roaming.kiwi

The next day we spent in the park. It was AMAZING! We saw lots of antelope like oryx, springbok and eland. We saw lots of dead eland too! There were also lots of giraffes, and we even saw some drinking! They had to spread their legs really wide to get their head down to the water hole. We also saw lots of lions. There were 2 big male lions with black manes and 6 female lions. We saw a cheetah and we also saw a wild cat, asleep in a tree. But the best thing we saw was a honey badger. It was patrolling along the road, and we saw it climb a fallen tree and knock bark off. Then we lost sight of it. We also saw a couple of tortoises.

It was a really good day, my favourite was the honey badger.

The next day we drove to the cheetah conservation fund. First we watched a short video about cheetahs. Then we did a tour to see them. It was hot so the cheetahs were lying under the trees. They were really close. When we got to the last enclosure one of the cheetahs got up and came closer. It looked like it was checking Vivi and Lolly out to eat! We also saw the dogs that they give to farmers to protect their goats, so that the farmers don’t kill cheetahs. I think cheetahs are beautiful.

After the cheetah place we stayed at a vineyard. We learnt how to play Dobble, and did lots of crafty stuff that Cecile had brought with her. We had a camp fire and played charades. It was a lot of fun. Alex was the best at acting.

The next day we went to Etosha. Alex had a walkie talkie and he would call us if they saw an animal. We saw lots of antelope, giraffes, elephants and rhino! That night we stayed at the watering hole and saw lots of jackals, a hyena and a porcupine.

The next day we went to Base Camp. We did a ballot and watched a movie: Muppets Treasure Island. Vivi got a thorn splinter in her foot.

The next day we went to a distillery and Cecile and Andy tried some gin. I just played in the playground with Vivi and Lolly. Then we went to my favourite shop with lots of carvings and scupltures. I thought Cecile should buy a toilet seat with a rhino on it!

Then we went to a new part of Namibia and saw some San Bushmen. We saw the man make rope by twisting it on his leg. He then made a fire with sticks. Last we saw some ladies making ostrich shell necklaces. Lolly bought a beautiful necklace.  We did a walk among some big boulders and went right up to the top! It was a good view. We were watched by some baboons. Then we had a wild camp, though it wasn’t completely wild as there was a toilet!

The next day we did another walk up a hill and saw some old rock paintings. There was a giraffe, an elephant and lots of people. They were the best we have seen in Africa.

Then we drove to Swakopmund. We went to the aquarium. It was small but my favourite was the stingray. We were also there when they were feeding the fish – they went crazy! Then we went to a snake park. They snakes were really sparkly! There was also a chameleon which had googly eyes and only 2 toes. The best was a big tortoise that was walking around. It snuck up on Genevieve and gave her a fright!

Then we drove to Walvis Bay, and had a dinner at the camp. We were right next to the playground and it was lots of fun. In the morning, Daddy, Cecile, Mummy and Vivi all did parkrun. The rest of us met them at the end and saw all the flamingos. Vivi did her fastest parkrun ever!

Then we did a big road to Harmonie Camp. We had to go up a big hill to get there. At the top was an outdoor toilet! At Harmonie Camp we went swimming and had a dancing competition. Though I am not sure who won!

After that we drove back to Urban Camp and did some more swimming. It was so much fun to see them, it was really sad when they had to go.

At Camp Syncro we met two ladies who work for the Giraffe Conservation Fund. One of the ladies came from New Zealand! They travel around taking photos of the giraffes and recording where they are. They showed us a folder of lots of giraffe photos. My favourite giraffe was one called Supergirl because she has a spot that looks like the superman logo! The giraffes here are paler in colour than the giraffes we saw up north and their horns are smaller. It was very interesting. They gave us a sticker for our car – did you know there is a world giraffe day on the 21st June?

When we left the camp we found our first stone man. He was sitting in the shade of a tree and had a stick. It was very hard to spot.

Then we drove through the Marienfluss again. We took some more pictures of the fairy circles.

Then we drove over what Daddy called a cheeky little pass into Hartmann’s valley. We saw some Hartmann’s Zebra. They look different to other zebra because they have white tummies, instead of stripes and have a wobbly bit under their chin. They are very rare. We had to cross a little pass and it was a bit bumpy but the Taniwha was ok.

We passed by Blue Drum and Orange Drum.  Then in a dry river bed I saw another stone man. This one was standing up and was hidden by a big rock!

Then we did a sandy loop. We saw lots of springbok and gemsbok. We lost the track and it was hard to find. The sand got really deep. Then, disaster, the engine coolant alarm came on. When Daddy looked he discovered the car was broken again. We pulled off the road and Daddy fixed it with some steel and a ratchet strap. It was late so we camped there. Genevieve and I made our own stone man!

The next day we started back to Windhoek so that we could get some more car parts. Then we saw three stone men! Two of them were sitting down looking over the road. Then Mummy saw one hanging off a rock. That was my favourite one!

Now we are in Windhoek, staying at our favourite camp: Urban Camp. We have been swimming and we watched New Zealand beat Ireland in the rugby. Last night we had a big BBQ with some of our friends. It was very tasty.

Genevieve and I also made dream catchers out of an old wine box, and some wool.  They looked really good!

After that we drove the Hunter’s Road. This is a famous road on the border of Botswana and Zimbabwe. There are waterholes on the road and sometimes you can see lots of animals, but it was too dry and we only saw more elephants, and some antelope. We also saw a dead elephant, with just its skin left. I thought I saw a leopard, but when we drove back, we couldn’t see it. We also got a bit lost and ended up ‘bush bashing’ down an overgrown track. The car got really scratched. Then we found a fire break and got back to the proper road. We did a wild camp and saw zebra and a giraffe.

But the next day we found that the chassis was ripped again and we had to find someone to weld it. We also had a slow leak in the tyre because there was a thorn in it.

We went to a wildlife rescue centre. They had lots of snakes and small cats like a civet, a genet and caracal. Though they were all hiding in their boxes. We also saw a warthog with some mongoose. But the best was the pet honey badger. He had been  with humans since he was 2months old! He tried to steal the keeper’s shoe. It was very funny! We want a honey badger as a pet now.

Then we decided to go back to Namibia. We drove through Chobe National Park and saw elephants hiding behind trees. They weren’t very well hidden!