Amidst the Stress and Sand

By Maddie Dilday

As we approach our last few weeks in Namibia, we are all doing our best to finish final papers, pull our integrative projects together, and still enjoy our time in this beautiful country. While this can be a very enjoyable experience, I think almost everyone is feeling some sort of stress. But in the middle of all this stress, comes our final group trip to NaDEET. NaDEET is short for Namib Desert Environmental Education Trust. Essentially, it is a small oasis in the middle of the Namib Desert Nature Preserve, where they teach about environmentally sustainable living, all while living out this life. And for a few short days we got to live it out with them.
 

There are 3 major moments throughout the trip that I know will stay with me. The first of which is the dune walk that we took just outside of NaDEET. In total the hike was about 6 km, 3 both way, and we walked throughout the dunes outside of the NaDEET. On this walk we were able to see the amount of biodiversity that the dunes of Namibia hold. The majority of the diversity is on a small scale, specifically they have a large diversity in the types of bugs that the dunes hold. I found this fascinating as biodiversity is a topic that I have often heard about in class, but that I rarely have had the chance to see. Although the creepy crawlies were just that, creepy and crawly, the dune walk was an amazing experience that I am hoping to have the opportunity to do again once I am back in the United States.



Above is a picture of a Dancing White Lady Spider that was
seen on the dune walk. It received this name due to the
"drumming" patter it leaves in the sand in the morning.

The next activity on the itinerary for the weekend that blew my mind was the drive to a nearby mountain, as well as the hike up the mountain. The drive was gorgeous, it was one of those moments where you are stunned by the beauty that Earth holds, and you think about just how small you are, and how much of this beauty that you have yet to see. Having the opportunity to see the Namib Desert in this way is one of the highlights of my entire trip and I hope that I am one day able to return to this beautiful country.

 

The final activity that we had at NaDEET was by far my favorite. The entire group went out to the top of a near by dune, and we star gazed for about an hour. NamibRand is one of the few International Dark Sky reserves, and a top tier reserve at that. As an Astronomy major, having the chance to see the night sky with such clarity was out of this world. I wish I had been able to capture the view of the stars, galaxies and dust that could clearly be seen in the dark night sky, but unfortunately my phone's camera isn’t strong enough. But, it is an image that I will remember for the rest of my life.

This picture was taken on the drive to the mountain range.
This country's beauty just does not end.

Overall, NaDEET was a interesting and enjoyable break from the stress of the final papers that are piling up at the end of the semester. Although we only have 2 weeks left, I am sure that they will be packed with as many adventures as possible.

Week 6: A Week of Unexpected Growth

By Carly Dillis

This week, all of us are fresh off of our homestay experiences and back into the grind of classes and internships. However, that does not mean that this week was quiet or uneventful.



One of the Cheetahs from N/a'ankuse. There were two cheetahs in the
reserve who will be there for the rest of their lives.

On Monday, our environmental class visited N/a’an ku sê  nature reserve. The reserve takes in injured or orphaned African animals and raises them, often keeping them in captivity for life. We were able to see baboons, lions, caracal, leopards, cheetahs, and wild African dogs. Aside from baboons, these animals are some of the most endangered in the country and very few people get to see them. The readings for class this week had focused around human wildlife conflict. Thus, the reserve gave us the opportunity to see examples of the victims of this conflict. The animals housed in the reserve mostly ended up there because they had made their way into farms or private land and were either hurt, orphaned, or brought into the reserve by the farmers who refuse to have them on their land. The experience greatly helped to ground the readings of the week and it was easy to understand why the country of Namibia has difficulty in navigating human wildlife conflict.

The rest of the week went as scheduled. In history, we discussed anti-racism and how the movement has developed in Namibia. We had a guest speaker who was originally from the United States come in and explain the comparisons between the two societies. After he left, the students engaged in a spontaneous conversation at lunch about the speaker and his lecture. We were critical of his experiences and his opinions on women’s rights, environmental law, and LGBTQIA+ rights. In our politics class, we talked about democratization. Using Zimbabwe as an example, we discussed leadership, corruption, state sponsored violence, voting, etc. It is interesting to look at case studies from countries in the region and have them be so drastically different than they are when I read about neighbouring countries back home in the United States. It is a powerful reminder of where I am, how grateful I am to be here, and the depth of life and history in this place.

Some of the dunes at the inner most part of Sossuvlei  The trees and clay flats
can be seen in the distance.

Despite the incredible experiences of the week, the most powerful activity I participated in was a weekend camping excursion to Sossuvlei. Sossuvlei is a park where many of the most famous dunes in Namibia can be seen. It is about a 6-hour drive South from Windhoek. Five of the students rented a four-wheel drive truck with rooftop tents and booked a campsite to. We drove through the most rural and the most beautiful roads I have ever seen. The topography in Namibia changes about every 100 km, so we would go from driving in mountains to driving through the flat drylands. When we arrived at Sossuvlei, we entered the park and made our way to the dunes. They stretch higher than I ever thought possible. We stopped at one with a beautiful ridge and tried to hike it, before realizing that what we thought to be the top, was only about the halfway point. We also drove into the main part of the park where the biggest dunes are and there is a clay flat petrified forest. In the United States, I grew up in a state park in the forested hills of Massachusetts. We would regularly spend entire days outside, hiking, biking, collecting leaves, etc. I consider myself to be fairly well versed in the ways of nature. However, my experience at Sossuvlei was truly humbling in this way. Certainly, I never believed myself to know everything or be ready for everything this trip will show me. However, I sincerely do not think I could have prepared myself for the experiences I had in Sossuvlei.

I entered this week with the expectation that it would serve me as a week to reflect, which it certainly has. Additionally however, it has also empowered me to keep exploring Namibia on my own, to seek the things not sought. I am so grateful for my experiences this week as they have once again made me understand myself and the world more fully.