type of doughnut) that she used to sell on the street.
Our next stop was at Penduka on the banks of Goreangab Dam. Penduka, an Otjiherero name meaning wake up, was established as a development project for women from rural and underdeveloped areas in 1992. We were shown around the pottery, sewing and batik workshops. At the glass unit, where beads and jewellery are made from recycled glass, Hané translated the sign language of the deaf women who work there.
As we continued our journey past Katutura’s sprawling informal settlements, Hané gave an eye-opening insight into the way of life, the informal businesses and the challenges faced by the people living there in huts put together with corrugated iron sheets. She also told us what the Windhoek Municipal Council is doing to improve their plight.
We now made our way through the historic core of Katutura with its grid-iron layout. People who were removed from the Old Location in the late 1950s and early 1960s were allocated small brick houses in blocks known as lokasies (English: locations), according to ethnicity, i.e. Owambo, Herero, Damara and Nama. There was also a mixed area.
At the Oshetu Community Market we got another opportunity to stretch our legs and meet the locals. The market was established in 2004 in an area where the Single Quarters for unmarried men used to be. Oshetu is an Oshiwambo name meaning it’s ours or our community.
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[…] the scene of a terrible shooting intended to cow the residents into moving to the more controlled Katutura township. The aftermath might have seemed liked “urban renewal” for the white families […]