So, three ports down, a lot to go. This trip is going by really really fast. The days on the ship seem to run together while the days at land feel extremely short. It feels like there is never enough time on land, then you get back to the ship, and you feel like you’ve been gone for a month. The only thing I don’t like about the ship is that they are trying too hard to make it too academic. The only movies they have for rent from the library are Oscar winning movies or documentaries, they have academic lectures every night called explorer seminars, and the only free websites are academic based. I understand that this is a school, but UVa has many functions that are not academic in nature. Kids need to be allowed to have some fun on board. I don’t mind it because my style of fun is hanging out with a couple friends playing a game of some sort, but kids are getting restless. For those of you who have never heard of Namibia, a quick synopsis of the country is in order. It is the newest nation in Africa, only gaining its independence in something like 1995. It is the second most sparsely populated country in the world behind Mongolia. It is basically one big desert, the Namib Desert. It is a coastal desert that is home to some very interesting sand dunes, animal life, and indigenous people. The air is really fresh and the people are very nice. Looking back on my 3 days in Namibia, I see that I did a lot of stuff in a short time. The first day, we arrived and I went with my band, MICE, in order to perform a song in the middle of the desert. We played a song called “sandprints”in which we used the sand as an instrument by placing special mics under the ground in order to record the sand as it moved above. I played the bass instrument, known as the waycom pad. I have got some interesting video of it. We also had a nice crowd of about 40-50 people who played the sand with us and danced along. Our next gig is in South Africa tomorrow in which we will be playing a 1000 person amphitheater, wish me luck. Later that night I went to Swakopmund, I think that’s how it’s spelled. It’s an old German settlement and the largest city in Namibia. My friends and I spent some time in the bars and the local eateries and really had a good time. The food was really good and the sweet white wine from South Africa was very tasty. There was nothing really special about the bars in comparison to bars in the USA. They played the same kind of music and everything. The beer was just a bit cheaper. We made it back to the ship in one piece, just very early in the morning J. The next morning I spent kayaking in the ocean. We drove past the salt mines, through the lagoon and out onto the end of a peninsula in order to kayak. Along the drive, we saw flamingos, pelicans, seals, and jackals. When we got there we took to the very cold water in our kayaks and got up close and personal with some young seals. They were playful but not nearly as playful as they normally are, according to our guide. We then ran into some dolphins, a huge bottlenose and a bunch of little benguela dolphins. The Benguela dolphins are an endangered species, so it was really cool to see them. The bottlenose came within 2 feet of me, it was exhilarating. After kayaking we had sandwiches and juice on the beach before heading back. The guide was the owner of a business called namyak, if you don’t get it think Namibia and Kayak. I bet he has a website you can see, I just don’t know what it would be. Later that day I went to Dune 7, one of the biggest and prettiest sand dunes in all of Namibia. There, some friends and I did what is called waterballing, where there is a big blowup ball that is filled slightly with water. You sit inside and they push it down the hill. It is like going in a moving waterslide, it was soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much fun. We then climbed to the top of Dune 7 which was really hard as every step you take forward brings you 2 steps back, so you have to basically run up it. The view at the top made it all worth it. That night we went to a restaurant called Crazy Mama’s in which we had to wait like 4 hours for our food, but it was at least pretty good. I got a pizza, it shouldn’t have taken them so long to make it… The last day I just spent shopping. I bought myself an Indiana Jones type hat because I had sunburn on my face and neck that I wanted to keep shaded. I then bought myself a South African club team called the Mamelodi Sundowns soccer jersey. It’s bright yellow, blue, and green, I had to buy it J. Overall, Namibia was one amazing country. It was full of adventure, excitement, and nature. The people were amazing and the country was young and happy. I may return someday in order to play on those dunes again. I have to go practice now for my South Africa performance. Pictures will come, just be patient. I have like 6 or so that are really nice and really show what the desert looked like. Love, Steven at Sea
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