Today was what we called on our Serengeti trip, an admin day; washing, shopping, repacking, restocking, checking the routes ahead and so on.
Swakopmund, sandwiched between the cold Atlantic and the Namib dunes, has a distinctly German hospitality and flavor and is definitely the best place in Namibia for an admin day. Our first stop was the Namib butchery for meat and biltong, then onto Woolworths – a disappointing food section as they had no fresh produce but we still had Pick n’ Pay, Super Spar and the German Supermarket to check out. Shopping was the easy part, we then headed back to Lifestyle Apartments car park for the big pack up. The meat into the freezer in our vehicle, the fresh produce into the Purchase’s fridge - it's always a fight between the boys (beers) and the girls (lettuce) on a trip as to who gets fridge space. The non perishables we store in black ammo boxes.
The easiest part about this admin day was the washing. We put two weeks worth of dirty, desert sanded, clothes in bags and sent them to the apartment reception in the morning and fetched them the evening. Some little fairy had been very kind and done it for us – we haven't got the bill yet but whatever the cost, it will be worth it.
Admin done, it was time for lunch and exploring the town (ie shopping for Al & I). We had a bite to eat at a coffee shop (I guess it must have been German as the guys had bratwurst and sauerkraut). The town is a colonial remnant of Germany and the people are a quirky mix of German, Namibian and tourists, predominantly German – who must feel right at home. I get the feel that Swakop is predominantly a holiday town; with it’s seaside promenade holiday homes, colonial-era buildings and lots of hotel construction.
Al and I had to wait till 2 to start shopping as most of the shops close over lunch hour. Then we walked the town flat, I was exhausted by the end, not being as seasoned as Al when it comes to this particular exercise – Kirst you would have been proud of me. Gray went off to arrange permits for the areas we will be entering on the next leg of our trip. Tony went paddling, he found the only 2 paddlers in Swakop, arranged a surf ski, and set off for an 1 ½ paddle in the cold sea. We headed off to the beach around 4:30 to watch him come in and I was freezing just standing there. We have had overcast, miserable weather since we arrived. Gray had been on a drinks stock up at the bottle store and had bought some very interesting Namibian drinks. We sipped on Jimmy Jaggas - fruit spritzers and some delicious Orange hops drink.
We went to the Tug, a restaurant at the seaside, for dinner. Best seafood ever and highly recommended. Another great day in Namibia.
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