Namibia

“The trip of a lifetime,” is the only way I could possibly sum up the Namibia expedition. The Geography Department has been accused of ‘pimping geography,’ but, if expeditions like this are the results, I would be proud to bear that title. After arriving at Windhoek International Airport - a ramshackle assortment of pre-fab huts - we set off on a whirlwind tour of one of the oldest and most culturally rich countries in world. On the first night, we cheered England on amid a sea of South African shirts. That night, we trudged home accompanied to the cheers of the local populace. Namibia only gained its independence from the RSA in 1990 and locals and expats alike still follow the sports teams.

We spent the following days touring the Etosha National Park. Seeing the amazing diversity and magnificence of these animals was a life changing experience. For me, it showed just how small we humans are compared with the rest of the natural world. With the help of our expert guides and some eagle-eyed City boys we saw some amazing wildlife, including prides of Lion, a huge herd of Elephant, and two rhinos fighting around a floodlit waterhole. One of the highlights of the trip for me was definitely seeing a Marshall eagle perched in a tree, or a troop of mongeese that wandered up to my feet.

Situated north of the park is the famed Etosha Pan, which covers thousands of square kilometres of land. This barren landscape, a dried prehistoric lake, is covered with salty rocks and (as I can say with some experience) a huge amount of dust. Then, in true City fashion, we set up two goals and played football. After two goals and several players lying in the dust, the game ended as a draw. Fourth and Sixth formers 1, staff and Fifth formers 1. Surprisingly, now and then a lone ostrich or elephant could be seen wandering through across the bleak horizon, obviously in awe at how the total lack of footballing skill that some players showed.

Namibia contains a whole spectrum of landscapes and environments from the lush valleys of the south to the sand dune belts situated along the infamous ‘Skeleton Coast’. Fortunately, we were able to experience some of these during our short trip, during the drives between our campsites.

We left Etosha on day 4 and proceeded towards the wonders of the Namib Desert. On our drive towards the desert, we visited a petrified forest west of Khorixas. This was an amazing sight to see, as what resembled pieces of logs littered over a dusty hillside turned out to be an array of fossilised trunks and branches some over thirty metres long, and over 1.2 metres in diameter. After lunch there we headed off to the celebrated Neolithic rock carvings at Twyfelfontein. These were carved thousands of years ago after the last Ice Age into the soft sandstone of a valley wall. As the valley has been eroded away, huge slabs have fallen from the walls creating huge heaps of rock. Due to the harsh conditions of the area and the rock, preservation of the masterpieces is almost impossible, and so eventually they will disappear forever. However, there is the possibility of many more similar works situated underneath the rocky slope.

That afternoon we came to our last campsite, situated in the Namib Desert, it was a great taste of nomadic African life. Several intrepid explorers discovered the beauty of the local sunsets from a nearby mount, whilst some others witnessed some traditional African music being performed by a local group. After a wonderful last supper, we fortified our camp against the local rampaging cows after some of the group’s expert cow handlers had pursued these animals around a nearby field. However we still woke up to the sound of several large cows wandering between our tents.

The next day, we began our journey back to the capital via Swakopmund, a coastal town, where we traversed the surrounding sand dune desert on the back of quad bikes and some of us later ate more than our weight in spare ribs! It was a fantastic end to the trip and from the tentative teachers; to the most daring of boy riders, I am sure that everyone had a brilliant time there. The next morning some of the group, led by Mr Davies and Mr Marshall, explored the town to get a taste of the remaining German colonial influence on the architecture of the area. With some sadness at having to leave we then boarded our touring wagon and hit the road.

 We arrived in Windhoek that afternoon, in time for some hasty souvenir shopping and our return flight back to Gatwick. I have to thank all those members of staff that made this amazing trip possible, and to the remainder of the School I say, if another trip comes up, you would have to be fools not to jump at the chance and come along. I eagerly await the next trip, I hope you do too!

Joseph Ataman 4B