Exploring the South (Part 1)

My evacuation from the north continues which of course has had its pros and cons. It is difficult having to walk away from my work not knowing when I will be able to return and if I will be able to easily pick up where I left off. The evacuation has been extended for another week due to continued rains and an expected surge of water from Angola. With this extension comes the realization that I will not be able to continue my work until the middle of May. The school term ends shortly which means village life quiets down and leaves me with next to nothing to do. So come the middle of May when school starts again, I will be left with the burden of getting myself out of vacation mode and back into work mode; something I am not looking forward to.

However, being down in the south has been wonderful because it has given me the chance to visit places over the weekends that I would have maybe never been able to see. That of course has been the pro of being evacuated from the north into the desert south. Although brief, my weekend trips have been amazing and have only strengthened my fascination with this country. As is par for the course, hitchhiking has been the mode of transport and this has proven to be a highlight of travel in this country due to the fascinating people you meet. I have been taken aback by the diversity of this country; from the people and cultures to the landscapes and nature.

First stop: Luderitz. This small coastal town is like nothing I have ever experienced before. Luderitz is in the heart of diamond country and is surrounded by restricted diamond mining areas. Entering the town is fascinating as the highway turns from canyon country, to harsh moonlike landscapes, to giant golden dunes, to finally the rocky morbid outcrop of land that is Luderitz. More like a Nova Scotian fishing hamlet than an African coastal town, Luderitz is quite possibly like nowhere else on this planet. There is a harsh loneliness to the place punctuated by the cold persistent wind, empty colonial looking streets, lack of vegetation, and frigid water crashing on the rocks. But this is what makes Luderitz so wonderful. After 8 months of heat, I was thrilled to finally have to bundle up, put the hood over my ears, and blow into my hands to keep them warm. A very unique African experience!

The streets of Luderitz; not the typical African street congested with food vendors, goats, and general chaos. I have never been to Germany but as the name implies, this town has a very German feel.

Luderitz really feels that it is stuck in the middle of nowhere. While here, I couldn’t help but wonder why in the world the first explorers of this area ever decided to land their ships here and continue their journey inland. If I landed my boat here, I would give it about 5 minutes thought before turning the boat right around getting the heck out of here. There is a very dark feel to this area with the arid Namib Desert dunes seen in the distance and a surrounding landscape not much different than that of the moon.

Despite the melancholy feel to Luderitz it is an amazing place to experience. If you like harsh landscapes and harsh conditions, then Luderitz might just be the place for you. There is a lot to appreciate here.

Just a few kilometers outside of Luderitz is the ghost town of Kolmanskop. This town was once a booming diamond mining town until a greater concentration of diamonds was found south of here in what is now Oranjemund. Since then the town has fallen victim to the sands of time, literally.

One can’t help but get an eerie feeling walking through these old abandoned buildings. The dunes have been slowly taking over the buildings leaving the first floor in some of the houses filled half-way with sand.

It is amazing how intact everything is. We were told that people were ordered to leave the town immediately, leaving behind their baking bread in the oven. I guess that is the nature of working in the very sensitive diamond industry. Walking through the old houses you can’t help but make yourself feel at home.