Tsolido Hills

Often while driving around in South Africa and Namibia, we heard that there was San Bushmen rock art nearby. But usually this required a whole day’s trip, or a large effort or expense to hire a guide, and so we always passed up the opportunity. It seemed to be everywhere, but always just out of reach. We had started to worry we would leave without ever observing some of the oldest art in human history. But then we passed near Tsolido Hills. Honestly, this probably isn’t somewhere we should have gone in our small Kia, as the last few miles were definitely for 4WD vehicles only.

But it was too good to pass up, and thankfully, our little Kia that could pulled through. Two villages sit at the bottom near the hills and local villagers act as guides for a small fee. Four hills wouldn’t be particularly exceptional except for where they rise – out of the flat, flat Kalahari plains. And so they stand out dramatically, so much so the Bushmen thought the world began at Tsolido Hills. The largest and most jagged they called male, the more gently curved (and one that supported people) the female and the two smaller the children. And given the sacredness of the hills to the people, they covered them in rock paintings. Here’s some of our favorites.

A whole lot of drawings together.

These were far under a rock and are called the dancing penises. I guess its pretty accurate.

Giraffes always look comical.

Two very large and impressive looking rhinos.

A penguin and a whale? In the middle of the Kalahari? They think the the nomadic bushmen may have wandered this far down toward Cape Town to know about them.

It’s hard to describe how it feels to stand there in front of something drawn 3000 years ago. For me, it wasn’t so much spiritual, which is usually how these things are described, but more of a feeling of the scope and uniqueness of humanity. Here were people, 3000 years ago, that despite living in such a difficult environment to survive (or perhaps because of it) felt a need to use their energy for these creative endeavors. Whether it was to appease or thank the gods or simply needing an outlet for creative energy, it speaks to the the innate way our minds work. It was really fascinating to just stare at one bushman’s legacy. I wish I can leave something that lasts 3000 years.

Landscapes of Namibia

Southern Namibia is pretty much utterly devoid of people. But it sure is full of landscapes and amazing scenery. Here are some of our favorite pictures from Fish River Canyon, the Quiver Tree Forest, Aus and Sossusvlei.

Life North of the Red Line

Between Tsumeb, where we spent the night after our last day in Etosha, and Rundu, which is near the beginning of the Caprivi Strip, the tiny northeastern part of Namibia that squeezes in between Angola and Botswana, we crossed the Red Line. This line, marked by a veterinary control fence, prevents the north-south crossing of animals, or the passing of animals from the northern communal subsistence lands to the commercial cattle farms of the south. The goal of this fence is to protect the southern animals, which are sold for meat both inside and outside of Namibia, from instances of foot-and-mouth and other diseases.

For us, the fence wasn’t so interesting in regards to its role in keeping cattle disease-free, as much as it amazed us how different life was on the two different sides of the fence. South of the fence Namibia was either wide-open spaces that seemed to be occupied by absolutely no one or small cities that were generally of a fairly modern (and sometimes quite German) design with supermarkets, banks, clothing shops, and Western-style housing (or shanties).

North of the border, Namibia suddenly and very dramatically became Africa as most of us non-Africans probably picture it. We entered a world where life centered around the village, and where villages consisted of rondavels constructed of mud and clay with thatched roofs and small enclosures for animals. The villages were surrounded by stick fences. A communal water spicket was usually also available, and women and children walking from the faucet to their homes with large containers of water balanced on their heads was a common sight.

Animals–goats, donkeys, and huge cows with prominent horns, roamed freely, grazing on the side of the road, or standing stubbornly in the road daring you to approach. Occasionally a small boy with a stick walked alongside them, doing his best to herd them.

In between villages, maize, sorghum, and other crops grew. On occasion, you’d catch a glimpse of women grinding up the maize into meal, using stone pots and a stick.

We were a novelty it seemed. Though we were driving on a paved national highway, every single person we passed stopped and stared at us. All the children would wave frantically and burst into huge smiles when we waved back. Some tried to race our car; others yelled at us to look at the snake they had caught. Though life was certainly not easy, there was obviously much joy.

Outside some of the villages, crafts had been set out, apparently to sale to the few tourists like us who passed by. There were enourmous clay pots and giant masks, wooden airplanes and helicoptors, and carved animal figurines. Wanting a closer look, we stopped at one of the larger stands, which seemd to be manned by absolutely no one. The village was perfectly quiet. But as we all know, appearances can be deceiving, and as soon as we pulled over and got out, seemingly the entire village emerged to stare at us. We moved through the goods, checking out the various items for sale, and greeting the people, most of whom just continued to stare. Jeff, finding a cheetah he just had to have, began to bargain with the guy selling it, and I moved off to say hello to some children who had gathered in a group to gawk.

As soon as I spoke to one girl, all the others moved in, and I was soon surrounded by kids. They told me their names and ages, where they went to school and what grade they were in. We talked about football and netball, and they stared, stared, stared at me.

Finally, they asked me a question: How old are you? This apparently interested the parents too, who were gathered in a cluster a bit further away, as they yelled to their children to find out what my answer had been. I could only wonder what they thought. At 28, I was certainly older than many of them, yet I did not have any of the things that they, at my age, would have: a hut (or house) of my own, children, the weariness of having to physically work hard every day. My life was pretty much as incomprehensible to them as theirs was to me. But we shared a smile, some laughs, and I think, a wonder at the beautiful strangeness of this thing we call life.

We Saw Cheetahs! (And More Lions Too)

When we entered Etosha, there were two big cats we’d yet to see: cheetahs and leopards. Both are notoriously hard to spot. In fact, one guide at Etosha said that in eight years he had yet to see a cheetah. And leopards, while the most numerous cat in Africa, are hard to find because they are primarily nocturnal and spend their days in the top of trees. Well, remember how I said we were lucky? We were at Etosha. On our second morning, we went out in search of cats and spotted three cheetahs prowling across a field. We followed them a bit and saw them scratch up a tree before heading off where no road ran.

Then on our third and final morning, we were out and about, this time in search of leopards specifically, when we spotted two more cheetahs. We watched them prowl a field, and then we watched a bit incredulously as they were actually scared off by a herd of oryx.

Unfortunately, we never did find that leopard, but we did end up spotting four more lions in addition to the one we saw at the watering hole.

An Update on us

So you’ve been seeing these random pictures we’ve been putting on the site without much extra content to go with them. Great. But we’ve been chugging along on our trip this whole while, its just we find it very hard to get long enough and good enough internet to really share the experience with all of you. Don’t worry, we’ve got lots of posts in progress and plan to upload them when we can, but until then, you’ll just have to be patient.

So let’s bring you all up to speed on us. You may have noticed that in our last few posts we were in Etosha National Park in Northern Namibia. Physically, we’re pretty much across Africa from that now. From Cape Town, we headed north through Namibia, through Etosha, dipped down into the Okavango Delta, crossed back into Namibia to head across the Caprivi Strip. We then soaked ourselves and flew over Victoria Falls before driving the length of Botswana back to Johannesburg and the arduous task of giving up our car and catching a bus to Maputo, Mozambique, where we currently are. The lack of freedom these days is very noticable.

We’ve got great posts on all of these places (and pictures too!) that we’ll upload as we can. They may be out of order, but now that you know the official route you can piece it together yourselves. And cross your fingers for some good internet soon along the way!

Where to from here you ask? Excellent question. We’ve been wondering the same thing too for a little while now. As always seems to be the case in Africa, our brilliant plans laid out by our guidebook have failed miserably and we are in the process of piecing together buses to get up to Malawi, then north into Tanzania, across to Dar Es Salaam and then north to meet my parents in Kampala at the beginning of June. We’ll see if we make it.

Giraffe Porn

If you look closely, you’ll understand the title. We witnessed a whole lot of foreplay going on between these two giraffes. It amounted to rubbing necks, ramming heads into butts, and walking in a lot of circles. As far as the actual action goes, well, we didn’t see anything. A few times it seemed as if they were trying but couldn’t quite figure it out. And as the sun was setting, we couldn’t wait around forever but had to race on to camp to make it before the gates closed. Maybe in the end that’s all they were waiting for…a little privacy.

Etosha’s Watering Holes

Etosha is Namibia’s premier game park. Stretching along the edge of the enormous Etosha pan, a salt flat that occasionally fills with water after the rains, Etosha is spectacularly beautiful, with views seeming to stretch forever across broad plains. Morning and evening light are spectacular (though not long lasting because in open space like that the sun is up quickly and down just as fast). But the real highlight of Etosha is its camps. No, the sites aren’t as nice as those at Kruger (though plenty fine), and the amenities aren’t nearly as extensive as those at South African parks (though prices are certainly higher), but it’s all made up for by the watering holes situated at each camp.

The campsite watering holes are situated on the edge of the camps and are partially ringed by seating areas, from where campsite visitors can safely view the wildlife that gathers there. And with Etosha not having too many watering holes, those that do exist are usually pretty frequented. Best of all, however, is the fact that the waterholes are floodlit at night, meaning that campers get the rare opportunity to view nocturnal wildlife and their activities.

We had our greatest success on our first night at the watering hole at Okaukuejo, which we also found to be the nicest site. (When we get rich, we’re definitely going back and splurging on one of the chalets with private balconies overlooking the watering hole!). Settling in at the hole after dinner, we first spotted two rhinos hanging out on the edge of the light. We also saw a number of jackals, running all around the hole and yapping like crazy, as well as many owls and other large birds.

But the coolest sighting was that of a lioness hanging out at the hole and going down for a drink every now and then.

At one point, while she was resting under a bush, a lone zebra ventured down to the hole.

This peaked the lioness’s interest and she began to stalk toward the vulnerable zebra. But before she could get close enough to launch an attack, the zebra caught wind of her and quickly scuttled off, the lioness not following. It was pretty exciting to witness even though there wasn’t a kill.

Not too long after that the lioness retreated from the hole. It seems she went just out of sight, to an area where the rest of her pride was located as we could for the rest of the night hear them roaring, usually in response to the annoying barking of the jackals. We checked back a few more times hoping they would come out from their hiding spots to visit the hole again, but our luck wasn’t ever again as great as it was at first. But really, we can’t complain. I’d say that all in all we’re pretty darn lucky.

Boulder Beach Penguins

Though most people associate penguins with Antarctica and other cold, icy landscapes, our experiences with penguins have been in places that are not only not snowy but are, in fact, downright hot. Most recently we visited the penguins of Boulder Beach, South Africa, just down the peninsula from Cape Town. On this beach, thousands of African penguins, also known as jackass penguins for their characteristic braying sound, live. we were fortunate enough to visit during their molting and breeding season, which meant that the majority of the penguins were up on land rather than hunting for food out at sea. With boardwalks that lead right through their habitat and with a few of the penguins venturing out of protected territory and right onto the bathing beaches, we were able to get an up close look at penguin life.


Casting a shadow on the boulders for which the beach is named.


A little self admiration.


Contemplating life.


Venturing outside the bounds…and wondering how the heck to get back in.


Hoping that there is safety in numbers.

But sometimes losing the battle to the gulls.

Penguin father settling in to keep the eggs warm immediately after his partner laid them.

Sharing nest space with the kiddos.

Strutting their stuff on the white sands.

A Bit of Shameless Self Promotion

So as you may have noticed when checking out our comments, I have a publicist. No, unfortunately our blog hasn’t been “discovered.” We haven’t landed any sweet book or movie deals (though if you’re thinking of offering, we’re always listening). “My” publicist works for Moon, a guidebook company you may be familiar with and for whom I spent most of 2008 writing a hiking guide. That guide, Moon Take a Hike Washington DC, is now available in bookstores. (Or else, it will be very soon, as it’s official publication date is May 1, 2009.) So, what, why are you still reading? You should be on your way to your nearest bookstore, or simply typing Amazon.com into your browser, and buying my book right this stinking moment. If you live in or near DC and like to hike, buy the book. If someone you love, like, sort of kind of know, or may one day wish to meet, lives in or near DC, buy the book. If you have never been to DC but may one day go, buy the book. If you don’t think you’ll ever set foot in DC and/or hate the great outdoors, buy the book anyways. Why? Because I wrote it. Because it’s good. Because you know me (or at least know my blog). Because it has nice photos. Because I worked really, really hard on it. Because I spent practically every single weekend between March and August hiking hundreds and hundreds of miles, sleeping in campsites without showers, and eating a lot of peanut butter sandwiches. Because this is one of those rare guidebooks where the author actually walked every step she wrote about and didn’t just visit a site or two and call it good. And because, if lots (and lots and lots and lots) of them sell, I may see a penny or two in royalties, and hey, a girl’s got to eat (and preferably not just peanut butter!).