We arrived at Hosea Kutako Airport in Namibia on Tuesday, May 17th at 10:30am, approximately 22 hours after starting our journey in LAX (one stop in JFK). Hosea Kutako Airport is smaller than Kahului Airport, bigger than Kona Airport. We deplaned directly onto the runway and made our way to customs - probably the fastest I've ever been through customs with a record time of 12 minutes. Finding a cab was easy to arrange since the airport staff had their duties printed on the backs of their neon vests. Before we knew it we were on the road, the left side of the road, headed towards our first destination, the capital city of Windhoek (pronounced wind-dook).
Our driver thought it was hilarious when we started squealing at the sight of wild baboons and Pumbas (warthogs) hanging out on the side of the road.
Minus the wildlife, our first taste of Nambian road was mediocre. In between the airport and Windhoek the highway was two lanes in each direction. Speed limit: 120km (75mph) with a moderate amount of cars, a surprisingly well-paved road and signs came in regular intervals.
This truck was probably the most interesting thing we drove up on leaving the airport.
Forty minutes later we pulled up to The Belvedere Guesthouse at 76/78 Dr. Kwame Nkrumah Street, an address that no matter how well we remembered could never find on the GPS - stories and explanation to come later. The staff at the Belvedere, much like the rest of the people of Namibia, were extremely warm and very helpful.
We were the only ones on the premise upon arriving. Namibians are very trusting people, we quickly learned that services were based on a self-serve honor system. If you take it you let us know.
We wasted no time dropping our bags off in No.12 and and making our way to the rental car (that had been delivered right to the hotel). It's a shame we didn't even think to name our trusty Rav4.
Adjusting to drive on the right side of the car was by far the most difficult thing I've done while traveling, but we survived...barely. I remember one specific moment when Taryn was asking if I was even in the right lane and I was shouting "Sh*t! What do the stop signs even look like???"...they look normal btw.
First time I parked the car I was inches from the concrete wall behind me and even closer to the neighboring cars. I eventually got the hang of it and in no time was even parallel parking on the left side in a single go. Shout out to parentals for teach me to drive manual and use my mirrors properly.
We browsed around the Namibian Craft Centre, both indoor and outdoor. The tribeswomen at the outdoor market would come up to us and say "Aye sista, support my crafts..." and go on to give us a "good" or "special" price for their handmade goods.
After exploring a bit more we hopped back into the car and somehow found our way to the grocery store to stock up for the morning drive. Getting from the grocery store back to the Belvedere was...interesting. We pulled out the GPS, typed in the address and proceeded to the highlighted route. After driving for about 15 minutes the GPS led us out of town and onto a highway which obvisouly was the wrong direction. We then proceeded to lose service on the GPS.
Two seconds later we caved and turned on our cell data to map ourselves back to the Belvedere. NOT. The address we had (which we later confirmed was the right one) wasn't found by google maps. SICK. Last resort, we busted out screenshots of the route to the grocery story and managed to find a way back to hotel.
The brain strain of constantly second guessing which side of the road I was on and making sure I was using the blinker and not the windshield wipers was REAL. To refuel, we decided it was time for some Nambian grindz.
Windhoek draft and Zebra....yuuuum.
Joining us for dinner at Joe's Beerhouse, was a brother of Taryn's friend + friend, Deldry and Charlie. Local friends are the way to go! They gave us tips for staying safe, best times to drive and even a little culture lesson.
Deldry and Charlie showing Taryn how to shake hands - Windhoek style.
After dinner, Deldry and Charlie dropped us off at the Belvedere and we called it night. The next day was going to be our first long drive, time to sleep up.
