On the way to the Okavango Delta

I can’t say I woke early as that would imply that I had slept but I was out of bed long before my alarm clock went off excited that I was going to the delta, which has been on the bucket list for years. 

Over breakfast we all had a story to tell about our sleepless night. Scorpions, heat, mosquitos, party noises, spiders; everyone had something to say so I was happy that I at least only had the heat to contend with. 

Our small bags packed and ready for two nights on the delta in a houseboat we set off with Christopher driving us to our next destination. 

The straight straight and flat roads have now taken on a windier and bumpier dimension and Christopher is constantly swerving to about the potholes. Not quite as bad as Ethiopia but getting there.  The sand here is no longer bright red but almost white, still soft and white and everywhere as far as the eye can see. 

We had a couple of bushy bushy stops and am glad that I was taught to toilet like a guy when I was in Kruger. The idea of a thorny acacia up my bum is not something I want to entertain. 

Admon gives us little of interesting snippets of information each time we stop and he briefly filled us in about the Herero tribe who farm livestock along the side of the road. The people are spread across Namibia going back to times when borders were free and tribes moved from one country to another. The women we were told dress in ‘African Attire’ (whatever that may be) and their head-dress reminiscent of a cows head (which are the beautiful headdresses we saw in Senegal/ The Gambia.)

Swana is the language that is common to everyone in Botswana although each tribe probably has its own language. 

As I write this I am perched upon a funny deck chair on the back deck of a houseboat, our home for the next two nights. Our journey to get here began after lunch with someone bringing us tuna rolls in by boat. 
Lunch done we boarded a speedboat to zoom up one of the waterways forming part of the Okavango Delta. It started out as a smooth ride but then the wind whipped up and we started getting tossed around a bit and got soaked more times than we had wished when the waves broke over the speedboat. We had been complaining about the heat and were now nicely cooled down. It got extra uncomfortable as were cruising through the stormy wind and were covered in ash and smoke from a fire on the banks of the river. A few of us ended up with black faces and bodies from the ash which added to the discomfort. 

We did have more excitement on the trip seeing umpteen crocs, a few hippos, a croc devouring a cow and some beautiful birds. The best thing was watching the reactions of the others who had never seen the animals before and were really excited. 
We have just arrived at the houseboat, a cute set up where we each have a room with a shared bathroom between two. It is much better than we had been led to believe and should be fun for a couple of days. Sitting on the back deck where I am
looking out across the river is so peaceful I can see me dropping off here tomorrow. It would be so tempting to hop in the water but with crocs around, well maybe not. 
Time for the sun to go down as we said goodbye to the say. The sunset was extra special as it reflected on the still still water. 

Our evening was spent eating, staying hydrated and swatting a myriad of insects that wanted to play. We just wanted them to go away. 

What a wonderful day.