Phew! Made it. Now there's relaxing time at the camp site... Gnocchi and pesto for dinner, wine by the flood lit watering hole with Abby and her sister and Hannah equivalent (bff from college. Mini-Ithaca reunion and LIONS!!!!!! and bed time for Hannah and Rachel. Flying and driving take a lot out of us.
Day 13: We drove up through Etosha and saw SO MANY ANIMALS! Rhinos, leopard, hyena, elephants, zebras, giraffes, antelope, kudu, springbok, wildebeests, warthogs, birds, oryx... the list goes on and on.
We arrived at the campsite in the north, and made campfire pizza. Unfortunately, the watering hole at that site was much less bumpin', but it did mean an early night, which was nice.
Day 14: Before leaving Etosha, we checked out a watering hole, which WAS bumpin' and narrated animals' lives for a while. Then we headed out to Jamie's place! Lunch at Zebro's in Oshikati was delicious! Chicken and various salads for me, chicken burgers for the other ladies. We went to Pick-and-Pay (time #1) for delectables for dinner, and Amarulla for dessert. We also got ice cream. Whatever. We ate a lot. Jenn made hummus for dinner, and we all loved it! Upon arrival at Jamie's, we had some chore time: did some mending, lesson planning, car cleaning and washing.
Day 15: We hit up the Ongwediva Trade Fair with Jamie's friend Kristy. Delicious meat (though not actual kapana), mupane worms (made me gag, but Hannah liked them), traditional breads and marulla jam. Also all kinds of sweets. We got LOTS of stuff, which I will not list here, as it will probably end up being presents for a lot of you, dear readers. That night, we went to Rocha's Portuguese restaurant for dinner, and checked out Paulson's (Jamie's co-teacher's) bar. Pretty standard shabeen experience, with lots of guys and very few ladies. Paulson and his family did a nice job taking care of us, and we were home well before we turned into pumpkins!
Day 16: Good byes were said by all :( We left Jamie's pretty early, and returned the car to Tsumeb, where my directional skills FINALLY kicked in and I found the rental place lickity split. Goodbye, dear friend. I miss you! N157396W, you'll be in my heart forever. Hiking back to Divundu was actually a breeze, as hiking goes! Free hiked Tsumeb to Grootfontain, then a combi/van to Rundu (could have stopped less, but whatever. Got there in plenty of time!), then we found a combi going to Katima Malilo, which dropped us in Divundu, but made ZERO OTHER STOPS. For those of you who've hiked from Rundu to Divundu in a combi before, you know how huge this is. Zero dirt road. Hannah and I arrived safe and sound at my flat, and the kids arrive the next day!! YAY! We had ... something for dinner, but I don't remember what.
Day 17: The kids are back in town!! YAY! Hannah and I helped register incoming learners with other teachers. I was so smiley it was a bit ridiculous. The kids must think I'm insane. Hannah and I also baked cookies and made pizza for a pre-birthday dinner.
Day 18: Birthday and classes. School started! Hannah came to all of the classes, and we had question time. The kids loved asking her about celebrities she's met and what she thinks of Namibia. She did a wonderfully eloquent job of answering questions and being loving and caring toward all of the kids I love and care about so much.
Day 19: Hannah hiked out to Rundu in the afternoon to catch her bus from there to Windhoek. Goodbye my dear!! Love you!!! I am so incredibly lucky to have a friend like you! So that you can bring me things :-) Now for me, it's work work work!!! This term is going to be great; I've got a feeling!
(today) she's arrived safely back at home after a stop in London.
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