July 6, 2017

Tour through Kavango and Zambezi

Cattle graze peacefully in the green pastures, and traditional reed and mud huts stand out between fields of mahangu and sorghum, some right next to the main roads – to allow better access to resources and transport. Activities can be observed from your vehicle, or better still, from one of the designated picnic spots under the abundant trees. The area is wild and untamed, giving a glimpse of the ‘real’ Africa. The biggest attraction of the Kavango and Zambezi regions is still the rugged, rural life that can be observed even when only passing through.
September 26, 2017

A quick walking tour through Swakopmund

There aren't many towns that offer quite as much to the traveller on foot as Swakopmund. The historic town is located where the desert hugs the Atlantic Ocean, north of Walvis, and was the original settlement of German colonists. Swakopmund has a distinctly quirky style that managed to survive even with its growth in size. A walk along its roads reveals little treasures that are easily overlooked otherwise. Make a trip of it and take our walking tour to get the most out of Swakopmund.
October 30, 2017

Top 4 View Points in Windhoek

How about taking a couple of minutes to escape from your screen and busy schedule? Finish the year with the same energy you started. I have compiled a list of tiny escapes right here in Windhoek with beautiful views. Beauty is everywhere, whether you appreciate it today, on Christmas day or only next year January until the “New Year, new me” motion has passed. There is poetry in each sunset, a spiritual element in every scenic view. Few things are as liberating as watching a sunset from your favourite spot with a good friend.
January 30, 2018

This is my Namibia – Spring 2017

I stood atop a rock overlooking the Hartmann’s Valley in Namibia ’s north-western Kaokoland Region. Breathless. Speechless. A tear quickly wiped away. Clichés, I know, but often words fall short. It wasn’t just the view, but a culmination of factors so intricate that I could scarcely explain it to myself, let alone anyone else. I didn’t take out my camera. I had previously tried to capture moments such as these elsewhere in the country: the view from a dune at Wolwedans, the sunset over the Okavango. Each time I was disappointed with the result. Sometimes the magnitude of the moment just can’t be captured. Or maybe I’m just not good enough a photographer…
July 4, 2018

Botswana’s Nxai Pans

We’ve just returned to South Camp and it’s almost dark. Stretching our stiff limbs, the place is silent tonight since we are the only campers. And then we hear it, a soft swishing sound in the grass. Moving cautiously to the edge of the tree line in the deep twilight, we can just make out a solid mass of elephants mere metres away from us.
July 4, 2018

A sense of Home and Hope: Landscape-Level Conservation

From towering sand dunes and ragged mountaintops to canyons carved deep into the earth and underground lakes, lush tropical vegetation to searing deserts, dry riverbeds to oases in the truest sense of the word. From the cold Atlantic Ocean to perennial rivers and floodplains, thundering waterfalls to the silence of the savannah grasslands. The landscapes of Namibia have inspired many who have had the privilege to set foot on this land. A source of life and livelihood, it is the land of immense diversity. Where you will find incomparable sunsets and space for the soul to breathe. It is the place we call home.
July 13, 2018

Ovambo – Life in the Slow Lane

April is a reflection. A reflection of a good rainy season. A reflection of tall, slender makalani palm trees in the crystal-clear surfaces of oshanas (meaning pans in Oshiwambo) brimming with fresh rainwater and lined with lilies. This year is no exception. And the Owambo Region in the north becomes one of the most scenic and inviting parts of the country. It beckons you to delve into its colours, flavours and vibrant liveliness. Immerse yourself in a heart-warming culture with which about half of Namibia’s population identifies. Linger off the beaten track by linking your Etosha trip with Owambo and make the most of the last days of summer.
July 13, 2018

Starlings not that Common

If there were a lion behind every second bush, or a leopard in every tree, would they be so special? Would photographers want to shoot them (to protect them), would photographers drive off-road or into a no-entry road to get a better angle on their million dollar picture? I have in fact seen people drive all over each other to get a closer look at a lion, to get to the front of the scene of the crime. Imagine, for a lion! Luckily no photographer will ever do that. The point I want to make about starlings is that they are too common. Most of the starlings have a metallic sheen flashing back when the sun touches their feathers, but unfortunately they are not so special because they are just too common. This might be where this terrible word is coming from: ‘common’, like too many seen too often. Possibly it is also because they are robust and gregarious. Let’s rather call them plebeian.