Namibia in a Day...Walvis Bay

Luderitz... the Town We Missed

We spent only one day in Namibia. The day before, our ship had anchored at the port at Lüderitz but after an hour of unsuccessful attempts to tender the immigration officers onboard and with increasing winds and waves predicted, the Captain gave up as he had in Recife and Easter Island... life on the high seas. We had been looking forward to seeing this small coastal town located between the surf of the Atlantic and the dunes of the Namib Desert, but all we saw was a beautiful Easter sunrise. With its dirt roads and German colonial architecture, it apparently hasn’t changed much since the Germans left in 1915. Locals had planned to be stationed all over the village to teach us about Lüderitz on this Easter Sunday.

Some passengers had planned to go into the desert to see wild horses. We signed up to see the ghost town of Kolmanskop, once a vibrant and wealthy diamond town. When the mines dried up and there was nothing left to do, everyone left and the stately German buildings are now being swallowed up by sand. Missing this port of call was disappointing for us, but for this small town, it was a big economic loss. So sadly, with anchors away, we sailed on to Walvis Bay and consoled ourselves with chocolate!

Easter Treats around the Ship

First a few facts…Namibia, population 2.5 million, is the world’s most thinly populated country with two-thirds of its land the Namib Desert. Cattle raised in the far north are exported along with minerals and fish, although its waters are being fished out. Otherwise, everything is imported.

Typical Sign in Walvis Bay

 Schools are taught in English, the official language, but most people speak Afrikaans, German, or one of the 16 native languages recognized by the government. These many groups are proud of their individual cultures as well as their united country.  So, as one would expect, signage around town can be a little complicated...English, Afrikaans, and in this case, Oshiwambo.

Six Miles from Town are the Dunes of Namibia...Dune #7

And now some history…just like so many other African countries, Namibia changed European hands many times…Portuguese, Dutch, German, English, and then South African. Its first true European colonization was by Germany in the late 1800s. Conflicts with the Herero tribe began over land and finally in 1905, the Germans nearly exterminated them by forcing them westward into the desert and shooting them if they attempted to return. Somewhere between 24,000-100,000 were killed along with thousands from other local tribes.

During WWI the South African Union (under Britain but self-governing) defeated the German military and when the war ended, the League of Nations mandated Namibia to the United Kingdom, under the administration of South Africa. Namibia became South Africa’s fifth province, called South West Africa until 1990 when it gained its independence…except for Walvis Bay which South Africa refused to give up until 1994 when South Africa had too many problems of its own to deal with.

Namibia remains closely tied financially to South Africa. It depends on South Africa for imports including electricity. With the current electric contract ending in September, and with SA’s increasing electrical shortages, Namibia is expecting load shedding (daily outages) so is hoping to start using solar although there is no money for this. Again, we learned that most mines are owned by foreign countries. China owns uranium, granite, and marble mines. This has not helped Namibia’s economy since China brings in its own workers and exports only to China unlike the other investors…a familiar story. As in other countries we have visited, there are underfunded public hospitals where care is not good, yet for those who can afford private insurance, there is excellent care in private hospitals. 

The Deep Water Port of Walvis Bay

By 6AM the next morning we successfully docked in Walvis Bay, Africaans for “Whale” Bay (the cold waters were plankton rich and whales abound). It has Namibia’s only deep-water port. Lines formed by 6:30 AM for onboard face to face screenings with Namibian immigration services, and as always, Viking made it as smooth as possible.

Knowing that Namibia is one of the most arid desert lands in the world, we dressed appropriately in light clothing, not leaving any skin exposed. What we didn’t know was that this town only gets 100 sunny days a year as the cold ocean currents come up from the south bringing 57-degree waters to the dry desert sand dunes. A dense fog rolls in almost every night and well into the morning. Typically this burns off by noon, then reappears in the late afternoon, and so it did. 

The Lagoon's Migratory Inhabitants

Beautiful Homes Next to Lagoon

Our included tour was unique and so much fun. Our first stop was the Walvis Bay Lagoon on the south side of town, now part of national parkland. The lagoon was formed by an ever-present and growing sandbar a half mile into the ocean, the waters averaging three feet deep. In the winter the lagoon is home to 80,000 wading birds that migrate in the summer to Kenya to breed. Hundreds of flamingos, rare white pelicans, and cormorants were feeding in the shallow water. Shivering as we snapped our pictures, the cool winds and fog off the bay penetrated our summer clothing.















Back on the warm bus, we drove by the million-dollar homes along the waterfront. Some had grass lawns and a few bushes or trees. The other city houses wisely chose sand for lawns, and greenery was rare. The golf course in town was one big sandtrap except for the greens. Pastels were the color of choice for the smaller stucco homes in town, adding a cheerfulness to an otherwise sand colored landscape.

Brightly Painted Homes Near Town

Large areas of government-built houses were also well maintained. We passed several areas with rows of these simple stucco homes built for working people. Those not working make temporary structures to live in until they can afford one. Unfortunately, with the country in a recession and mines closing, unemployment is now almost 30% and many newly unemployed are losing their homes as they are unable to make the bank payments.

Lower Income Government Housing

Sand and wind are a constant battle for homeowners. The houses on the outskirts of town take the brunt of it, but all require continuous care. On a typical day, as the sun burns off the fog, the convection winds begin blowing the sand from the beach and dunes into town and onto the houses. Namibians know it will be an especially windy day if they awake to blue skies. After cooling down the houses in the morning, people close their windows and doors to lessen the pervasive sand from blowing in. On really windy days, people have to sweep the sand off the outside walls before the evening fog cements it in place, making it impossible to remove.

        Viking Crew in Namibian Herero Dress (Except Sujith) at Dune #7...Again Going Above and Beyond

Within a few blocks of the city center was a bit of reed vegetation in areas where partially treated wastewater was pumped, otherwise, it was just sand. Soon we were into Namibia’s famous sand dune belt and parked at Dune #7. At over 1250 ft, it is the tallest dune, given its name because it is the 7^th big dune from the river. The Viking crew wearing the traditional Herero horn-shaped headdress said to represent the horns of this cattle herding people, welcomed us to this cool photo opportunity, offering gorp and punch to fuel a few of us for the climb.

Mark at the Top Taking Picture of Carol Almost There

We took the straight-up approach, steep and exhausting. For every ten steps forward, we slid six steps back, and by the end, we were literally crawling up on all fours. But we made it, and after breathtaking views (whatever breath we had left) we enjoyed a walk along the top of the dune. Realizing we were running out of time and not wanting to anger a busload of Vikngs, we quickly hopped back down the dune with incredible ease, spending the next few hours emptying sand out of our shoes and pants.

Made it!

On our Way Down

Not only did the crew have to deal with sand, but also coal dust. The port recently had been used to haul coal, leaving a dusting of black soot on the pier which became sticky with the fog. The crew laid out a 50-yard long path of towels for us to walk on to the gangplank along with two water tubs to step in, but this only partially improved the mess on shoes. All afternoon and evening, housekeeping was scrubbing the floors on all decks, and we awoke to new carpet at the check-in area. Amazing! We weren't surprised that a recent article online had the Viking Sun as one of the top 10 cleanest cruise ships in the world.

Swakopmund...

After a quick lunch at the Pool Grill, we were on a bus driving 10 miles north to the German city of Swakopmund.
This town of 45,000 settled in 1892 by German colonists is now a charming seaside tourist town, full of Bavarian architecture. Because it was Easter Monday, there was very little traffic on its extra-wide streets. A few people were walking the pier and playing tag with the “cool” waves, all enjoying the sunshine. Across the road from the dunes, the wealthy had built huge second homes on the ocean.

 Historic Hotel...now with Casino
and Movie Theater

Swakopmund's Busiest Restaurant

Beautiful Downtown...Just a couple Blocks from Desert

On the drive home, we saw a few tourists riding camels on the dunes while others sped around in dune buggies. We also passed by townships where during apartheid, coloreds were required to live on one side of this main road, blacks on the other, whites having their own area around downtown. They weren’t allowed to visit another section after 6 PM, yet they did, and it was not enforced as it was in South Africa. When apartheid ended, and Namibia became an independent nation, things went relatively smoothly.

The Three Presidents of Namibia

Both guides with their strong German accents love Namibia. They acknowledged the harsh weather and corruption, and one mentioned a concern that too many of the bright college graduates are moving to England because of lack of jobs, yet they say they would never leave. There is a pride and sense of optimism for this new country…and as one guide said, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”