Today we drove from Swakopmund to Sossusvlei, a journey of roughly six hours across the Namib Desert.
Or as Abraham described it:
“Today you will experience an African massage.”
He was referring to the road.
The road — if we are being generous with that term — is mostly corrugated gravel, which means the vehicle vibrates continuously in a way that rattles every bone in your body.
At one point we were sitting behind Jean-Marie and Brigitte when a screw fell out of the bottom of his seat.
Then another.
At that point Lynn and I just started laughing, because what else can you do?
African massage.
The Herero and Nama Genocide
Before leaving Swakopmund this morning, Abraham took us to a quiet cemetery outside town.
It commemorates one of the darkest chapters of Namibia’s history: the genocide of the Herero and Nama peoples by German colonial forces between 1904 and 1908.
At the time, Namibia was known as German South West Africa. When the Herero people rose up against colonial rule in 1904, the German military responded with extraordinary brutality under General Lothar von Trotha.
His orders were explicit.
The Herero people were to be driven into the desert and eliminated.
German forces pushed them into the Omaheke Desert, poisoning water sources and blocking escape routes. Thousands died of thirst and starvation.
Those who survived were placed into concentration camps, where forced labor, disease, and starvation killed many more.
Historians estimate that roughly 80% of the Herero population was killed.
The Nama people, who resisted shortly afterward, also suffered devastating losses — roughly 50% of their population.
Many scholars consider this the first genocide of the 20th century.
Today Germany has formally acknowledged the genocide and in 2021 announced a €1.1 billion development package intended as a form of historical reconciliation.
But the issue remains deeply controversial.
Many Herero and Nama leaders argue that the program is not true reparations, since the money goes to development projects rather than directly to descendants of those affected.
Standing in the cemetery, surrounded by simple unmarked burial mounds, it was hard not to feel the weight of that history.
Even more striking: the cemetery now sits amid modern homes and mansions.
History does not disappear.
It just gets built around.
The Road to Sossusvlei
Once we left Swakopmund behind, the landscape opened into vast desert plains.
Along the way we saw several wildlife sightings — what our group jokingly calls ALT (Animal-Like Things) and BLT (Bird-Like Things) sightings.
Among them:
- a blue wildebeest (too fast for a photo)
- oryx, perfectly adapted to desert life
- a jackal
- three ostriches
Even when animals appear only briefly, they make the immense desert landscape feel alive.
Solitaire
About halfway through the drive we stopped in the tiny settlement of Solitaire.
“Town” might be too strong a word.
Solitaire consists of a gas station, a small shop, and a few scattered buildings — but it has achieved near-legendary status among travelers because of one thing:
Apple pie.
The bakery here is famous throughout Namibia for its homemade apple pies, which have been fueling desert travelers for decades.
Sadly, we didn’t have time to stop for pie today.
But we will be driving past again on the way back to Windhoek.
Hope springs eternal.
Solitaire is also known for its collection of old rusted cars, scattered around the desert like art installations — relics from another era of desert travel.
While we were there, I spotted a small blonde mink-like creature darting across the ground. Abraham didn’t see it, so its identity remains a mystery.
A WWII Desert Escape
Not far from Solitaire, Abraham pointed out a remote rocky area associated with an extraordinary World War II story.
Two German geologists — Hermann Korn and Martin… (the details vary depending on the source) — had been working in the region when the war began.
Unwilling to fight, they escaped into the desert and hid in a cave for two and a half years.
Eventually one of them became ill and had to seek medical help in town. When he did, authorities discovered that his companion was still living out in the desert.
Both men were ultimately arrested.
Their story later inspired the book “The Sheltering Desert.”
Living in the Namib Desert for two and a half years voluntarily is difficult to imagine.
Strange Desert Plants
We also stopped to look at several desert plants used by indigenous San hunters.
One was the milky bush, which looks a bit like a cactus but is actually something quite different. Its sap is highly toxic and was historically used to poison arrow tips for hunting.
Even touching it requires caution.
We share walked out to see (and take a group photo at) a quiver tree, whose hollow branches were once cut by San hunters and used to carry arrows — essentially a natural quiver.
When you tap the branches, they sound hollow, almost like knocking on wood.
The desert is full of ingenious adaptations.
Into the Dunes
Along the road we passed through dramatic mountain formations and rocky passes where the geology shows clear signs of tectonic uplift — layers of ancient igneous rock pushed upward over immense stretches of time.
It’s the kind of landscape that makes you feel very small.
Sossusvlei Lodge
By late afternoon we finally arrived at Sossusvlei Lodge, right on the edge of the Namib-Naukluft National Park.
Tomorrow morning we get up very early — out the door at 5:30 a.m. — to try to catch sunrise on the famous red dunes.
Lynn and I skipped the group dinner tonight. After arriving late and eating lunch at nearly 3:00 p.m., neither of us was particularly hungry.
Instead we bought a bottle of wine, sat outside, and watched the desert sunset.
As we sat there, a jackal and an oryx casually wandered past in the fading light.
I tried to take a photo, but by then it was nearly dark.
Some moments are better simply watched.
Tomorrow: the giant dunes of Sossusvlei at sunrise.
Which, if the photos I’ve seen are any indication, may be one of the most spectacular landscapes on the planet.
PHOTOS AND SLIDESHOW COMING, I PROMISE! I just want to get the words down 🙂