Namibia Educational 

  • by Jana Meyer
  • 30 Sept, 2019

Visiting Namibia is always amazing – we almost know every inch of this country, but somehow it surprises us every time and has always been a true adventure.

Alicia, Karo and Mirjam started their educational in Windhoek. Read more about their experience here:

Driving out of Windhoek is always amazing: you pass stunning landscapes and beautiful sceneries. The nature in Windhoek is really unique.

Directly north of Windhoek (70km) lies the industrial town of Okahandja, known as the 'Garden Town of Namibia' – we stopped there to get some delicious Biltong and Landjäger (you can still see the German influence).

Several major companies are based here and it is fast becoming a Windhoek 'sleeper town', and not just because of it's excellent infrastructure. Many travellers find Okahandja just the place to take a break on their travels through the country, especially if they don't find the need to go on to the capital city. One of the towns lesser-known claims to fame is that it has no traffic lights, so you better be an experienced driver!

We made it in time for a quick city tour in Swakopmund before we went on our living desert tour. 

The city tour is a perfect blend of remarkable history, architecture, culture and natural beauty as you are taken through the streets of Swakopmund and then onto a living desert tour. 

The ‘Living Desert Tour’ is a unique 4x4 adventure which specialises in bringing the desert to life. The coastal dune belt may seem barren and lifeless to many people, but in fact it is alive with a variety of little desert adapted animals, which are able to survive on the life-giving fog which consistently rolls in from the cold Atlantic Ocean. It was incredible to watch these little creatures.

Afterwards we drove to Palmwag Lodge, which surroundings harbour the famous desert elephant, the rare desert adapted black rhino, giraffe, zebra, gemsbok and many other wild animal species. We had an amazing game drive with several amazing sightings and stayed there for one night.

After breakfast we had a long day of driving ahead of us, but the beautiful landscape changes were absolutely worth it! On our way, we had a few sight inspections in Khorixas and Opuwo until we arrived at Omarunga Lodge, which is situated close to the Epupa Falls.

There are several activities around the Epupa Falls like bird watching (ca. 311 species), sundowners at the falls, rafting a scenic drive to Himba Village. The proud yet friendly Himba are noted for their unusual sculptural beauty, enhanced by intricate hairstyles and decorations. Their skins rubbed with red ochre, they seem to be forgotten by the rest of the world, but this is only as a result of their extreme isolation and conservative way of life. Find out more about this ancient tribe.

Himba Village

We did a Nature walk with our guide along the Kunene river, where one can discover an abundance of birdlife, and possibly spot one of the many resident Nile crocodiles. The Kunene River is one of Namibia’s five perennial rivers. Nonetheless the water level changes depending on the annual rain falls so that the natural spectacle Epupa Falls is subject to seasonal fluctuations. The best months to view the falls are April and May.

The Kunene River plummets down a 40 metres deep gorge at the Epupa Falls close to the nearby village of Epupa. In the Herero language Epupa means “falling water”.

We could hear the falls but we only saw them when we went out for our sundowner later that day. The Falls are in walking distance (300m) from the lodge, indeed a very stunning location with stunning atmosphere and views onto Angola. Simply amazing!

The next day we had breakfast right at the Epupa Falls – it was amazing and we never had such a beautiful view for breakfast before. This was really a once in a lifetime experience!

After breakfast we had to leave this beautiful piece of land (but we will come back for sure) and drove along the river (with Angola on the other side) to Ruacana. At one time, Ruacana Falls was a guaranteed wonder, though all that changed thanks to Angola’s Calueque Dam, 20km upstream, and NamPower’s Ruacana power plant. On the rare occasion when there’s a surfeit of water, Ruacana returns to its former glory. In wetter years, one can almost say it rivals Victoria Falls.

The perfect breakfast with the perfect view!
Sundowner at Epupa Falls
Sundowner at Epupa Falls

It was a stunning road and a recommendation to do a Namibia Roundtrip so we continued on our way to the north of Etosha and had a beautiful day in the park.

We stayed the night in the south of Etosha at Etotongwe Lodge in Outjo and the next day it was already time to say goodbye and to fly home. It was a short, but intense time in Namibia but we are always happy to spend a few days in this beautiful country and discover hidden gems like the Epupa Falls.

For requests or quotes please get in touch by e-mail at "info@amazing-africa.co.za".

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