Asterix goes to Namibia

[asterixsg]

• Drove a 4WD 4529 kms in 16 days, 70% of that on gravel roads
• Camped on the rooftop of my 4WD
• Cooked meals to keep expenses low
• Chased a Total Lunar Eclipse
• Watched the Milky Way rise and set
• Partied with the stars every night
• Followed giraffes in the Kalahari
• Scaled red sand dunes at Sossusvlei
• Thrilled to receive a compliment "when we saw you driving through that sand, we thought you were a PRO", when all along I was sh1t scared
• Came alive in Deadvlei
• Sandwiched between the Naukluft desert and the Atlantic Ocean
• Tracked desert elephants
• Watched wildlife act as speed breakers and traffic lights
• Sundowner at the majestic Epupa falls with the Angolan mountains as backdrop
• United with long-lost souls from previous lifetimes
• Pranced with the cheetahs
• Witnessed games Lions play
• 1 flat tyre
• Ditched by an iPhone (Stupid me for not knowing what a 3 finger double-tap does on an iPhone)
• Interacted with friendly and helpful Namibians
• Drank copious amounts of Windhoek Lager
• Spent hard earned money on silly pursuits

Overall experience : PRICELESS
That in summary is My Namibian Odyssey...

Namibia : a land of contrasts.
Namibia : what's a cash-poor guy doing in a playground for the rich ?

These were the exact two thoughts that kept running through my mind during the trip and afterwards…
Even though in this single trip I've probably busted my travel budget for this year and the next and the next, I have absolutely no regrets.

It has been a super adventure to go on this solo self driving camping trip and indulge in all kinds of genres of photography - from landscapes to wildlife to nightscapes to astrophotography.
I have far too many photographs as memories. And I will not bore you with all of them.

I went to Namibia to witness the Total Lunar Eclipse on 15th June 2011.

In addition to the lunar eclipse photograph, I challenged myself to pick 5 images that were most representative of my adventure, my Odyssey.

Sharing with you those most memorable moments. Comments and critiques are most welcome.

As always, I will update Post #2 with some information that will help first-timers when they visit this beautiful country of contrasts...

1. Red moon

 

[asterixsg]

Namibia is a playground for the rich. Accept it. Or else why would Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have their baby there ?

Jokes apart, everything is mighty expensive in Namibia. Car rentals, Fuel, Lodges accommodation, Restaurant meals, Park Entrance Fees, Tours - everything is expensive.

Why in the world did I choose Namibia to go to witness the Lunar Eclipse ? I must've been crazy to even embark on this trip and that too alone.

Everywhere I went, I used to be asked the same set of questions.
1. Where are you from ?
2. How long are you here for ?
3. WHY ARE YOU TRAVELLING ALONE ? They must've thought that either I am crazy or stupid - which I think I am both...

I've put together some details of my itinerary and expenses etc.

Route

This is the route that I travelled - in a clockwise direction starting from Windhoek.

It was a 18 days, 17 nights trip, but you can discount the 18th day as my flight out of Windhoek was at 7 AM.

I drove a total of 4529 kms in 16 days, since I picked up my 4WD only on Day 2 of my trip.

As such the most expensive component of my trip was the vehicle itself and fuel.

Rental of the vehicle (16 days) + additional insurance (to bring down the excess to approx S$600) : S$3300 :sweat:
This included all campsite fees, full camping kit etc.
The company that did all the bookings for me is called Explore Namibia (www.explore-namibia.com)
One of their travel consultants, Silvia Rose, who handled all my bookings was a star !!! She was infinitely patient as initially, I kept sending half a dozen emails every day full of queries and I changed my itinerary a dozen times. She also gave me advice in terms of driving distances. On Day 1 in Windhoek, she arrived at my lodge with a folder, loaded with information. It had maps, reservation vouchers organized by day, emergency numbers, etc. etc. etc. Very professional.

All other expenses are in Namibian Dollars. 1 SGD = 5.33 (this is the avg exchange rate that I got based on the withdrawals I made from the ATMs on different days)

Fuel : N$5288 (approx S$1000 :sweat

Local SIM Card + talk time : N$600 (approx S$112)
I topped up an excess amount just to be kiasu, in case I got stuck somewhere I wanted more than enough talk time to talk to my car rental company/travel agent etc. When I left Namibia, there was still something like S$60 worth of talk time left...

Park Entrance Fees : N$590 (approx S$110)

Sossusvlei : 3 X 90 = N$270
Etosha 2 X 90 = N$180
Waterberg 1 X 90 = N$90
Welwetschia Drive Permit : N$50
Spitzkoppe Entrance Fees : N$50​

Tours : Total N$1655 (approx S$310)

Kalahari Anib Sundowner : N$275
Sandwich Harbour tour : N$790
Twyfelfontaine rock art : N$70
Himba Village Tour #1 : N$300
Epupa falls and Himba Village Tour #2 : N$220​

Food, drinks, tips and other misc expenses : N$1200 (approx S$225)

Most of my meals were self cooked, I only ate 4 meals throughout the trip in restaurants.

Flat tyre repair and replacement : approx S$400
I found out the hard way that my insurance didn't cover for a flat tyre.
The rental company informed me that they would charge me the cost of a replacement tyre (based on the age of the tyre that went flat), as they don't accept repairs to the tyre. Sh1t !!!

TOTAL EXPENSES (excluding airfare) : S$3300 + S$1000 + S$112 + S$110 + S$310 + S$225 + S$400= S$5457 :cry::cry:

Moral of the story. If you want to reduce your expenses by half, travel to Namibia with a partner.

 

[asterixsg]

for later

 

[asterixsg]

2. Curves

Everything that I had read about, everything that I had seen in pictures since childhood came alive in front of my eyes. My first evening at Sossusvlei was quite an adventure in itself...

3. Dead and Alive

Dead and Alive. Light and darkness. This creation is full of contrasts...
I came alive in Deadvlei...

4. Makeup

Had a chance to interact with the enigmatic Himba tribe...

5. The kill

I didn't get to witness the kill, probably wouldn't have had the strength to witness it too. That's why Mother Nature presented me with a chance to capture the aftermath of a kill...

6. Canopy

Watching the Milky way rise and set every night made me wonder what in the world came over mankind to destroy this beauty with artificial lights...

 

[luosangjian]

Wow wow wow, u r the MAN, u have done it again!!!!!! Congrats!!!!!

 

[jiahao1986]

Been waiting for this thread man!

 

[LowLights]

Swee .. me camping here

 

[SK1968]

Another exotic destination. Nice photos as usual.
More please
Hey, you really don't have to work for living huh ? hahaha

 

[lkkang]

camping

 

[rcheong1282]

Great stuffs...thanks for sharing

 

[fibredrive]

This forum is full of adventurers! Lovely photos! Wish I had the guts to traverse the namibian terrain like you. waiting for more! :thumbsup:

 

[giantcanopy]

Namibia has amazing landscapes.

# 2 has lovely desert dune curves, I thought if you did without the skies it might be impactful as well
For # 6, was the foreground lighted with vehicle light ?

Ryan

 

[asterixsg]

Wow wow wow, u r the MAN, u have done it again!!!!!! Congrats!!!!!

Thanks. Hope to travel with you and Melwyn one day...

Been waiting for this thread man!

The wait is over
Glad that you got to witness your first total lunar eclipse in 10 years. You deserve more...
Had been praying that you somehow make it to the Outback against all odds. And felt glad to know that you were watching the eclipse half way across the world.
Well done !!!

Swee .. me camping here

Thanks. Will not bore you all with too many photos. Some memories are destined to be buried in the depths of my harddisks...

Great stuffs...thanks for sharing

Thanks for your comment.

 

[asterixsg]

Another exotic destination. Nice photos as usual.
More please
Hey, you really don't have to work for living huh ? hahaha

Well, bro, all I can say is that I have limited time in this world.
I don't booze, I don't smoke, I don't party, I don't drive fast and expensive cars, I don't have an expensive wardrobe, I don't have expensive watches, I don't wine and dine in expensive and exotic restaurants.
I only have two vices. Travel and photography.
I am a very boring guy...

camping

Thanks. I hope you won't be disappointed.

This forum is full of adventurers! Lovely photos! Wish I had the guts to traverse the namibian terrain like you. waiting for more! :thumbsup:

Thanks. I am sure if you have the will, you will find a way to travel wherever you want to...

 

[asterixsg]

Namibia has amazing landscapes.

# 2 has lovely desert dune curves, I thought if you did without the skies it might be impactful as well
For # 6, was the foreground lighted with vehicle light ?

Ryan

Thanks Ryan. Yes, for #2, I thought of it too and a friend pointed out as well. But somehow, I didn't feel like cropping it, as I felt it added to the scale (I could be wrong though)...

#6 was lit with my headlamp. It was a very dark night and I shot at ISO 1600 for 30 seconds to expose the Milky Way and lit my headlamp for a second or two.
I hate the way 5DMkII deals with noise.

 

[SK1968]

I don't booze, I don't smoke, I don't party, I don't drive fast and expensive cars, I don't have an expensive wardrobe, I don't have expensive watches, I don't wine and dine in expensive and exotic restaurants.

Same here

I only have two vices. Travel and photography.
I am a very boring guy...
...

Same here too

But you still do much much more travelling...I must be a damn big failure hahaha

 

[giantcanopy]

#6 was lit with my headlamp. It was a very dark night and I shot at ISO 1600 for 30 seconds to expose the Milky Way and lit my headlamp for a second or two.
I hate the way 5DMkII deals with noise.

I would love to try something like that actually, was thinking if using a lesser / diffused flash instead might give a less harsh foreground.

 

[shizzyrir]

loving all the photos!
i hope one day i can make trips like you!
thanks for sharing!

 

[asterixsg]

Same here



Same here too

But you still do much much more travelling...I must be a damn big failure hahaha

No such thing as failure. Each of us are at different stages of evolution...

I would love to try something like that actually, was thinking if using a lesser / diffused flash instead might give a less harsh foreground.

Would love to see your capture. I don't know how to use a flash and I don't carry one with me...

loving all the photos!
i hope one day i can make trips like you!
thanks for sharing!

Thanks. I am sure you will also have your chance to travel... All the best...

 

[asterixsg]

5 more images on a similar theme and then I will move on to another subject...

7. Locked Target

With two of my cameras photographing the eclipse, I decided to have fun with the third...

The eclipsed moon in the middle of the Milky way was what I had seen in the simulation and I was thrilled to see it in reality...

Unlike a solar eclipse, a lunar eclipse lasts for much longer and gives you time to play around...

8. Churn

Himba women mix powder from grinding a red stone with butter and apply on their bodies...

Here's a Himba woman churning butter the traditional way.

9. Ascent

A near vertical ascent of one of the dunes at Sossusvlei. A strong wind blows away any marks that we human beings would've left on the dune...

10. Flow

Deadvlei is a paradise for photographers. The opportunities are limitless. I kinda went crazy, like a kid in a candy store...

I saw the dried remains of a stream in the claypan and decided on this composition. Might not be perfect, but it worked for me...

11. Ominous

A hungry cheetah stares ominously...