SOUTHERN AFRICA: DAY 3 NAMIBIA

Waking up in the Wild of Africa

And watching antelopes graze from the inside our tent

Opening my eyes to the first light of the day, I could hear animals in the grass. I lift my head and see a herd of impala antelopes just meters away from our car. They got chased around by some baboons in the nearby trees.

Now, this is paradise to me. I don’t know what meaning paradise has to you but I’ll take waking up in the wilderness surrounded by wildlife anytime over a beach resort on an island.

Lifting now the mosquito net and opening the windows of our rooftop tent I can do game watching while lying in bed. More and more impala run past us. And then I can see the monkeys as well.

Birds are flying above our heads singing melodies in the tall trees. A light breeze is blowing and I am inhaling the fresh air. The water behind us is calm. The hippos seem to have disappeared but I'm sure they will be back. I heard one of them walking below us at night.

It's time for tea and breakfast. Let's get this day started.

While the water was on the gas stove, I quickly started up the drone to get one more shot of this amazing piece of paradise.

See below. The herd of antelopes that walked past our camp in the morning.

I have traveled across Namibia for the past 8 years but had never even heard of this park just before doing some research for this trip.

Mudumu Narional Park is certainly one of those hidden gems far off the beaten trails. With as little as 5 US$ which was the park fee, we could do endless game drives and camp inside this wild place.

We were contemplating staying another night but decided to head further as we were excited about exploring more unknown lands.

Leaving Mudumu National Park behind us, we now hit the main road driving toward the border to Botswana. We certainly had meats, vegetables and fruits inside our car which we weren't allowed to cross the border with but thanks to some talking David did with the lady at customs, she didn't bother checking further than our (first) fridge and let us pass.

The crossing was very easy and quick all in all. On the Namibian side, we just stamped out our passports and were good to go. Crossing the bridge over No Man’s Land we passed the area where David put fiberglass internet lines up about 15 years ago.

At immigration in Botswana, we were asking if I could get a multiple entry visa when the lady told us I don't need a visa. I'm sure I did my research and was convinced I did need a visa but certainly didn't argue as we saved this way 50 US$.

We then had to pay road tax, car insurance and the temporary import permit for the vehicle before we got waved through by the said lady at customs.

Also, I must say, our vehicle is pretty packed and no officer feels like going through all our stuff during lunchtime in the African heat. You just have to plan your crossings I'd say.

Not even half an hour later, we arrived at Mvandi View, the first official campsite we'd stay in on this trip. Here we had a hot water shower, a bar and a swimming pool with a view across the Chobe floodplain.

The elephants didn’t come for a visit but we could see zebra herds grazing next to cattle.

A Black Winged Stilt was fishing for snacks in the waterhole by the camp. He was busy the entire afternoon.

And a Red-billed Hornbill flew across the floodplain to rest on the dead tree in front of the lodge.

He then flew down from the branch to also have lunch feeding on worms and insects in the lawn next to the pool.

This is where my storytelling stops as we went back to camp and enjoyed the rest of the evening with a fire and some beers.

We put up lots of fairy lights not just to mark poles and pins to not trip over them but also to have a lovely ambiance.

"Not in doing what you like, but in liking what you do is the secret of happiness." - J. M. Barrie

More about our trip through Southern Africa:

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