Tsumeb

Two days ago we very gently trundled out of Tsumeb with our livers giving off a sickly grin of relief. A week of drinking tots of drinks with colloquial names like "Man with a Dog", "Barbwire", "Parrot Salad" and "Cactus Jack" it is a wonder we survived the experience at all. It was sad to leave behind all the people we had met and who had befriended us in this little town. One of the toughest parts of traveling is the making of friends and creating small comfort zones when ones stays in one place for a while, then having to leave.

Well, lets start at the beginning....

On the second day in Tsumeb Scott meandered into town to attempt to find a way of copying our video recordings to a VCR tape. He ran into a helpful character called Andy - the owner of a cafe/curio/general dealer store in town. Andy offered to do the recording at home - Scott gratefully accepted. That afternoon (Saturday) we went to pick up the tapes. Not only did Andy do the taping for us, but he also organised a lift for Mom and Sunara back to Windhoek with the manager of the museum and invited Scott and Rob to a braai (barbeque) at one of the local sports clubs the next day.

After seeing Mom and Sunara off safely on their way to Windhoek (and ultimately back to George), we trundled off to the braai. The first point of interest was the meal itself. For US$2 we were given the biggest, juiciest steaks either of us had ever encountered. We are talking here of half a cow each. Salad and potatoes were optional extras but there was absolutely no space on the plate. After a couple of weeks of camp food, the steaks were quaffed down with very little ceremony.

As the afternoon wore on we started to meet all the locals at the club. They seemed to make up a fair cross-section of the German/Afrikaans community of Tsumeb - all very colourful characters. It didn't take us long to figure out that Tsumeb was full of rogues, misfits and downright good people. We were given invites to stay on Ekkehard, Linda and their daughter Bianca's farm. They promised us an abundance of wildlife. Werner and Andrehet offered us accommodation in town that night. Werner owned a pub in town called "G-Spot" and invited us to a party that coming Friday. The name for the pub was given by Ewald's wife - Ursula. Her comment - "The only way the men are going to find it, is if it is a pub". Now it is said that the men in Tsumeb are the only ones who can find the "G-Spot".

Cindy - AKA "Top Deck" (like the chocolate, her hair was layered brunette and blonde) a car rally enthusiast, filled us in on rally car racing and the race that would be happening in town the next weekend. Ewald - a bear of a character but a gentle giant - was greatly amused that we were driving a Land Rover. According to him, the only vehicle to drive is a Toyota. A fact that he proved to us later on in the week by taking us for a drive at 180km/h around the outskirts of town, at 3:30am in the morning. These are just a few of the colourful characters we met that afternoon.

As the afternoon wore on the conversation became louder and progressively more enthusiastic. When the club closed a bunch of people all jumped into the back of the already messy Nyathi, and off we trundled to this renowned pub - the G-Spot where the party carried on. It was late that night when we finally took a bunch of people back to their various houses, packed up our tent at the municipal campsite and headed back to Werner and Andrehet's house where we stayed the night. So much for Sunday being a quiet, restful day.

On Monday morning - considerably worse for wear - we did a few chores in town then headed out to Ekkehard's (Ekkie for short) farm. The next couple of days we spent quietly relaxing on the farm (the rest was interspersed with a few social events in the evenings). Ekkie took us around the farm and made good on his promise of an abundance of Kudu, Eland and other wildlife. He also made the fatal mistake of admitting to us that he was a trained mechanic. Before he had even finished the sentence we had him under Nyathi, giving the old girl a good checkover. At that stage we were waiting for a starter motor to be sent up from South Africa to Tsumeb. It was due to arrive on Friday. By Wednesday Ekkie had the current starter motor fixed up and in good working order. We decided to stay and enjoy the hospitality in Tsumeb nevertheless.

The last night that we stayed out on the farm we slept out at one of the cattle watering points. Sunset there was quite an affair with kudu, guinea fowl, baboons, mongooses, warthogs and abundant birdlife all making guest appearances. The baboons up on the hillside kept us on our toes during the night with their alarm calls. That night we had our first solid - non-booze imposed - sleep in a while.

Friday we headed back into town for the party at the G-Spot that night. Saturday we watched the car rally which was a first for both of us. Concentration levels weren't the best though, with the headaches and all. Cindy was navigating for one of the teams, so we got to hear a fair bit about the race afterwards.

Sat night was a big party with all the Tsumeb and out-of-towners pitching up for a post-rally party. And what a party... For us it ended with a 180km/h spin around the outskirts of Tsumeb in a little Toyota, at 3:30am.

Sunday we thought would be a quiet relaxing day with a braai in town and not much else. Of course the braai turned into yet another intoxicating event and we managed to drag our alcohol sodden carcasses back to Werner and Andrehet's place by late evening. With sadness - tinged with a little relief from our livers - we finally left Tsumeb for the Caprivi on Monday morning.

To any would-be travelers going through Tsumeb, we strongly advise (if you feel up to it) a night at the G-Spot. Ask for Werner and he'll introduce you around.

To all those who befriended us and showed us such hospitality in Tsumeb, a big THANK YOU. We'll be thinking of you all as we head through the Caprivi.