Walvis Bay, Namibia

Namibia gained independence from South Africa in 1990. It is about the size of California but not so many people — about 2.5 million. A former German colony, the country speaks German, English, Afrikaans and a dozen or more African languages. Twenty five percent of it is a windswept sandy desert that runs right to the ocean. The people brag about their high quality seafood from the nutrient rich currents and are proud of their hundreds of bird species that migrate through the area. The land was once famous for diamonds but no longer. I took the included tour to one of the highest sand dunes in the region and a beach known for flamingos and jellyfish.

When we got out to Dune Seven, we were surprised to see that Viking beat us out there and set up cold drinks and snacks. They are amazing!

Gammi, on the left, is in charge of all the restaurants on the ship. The other guy is the bar manager. I don’t know the significance of the headgear.

When we got back to the ship the pavement between the bus and the gangway was covered in cardboard and towels. There was a layer of coal dust covering every inch of the dock due to wind blown coal dust from the mountains of coal in the port area. What a mess. It will take a while to clean carpets on the ship