February 28th brought us to Walvis Bay in Namibia, on the west coast of Africa. I took off in a 4-wheel drive vehicle for some dune riding; Annie took a more mild bus tour into the nearby city of Swapomuland (or something like that!) We actually both agreed that, maybe surprisingly, we enjoyed our day here and were impressed with the country!
Namibia is actually Africa's newest country, finally gaining independence in 1990. Before that it had been called South West Africa and at different times,was a German colony, a United Nations Protectorate and administered by South Africa. There are currently about 1.5 million citizens in the country, a mix of Germans, French, Dutch, British and native tribes. The country is known for its enormous shifting sand dunes with unbelievable colors and a canyon, similar to our Grand Canyon, with some "moonscape" features. My tour went to this area and the dunes, where we snacked on champagne and farm-raised oysters. Annie's went into the city and she had a nice tour and went to a museum where they had some amazing weavings.
We passed by where Brad & Angelina stayed (baby Sari(?) was born in a hospital in Swapomuland)and the guides spoke highly of them and how they have given a lot of money to Namibia. Also, Namibia has a very strict "no trespassing" law -- and many of the paparazzi ended up in jail for "trespassing" in the personal spaces of Brad and Angelina!
The country is also very rich in minerals - uranium, diamonds and copper. We also heard, from our guide and from lecturers on board the ship, that China has made a major inroad into Africa and that the US should be more conscious of this. The Chinese are providing businesses and countries with interest-free loans for development and, of course, receive preferred status from the African countries in return. My guide said that 5 years ago there were only a handful of Chinese in Namibia -- last year's population recorded 50,000! Something for us to be aware of.
Our next stop is Cape Town, South Africa. We're there for 3 days, which should be fun. We really enjoyed it in 2004 when we visited. Stay tuned!
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