The American Invasion

December and January were both absolutely crazy for Lindsey and I. Crazy fun, but also crazy busy. Both sets of our parents, plus Lindsey’s brother and sister, came to Namibia for an all out Namibian excursion. Then, before our parents were even out of the country, Lindsey and I hopped on a bus for a 21 hour drive down to Cape Town to meet my brother and his wife. When we finally arrived back in our village, we realized that we never slept in the same place for more than two nights in nearly 35 days! Even right now as I am writing this I am thinking - should I really be typing right now? Or should I go take a nap? Well, to put your suspense to rest, I decided to take a nap. Now, here are the highlights.

Arrive the parents:

Both of our families flew into Namibia on the same flight and we met them at a hotel in downtown Windhoek. We hadn’t seen each other in a year and a half, so it was certainly good to be able to talk face to face. 

Sossusvlei

The first leg of our journey was to Sossusvlei - the home of the biggest sand dunes in the world. Lindsey and I went there in December of 2012 as well, but it was definitely worth visiting again. In my opinion, Sossusvlei is the coolest place in all of Namibia. Our first morning we woke up at 4:00 AM (and hence begun a pattern of erratic sleep that continued for the entire break) to try to catch the sunrise on top of Big Daddy. Big Daddy is the tallest sand dune in the world, coming in at about 1065 feet. Also, Big Daddy is the actual name of the dune, so don’t think I am just being weird and calling it that ha!

The view of some dunes as the sun was coming up.

Lindsey and I at the top of Big Daddy

 Our entire group made it up to the top of the dune (high five everyone!), and we spent around an hour up there eating breakfast and taking pictures. If you are thinking that climbing a 1065 foot dune sounds easy..... well, you should just come to Namibia and try it. 

The rest of the group making their way up.

The temperature in Sossusvlei is always really cool in the morning, but by around 10 AM, you better be near your car. Within about 30 minutes, the temperature went from being refreshingly cool to scorching hot. We spent the rest of our day by the pool in our lodge as we watched the heat rise off the sizzling red dunes in the distance.

Some dead trees on Dead Vlei at the base of Bid Daddy. 

Swakopmund

I have talked about Swakopmund several times in this blog before, so hopefully you are at least a little familiar with the name. Swakopmund is an incredibly nice, little German town that is wedged in between the dessert and the coast, and almost the entire population is white. What makes this town so weird/unique/awesome is that it is in Namibia - a third world/developing country in Africa. It doesn’t really “fit in” with the typical African town you know?

Just trying to get some solid head shots. I call this one magnum. It is far superior to blue steel.

Myself, Jim, John, and Kaitlyn all went four wheeling in the sand dunes just outside the city for a full 3 hour excursion. It was honestly one of the most fun “extreme” activities I have ever done. I knew it was going to be fun, but I never thought it would be that fun. It was like being on a roller coaster that you are completely in charge of - both delightful and terrifying at the same time. Afterwards, we all went out to eat at a German restaurant and enjoyed some good ‘ole wiener schnitzels and boots of beer.

Jim enjoying a boot. Look how happy he is.

Cape Cross Seal Reserve

The Cape Cross Seal Reserve is a giant seal colony about 2 hours north of Swakopmund. It also happens to be calving season here, so there were tons of baby seals waddling around. This seal colony was something really cool to see once, but I would never want to go again. Why is that you ask? Thousands and thousands of seals living in a pretty concentrated area makes up for one awful smell. No joke, it was the worst smell I have ever been around in my life. We were there for maybe 10 minutes before we all jumped back in the car to get away from the nasty stench. So as I said, it was worth seeing once, but not again.

A wrecked ship off the coast that we saw on the way to the seal reserve. 

Some of the many smelly seals.

Desert Elephants

The rare desert elephant.

For our first safari of the whole trip, we headed out in search of the “rare and illusive” desert elephants, as our guide put it. We drove out into this mountainous desert area around Khorixas (if any of you care to look up where the town is) and found several groups of elephants near a small, lush riverbed floor. Desert elephants are classified as their own species because they have several small adaptions to help them better survive in areas with such little rain.  They look exactly the same as a normal African elephant, however, they don’t become quite as big when they are fully grown. We got within about 10 feet of a handful of elephants, which was the closest I had ever been by far. So for our first safari as a group, I would say it was a really nice one. 

Etosha

Etosha is Namibia’s largest game park and boasts to be one of the best game viewing venues in the world. Lindsey and I also went there in August towards the end of the dry season, where all of the animals were forced to drink at the few remaining waterholes. Now, our family came in December, which is the peak of the rainy season. They say rainy season is a bad time to come since it usually causes animals to scatter as they can find water anywhere. They don’t come to the waterholes and it is hard to see through all the dense bush next to the road. 

A lion crossing the dirt road right behind us in Etosha.

When we went on our first safari, Lindsey and I kept saying, “Now guys, don’t be disappointed if we don’t see a lot. Just don’t get your hopes up.” I was expecting to hardly see anything. And what happens? Within five minutes of being in the park - bam, a lion drinking from a puddle in the middle of the road. Then, like 20 minutes later, more lions. Then several herds of giraffes, zebras, and everything else you can imagine. Then, as we were leaving the park, yet again more lions laying down in the road trying to soak up the remaining heat of the sun as it went down. The rain certainly didn’t stop our game viewing adventures, but it sure did make the temperature outside amazing. 

The entire group out on the Etosha Pan.

Up to the Kavango

Christmas night, right after dinner.

After a lot of driving, we finally made it up north to the Kavango Region (where Lindsey and I live) on Christmas Day. We stayed in an awesome lodge that has a giant deck overlooking the Kavango River, where it is impossible to go 15 minutes without hearing a hippo grunt rumbling somewhere in the distance. That evening, we went on a sunset cruise across the river searching for hippos and crocs. I bet our family never expected to be so close to the most dangerous animal in Africa on Christmas. The terribly annoying song I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas now has a new meaning. 

The Village Invasion

The next day, our entire family came to visit our village. I am not sure about this so don’t quote me, but I bet there have never been so many white people in Mayara at the same time. We got to show them our huts, our school, and gave them a tour of our village. So finally, after a year and a half, our parents were able to actually see how we live. Lindsey and I taught them the basic greetings in Thimbukushu - things like hello and how are you?, which they got to put into action when we were walking around. We also taught Jim to say “Hello, where is the beer?” - which is, “Moro, kupi bira?” That made a lot of people laugh.

Lindsey and Kaitlyn smiling for a picture in our sleeping hut.

Lindsey drawing pictures in the dirt with our host mom's daughter.

My family standing in the doorway to our homestead.

All the villagers were really happy to see and meet our family, and everything went surprisingly smooth. I was afraid that we might get bombarded by people asking for money if a big group of 8 white people were walking around with a few big cameras around their necks. However, not a single person asked for anything. Everyone was so excited to meet our family, shake their hands, and have a picture taken with them.  

Africat

Africat is a huge private game reserve that specializes in big cat conservation - mainly cheetahs and leopards. I had never seen a wild leopard before, and it was the last of The Big Five that I still hadn’t seen. (The Big Five includes elephants, rhinos, water buffalo, lions, and leopards) Our first morning there we woke up before the sunrise so our guide could take us leopard tracking before it got too hot. Within about an hour we found a leopard with a cub that was around 8 months old (I think) and watched as the cub continually pounced on its mom. It was actually pretty funny, and they seemed to have the same mannerisms as a house cat. Of course, leopards are no house cats. We also saw some cheetahs, a pack of wild dogs (wild dogs are endangered, and also REALLY ugly), and a couple of lions from a distance.

A full grown male leopard eating his breakfast.

A lazy group of wild dogs that we found soon after they ate.

This one is for you Maria (Lindsey’s mom): So our guide told us about an interesting tradition in Namibia and then demonstrated for us as follows. He picked up a handful of dried gemsbock poo, put one small, scrumptious pellet in his mouth, swished it around a little bit for lubrication, and then spit it as far as he could. He said it is common to do at weddings and big events - kind of like a watermelon seed spitting contest is for us, except in this contest you spit poo. At first I thought he was trying to play a prank on us, but then he threw the sucker in his mouth and spit. We dove in as well and competed for the gold. Maria won. She is officially the best poo spitter. Now the whole world knows. Congratulations!

Interesting Cat Facts for those interested in interesting facts: According to our guide, if a cheetah charges you, all you have to do is stand your ground and you will be fine 100% of the time - it is always a mock charge as humans are too big of prey for cheetahs, so they don’t attack us. With lions, you can also stand your ground and you will “most likely” be ok. Lions will charge you in an act of aggression but hardly ever attack you unless you turn and run. So the key thing to remember is - whatever you do, don’t run. Now, with a leopard, if it charges you.... you’re dead. They don’t back down against other animals and are extremely aggressive. They are also the most powerful cat when you compare its strength relative to its size. It is significantly stronger than even a lion (although a lion would easily kill a leopard because they are 2-3 times bigger). A leopard can carry prey up to three times its own weight up a tree to eat it, which is nearly 600 pounds for a full grown male. That is one powerful cat.

The Last Supper - KFC

Surprisingly enough, the last meal with our parents was KFC. They flew out on a Sunday, so KFC was literally our only option (everything in Namibia is closed on Sundays except KFC apparently). Anyway, to our families - Thanks SO much for coming to visit and treating Lindsey and I to some of the best lodges in Namibia and all eight safaris. We had such a blast and I don’t think I have ever eaten better food. We both love you all and don’t worry, we will come home.... eventually :)

And then....

Bearded Kittens

Lindsey and I are almost done with our first FULL year of teaching in Namibia! The students are about to be done with their exams before the long December break, so it has been pretty relaxing for us the last few weeks. I will admit, due to the lack of exciting events recently, this post is probably on the weirder side of things I have written. But if you like pictures of beards and kittens and enjoy stories that seem to have no point, then maybe this is right up your alley. If not, don't loose faith, the posts next year are bound to get much weirder. 

Crazy Weather

The end of November marks the beginning of the rainy season for the northern part of Namibia. Typically, it rains hard for 3-4 months straight and then not a drop for the next 9 months, which is when the north turns back into a dry, sandy desert. Namibia is coming out of the worst drought in 30 years, so hopefully this rainy season will be a good one for the sake of all the people that rely on farming. Right now, the rain looks like it is on track to bring a good harvest since it has been raining nearly everyday.

The view of a storm rolling in from our backyard .

Lindsey testing out the water. She can't resist puddles.

Some of the storms here can get a little intense. I am sure it rains just as hard back in America, but since we have just a single sheet of metal over our heads (our roof), when it rains hard, the sound of the rain hitting our roof literally gets so loud that you can’t even talk inside our hut. The last time it really rained, we had a little river flowing through our yard. There were even some hippos that swam by.

Beard

There was a beard challenge amongst all of the male volunteers in our group which began a few months ago. Although the longest I had ever gone without shaving was previously two weeks, I reluctantly joined just to see what my attempt at a beard would look like. If you are ever going to let your looks go, the Peace Corps is the time to do it without being judged. Needless to say, I did not come close to winning the beard challenge since some of the other volunteers look like teen wolf and can grow a beard in like... 2 hours or something. Despite my utter defeat, my plan was to let the beard keep growing until our parents came in December, but my mind was quickly changed one day when I looked in a mirror and saw what resembled a pubescent lumberjack looking back at me. Also, I never thought the day would come when I would write an entire paragraph on my blog about a beard. I can now check that off my bucket list I suppose.

I felt as if this were the only way to smile with a mustache.

Propositions and Kittens

Things here always seem to happen in clumps. Clumps you say? What do you mean? Well, take last Sunday for example - a woman came by and wanted to give us a puppy and later a man also came by in the same day and wanted us to buy a turtle he found (unusual I know). I jokingly asked the man if the turtle can kill snakes to which his reply was, “No, but it is 200 years old and very funny.”  The turtle didn’t seem funny to me. He seemed a bit... reclusive? Get it? 

So we were offered two different animals on the same day, which is the only time anyone has ever offered us any living thing. If we would have accepted, we would currently have 4 cats, 1 dog, and 1 very funny turtle. Fortunately, we still just have the cats which will hopefully be given to other volunteers soon.

So I briefly mentioned in my last post that our cat had three kittens. They are about 6 weeks old now and are running around like crazy at the moment.

She made a similar face when I asked her to marry me.

What’s Next?

Some of you might be thinking - Tim, you were right, that was a weird post, but also - all you and Lindsey do is travel. I do agree that our blog highlights our travels as they are the most exciting times and it is where we get the best pictures. However, about 90% of our time is actually spent at our school and in Mayara. With that said, let me tell you about our next travels.

Well, December and January are going to be a bit crazy for Lindsey and I. The schools have a month and a half break, so we have a lot of time to travel yet again! Both sets of our parents, plus Lindsey’s brother and sister, are coming to visit in December and we are going to go on a tour across Namibia (we are traveling all together). It will be the first time we have seen them since we left Texas a year and a half ago and we are super excited to see them. Then, Lindsey and I are hopping on a bus to Cape Town the same day our parents leave Namibia to meet my brother and his wife. Then the four of us will travel up the eastern coast of South Africa and stay in hostels along some of the most pristine and untouched beaches in the world. We are also going scuba diving in an area that is rated one of the 10 best dive spots in the world. I will tell you all about it when we get back.

Peace,

Tim

World Map Project

World Map Project

A few posts ago I said that Lindsey and I were going to start painting a world map on the side of our school. Well, we actually finished a several weeks ago and here is the final product. 

I am sure some of you are wondering - how the heck did they do such a immaculate job painting this thing? Well, our school fortunately has a projector. So, we projected an image of the world up on the wall, traced it with the other teachers, and then painted it with everyone - the teachers and students. Each day we had students from each class come outside to help paint, and since the painting process took about two weeks, every student that wanted to help was able to. Our goal was to try to include everyone so that way there would be more “ownership” of the map, instead of it just being “something Timo and Lindsey did”. 

This is what it looked like before we started - a big improvement right?

Lindsey is inspecting to make sure we didn't "miss" any countries. We probably did......

This was also before I cut the mop off of my head.

Overall, the project was a huge success and we both think that everyone really enjoyed helping to make it. It is also nice to see something physically tangible that we have done since with teaching you can’t simply point a finger and say, “This is what I did in Mayara.” With the map however, it is easy to physically see a lasting impression that will be around for the foreseeable future.

Some of the students wanted to show off their jumping skills

The Mayara School Staff.

It was also great to interact with the students outside of class and get to know them on a  more informal level. Most of them are relatively close to age with us, and it was amazing  how much more willing they were to talk to us outside of class.

Swakopmund Marathon

Lindsey and I had so much fun running this race - probably our favorite race that we have ever run. The course started in Swakopmund and ran along the flat road between Swakopmund and Walvis Bay (that is the next city south of Swakopmund along the coast). On one side of the road was the ocean and the other was a vast expanse of giant, yellow sand dunes. It was quite a refresher from running down the dirt road in our village to say the least. The day of the race was actually quite dreary being that it was cloudy and cold, but it was perfect running weather.

There was a good number of Peace Corps Volunteers that came down to Swakop to either run or show support - there were 5 of us that ran the half and 6 that ran the full, and 7 more that were stationed at a water table along the course to hand out water to passing runners. One of the PCVs even took pictures of us as we passed.

My attempt at growing a beard is also clearly seen in this picture.

Have you ever seen a happier runner?

I remember the last time I mentioned this race I said that we were going to run the full marathon - well, unfortunately that didn’t happen. With our last vacation in August (where we went to Etosha and hiked the Naukluft Mountains), we literally were unable to run a single time over the course of a full month. One month of no running + one month before a marathon = no good. Hence, we both elected to run the half. 

Lindsey finished in 1 hour 44 minutes and I finished in 1 hour 35 minutes. Both times are significant personal bests. I guess the cool ocean air and the low altitude helped out. 

Mid-Service 

After the race in Swakopmund, our whole group had to go to Windhoek to meet with the Peace Corps Staff for our Mid-Service Conference. It was basically a medical check up to make sure that we are all still healthy. We all had dentist appointments and an appointment with the Peace Corps doctor for a regular check up. Summary - Lindsey and I are both healthy. It was also great to see the rest of our group again since we haven’t seen a lot of them since last December when we had our last official Peace Corps Conference. 

Thimbukushu 

Remember how I said I was making a Thimbukushu language manual? During the Mid-Service Conference, I met with several of the Peace Corps staff to talk about the manual and what is going to happen with it. Well, they love it and want it to be the standard language manual that is given to all volunteers when they first arrive for training. It is also going to be translated into all of the other languages in Namibia, so it is not just for Thimbukushu, but for about 7 other languages as well. I also recommended that we include audio .mp3s to go along with the book so people can actually learn how to say the words instead of just reading them, which is also going to happen. So hopefully before the next group of volunteers arrive, the new set of language manuals with audio will be ready to go. And if you are future volunteer that is reading this before you arrive in Namibia - you’re welcome :) 

Mayara

The 10th graders at our school are currently taking their final exams which will essentially determine their future if they pass or fail. We only have three more weeks of teaching until the rest of the school starts their exams. (10th graders take their exams early to give extra time to the graders. The exams have to be sent off to Windhoek to be graded by the Ministry of Education to make sure there is no “grade changing” or anything on behalf of the teachers to try to improve a schools pass rate. The grading process takes a long time since they don’t use scantrons and they have to grade each paper for each student in 10th grade for the entire country by hand.) Other breaking news - it is getting really, really hot again, our cat just had three kittens, Lindsey’s iPhone vanished, and termites caused a big section of our reed fence to fall over. 

Peace,

Tim

Ethosha Game Park and The Naukluft Mountains

Lindsey and I just got back from our two week long vacation. It was amazing, adventurous, and extremely tiring, so we are happy to be back in our hut and sleeping in an actual bed.

Etosha Game Park

The first rhino we stumbled across

Etosha is the biggest game park in Namibia and is claimed to be one of the best parks to see animals in the entire world. Also, viewing game is better in the dry season (which it is now) because animals have to congregate at the few remaining waterholes, and Namibia happens to be right in the middle of the worst drought to hit the country in 30 years. So, it was really dry out there.  

A group of four of us rented a car from a nearby town called Tsumeb, and drove ourselves around on the dirt roads inside the park. We saw and got autographs from the entire cast of The Lion King and pretty much every other animal you could think of. We were really hoping to see at least one rhino in the park (especially since they are endangered and actually extinct in a lot of African countries because of poaching) and we certainly got lucky - at the very first waterhole that we went to, a rhino walked up within 30 seconds and was followed by another rhino about a minute later. In fact, we saw so many rhinos throughout the few days that we were there, it got to the point where we would just point out the window and say, “rhino” as we drove by, not even slowing down to get a closer look. Jealous? You should be :)

We camped at this lodge called Halali, which is in the center of the park and has a pretty decent waterhole. There are just three lodges inside the park that all have either real or artificial waterholes situated just outside the lodge to attract the animals at all times of the day. You are allowed to walk to the waterholes (just the ones that are on the lodge grounds - everywhere outside the lodge you are supposed to stay in your car) and you can sit and watch for as long as you want as animals come and go as they please. The viewing area of the waterhole at Halali was up on rocks and fenced in to protect you from the animals, so it is not like you are just standing nearby, “hiding” behind a tree. 

Elephants, elephants, elephants - I never thought I would see so many elephants. There was one waterhole where we literally saw over 50 elephants at the same time. They are by far the most fun animals to watch. They roll around in the water, spray water all over themselves, and then throw dirt on their wet skin to help cool them off. The waterholes for them are multipurpose - they serve as drinking fountains, baths, and toilets, all in one convenient location. An interesting combination if you ask me.

There were about 50 elephants at this waterhole.

Elephants throwing dirt on themselves after rolling around in the waterhole.

In the middle of the park is The Etosha Pan - an immense salt pan that has been dry for centuries but was once an ancient lake. It apparently turns into a shallow lagoon for a few weeks every year during rainy season, but when we were there is was just dried, cracked clay for miles in every direction. If you ever wanted to know what “nothing” looks like, you should go there. It is hard to tell where the ground ends and where the sky begins since they both have a whitish, grey tint to them.

This is what "nothing" looks like on the Etosha Pan.

On our last day in the park, we came around a turn and spotted a hyena running down the center of the road - straight at us. We honestly thought it was a lion at first because it was so big. I had no idea how big hyenas are, but when you see one up close - man, those things are not to be trifled with. He ran right up in front of our car, posed for a few photos, and continued running past us on whatever mission he was on. We only saw one pride of lions that were walking through a field in the distance, but unfortunately we didn’t see any males. Maybe next time.

Hyenas looks like demon-faced dogs. And why is he smiling at us?

These are some of the lions we spotted walking in the distance.

The Naukluft Mountains

The second part of our journey was an 8 day hike through the Naukluft Mountains. The hike is apparently one of the hardest in Africa, and some of the people we met along the way were even claiming it was the “hardest hike in the southern hemisphere of the world.” I have no idea if that is true or not, but hey, I’ll believe them for now I guess.

Our group before we started the hike. 

There were 8 Peace Corps Volunteers on the trek, including Lindsey and I, and we all carried all of our own food, clothes, and gear for the whole trip. Our meals consisted of instant porridge (it is kind of like cream of wheat that you just mix with water) for breakfast and dinner, and tuna in a tortilla for lunch. And lots of peanut butter. Too much peanut butter. 

Each day we walked, climbed, ascended, and descended around 10 miles of pretty rugged terrain and everyone’s feet were definitely hurting from the daily abuse. Our feet actually faired better than almost everyone else because Lindsey and I wore running shoes as opposed to hiking boots. We didn’t have a single blister until the end of day 5, and everyone else’s feet were mangled with blisters after the first day. One of the guys even elected to wear he sandals for the rest of the trip to avoid more blisters. So I ask - what is the point of hiking boots besides being heavy and giving your blisters? 

Lindsey and I on our way up one of the chains.

Lindsey nearly had a panic attack up this set of chains. She climbed up like a champion though.

Oh hey Rob.

Each night we stayed in “shelters”, which more or less consisted of a metal roof with a 4 foot high stone wall around it and a dirt floor. There were different water pumps at each shelter everyday that were pretty old school. Some examples include - pumping out the water by aggressively turning a giant wheel for about 2 minutes just to get any water to come out, lowering a bucket down into an actual well, and several hand pumps that took two people to operate. It was all great fun though. Well, it was all fun until it came time to sleep. 

Playing cards after a long days hike. That is also what our typical shelter looked like.

This was the first actual backpacking excursion that we had ever been on so we didn’t really know what to expect, which is where we made a fatal flaw - we did not bring (mainly because we don’t have) sleeping mats. We slept on the ground the entire time in Etosha and Naukluft. Needless to say, we didn’t get the best sleep at night for the entire 2 weeks we were gone, which made it hard to get up every morning. If we ever do another hike like this one, sleeping mats will be packed before anything else. Also, the nights were literally freezing at Naukluft. During the day, the weather was absolutely beautiful. The temperature hovered around 75 degrees during the day with a slight breeze - it was great. But the second the sun drifted behind the surrounding mountains, the temperature would plummet. We brought some warm clothes, but I never expected it to be that cold out there at night. There were two nights in particular that the wind was blowing so hard that the noise alone made it difficult to sleep, not to mention the cold. The hike was awesome. The sleeping was not.

The rhino with anger issues.

More rhinos? Yes, we did run into a rhino. It is more accurate to say the rhino almost ran into us. So, I spent weeks prior to the trip convincing my mom not be worried about this hike because there were no wild animals inside the Naukluft Park - well, I was wrong. There are plenty of leopards, rhinos, baboons, and every hoofed animal in Namibia inside that park. Oops. We came across a rhino that was standing on the side of the slope next to us on the fourth day of our hike - maybe 300 feet away. We all freaked out and grabbed our cameras, amazed that we actually stumbled across a wild rhino while we were simply walking by. However, about thirty seconds later we all freaked out again, this time much more openly and for a different reason, as he began running down the side of the mountain straight for us. Our first instinct was to run, but we happened to be with another group doing the hike that day from South Africa (I suppose they knew what they were talking about), and they immediately yelled at us to “FREEZE!” We all stopped in our tracks, and the rhino suddenly turned 90 degrees and ran off into the distance. Talk about having a jacked heart rate after that - it was simply terrifying. Everything was good with the wildlife after that. Part of the group spotted a leopard one day but the guy that saw it first yelled, “Tim!” (because he knew that I was hoping to see one) and promptly scared it away before I got a look at it. All 8 of us on the trek finished with nothing more than a few scrapes, bruises, and blisters on our feet.

School Starting

The third and final term of school this year started last Tuesday for the students. Lindsey and I are back to the usual routine of school and teaching and everything is going great so far.