Hoodia

Hello everybody,

I am back from the tour with my parents and have collected my first experiences as a mini-tour guide. I bought another Landrover just in time. It was a great holiday, full of fun, beauty and adventure. We went from Windhoek to Swakopmund, then past Sossusvlei and the Tiras mountains to Luederitz and back via Helmeringhausen and Mariental.

We took our time and a sand-road to get to Swakopmund on the first day. The Landscape was beautiful and changed every 50km or so. We stopped a number of times to have a close look at wild flowers, marvel at unusual rock formations, have a picnic or follow the track of an antelope. Just from the roadside we saw kudu, warthog, ostrich, jackal, springbok and several large birds. However, the highlight of this drive was the unexpected discovery of the “Queen of the Namib”, hoodia gordoni. She was in full blossom with butterflies all around her. I have heard of this plant, mainly from patients asking for the herbal wonderdrug to slim down, but I have never met her personally. She is beautiful.

After this hot and dusty drive through the desert we enjoyed a swim in the Atlantic when we arrived in Swakop. We stayed in Swakop for 6 days and joined a number of very interesting guided tours.