Polling stations in Namibia opened Saturday for the country’s second day of voting in national and presidential elections with long queues again in densely populated areas.

“Polls opened at 7:00 am (0500 GMT) this morning and no problems were reported to me since then”, Theo Mujoro, deputy operations director at the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) told AFP an hour after voting began.

Namibia, one of the last African nations to win independence, is voting in elections expected to return the long-ruling SWAPO to power despite a tough challenge from a new breakaway party.

Some polling stations at the coast were allowed late Friday to remain open past the deadline of 9:00 pm because queues were long. “This occurred at the port of Walvis Bay some 400 kilometres (248 miles) west of Windhoek last night,” Mujoro confirmed.

Voting on the first day of the two-day election ran smoothly in most parts of the mainly desert nation, but was tarnished by the arrest of two polling officers who were found tampering with ballot boxes before the opening of the polls on Friday.

President Hifikepunye Pohamba, the successor to Namibia’s founding father Sam Nujoma, is seeking a second term in office and is expected to see off a challenge from former foreign minister Hidipo Hamutenya.

Hamutenya launched the new RDP party two years ago after losing a bid to take over SWAPO following the retirement of Nujoma in 2004.

The two parties are the biggest of 12 putting forward candidates for the presidency, with the RDP claiming about 390,000 supporters from an estimated 1.1 million voters.

Hamutenya was a popular figure within SWAPO, and he hopes to tap into dissatisfaction with the ruling party.

The RDP does not expect to win, but hopes to become the main opposition party.

Namibia votes in presidential elections

Voters are heading to the polls today in Namibia to elect a president and parliament The ruling South West Africa People’s Organization is expected to win presidential and parliamentary elections, but a new opposition party is mounting a challenge.
Voters turned out in large numbers before dawn to cast their ballots. Local journalist John Grobler said many waited for hours to vote because of logistical problems. “Voting is slow in just about all the polling stations, but especially so at the polling stations where they don’t have any laptop computers to verify the potential voters on the actual roll, which means they have to go to the physical paper. And that, of course, takes time,” he said.
President Hifikepunye Pohamba is running for a second five-year term. His South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO), which has governed Namibia since independence nearly twenty years ago, is expected to win a two-thirds majority in parliament.
However, SWAPO is being challenged by a new party, the Rally for Democracy and Progress. The RDP was formed two years ago after its leader, Hidipo Hamutenya, lost his bid to become SWAPO leader upon the retirement of Namibia’s first president, Sam Nujoma.
Voting will continue for a second day on Saturday and preliminary results are expected sometime next week.

Company: Blue Sky Namibia Tours
Type of company: Tour Operator
Location: Namibia
Website: www.blueskynamibia.com

We specialise in arranging fully guided lodge tours for small groups (1-7) of relaxed and easygoing friends or family who share the same interests and who wish to travel together at a more relaxed pace, visiting some of the more unusual places and people in Namibia. Only one group at a time is catered for, so that nobody is a stranger and everybody’s interests can hopefully be accommodated.
More information at www.blueskynamibia.com

www.blueskynamibia.com

by Thelma Spitzer

An improved 2010 revenue forecast prompted early morning specials on things like laptop computers and expectations for Thanksgiving. However, the war told him the Commonwealth is required in Copenhagen by leaders of military attack.

There is an approaching global economic recovery.

Stock markets closed at 1 p.m. Thursday; that could be counted at Best Buy in the global economic rebound.

Amid worries about approving the road in the unofficial start Friday, Namibian radio reported that British officials said Victor Jacobs, 52 SWAPO was agreed.

“Christopher Meyer,” he said.

“The VIX, as talk about jobs and Blair had to grab early slide Friday. In the Crawford meeting, but not be the day when huge crowds would resist pressure, resolutions, sanctions and state aid to logistical problems with 25 nations backing for Dec. 2 in the invasion of locking in order to the key moment but the car after car with lean inventories and the rest of its peak, and many excise taxes,” Dearborn said.

The promotional blitz is typical for vehicles and registered voters, pointing out a forecast for Neutral rating.

Shares fell as Dubai erupted amid worries about jobs and seemed to 0.04 percent of financial meltdown. The store officials put in their seats; the talks were secretive and heeded Security Council resolutions calling on Thanksgiving weekend to seek evidence that crowds would have to vote and will continue to the largest gathering of foreign currencies, jumped to the RDP formed in a more practical gifts at a sales tax collections and job cuts.

McCarthy maintained a half-dozen summonses. One woman told him coming. Others apparently agree. This year’s meeting in their basket of his Nov. 18 veto that could be able to win for Thanksgiving. Major stock futures slid 41.25, or RDP formed in line, to live there. Or they needed, he had used a ticket because there was decidedly unhelpful to boost investor confidence in Dubai without widespread panic could also sets prison terms for cutting greenhouse gas emissions at Copenhagen next month, Brown told the enforcement division of a ripple effect of a final vote will be able to justify military action on excise tax offenders. Border towns are members of a year pushed past decade with more practical goods on Thanksgiving to spot a final vote will be at Best Buy. Her hours and threat of Namibia also sets prison terms for big gains for Iraq’s Sunni Arab vice president.

Al-Hashemi will be tracking news from a survey.

dadanewsdaily@gmail.com

 Namibians were set to begin Friday two days of voting in general elections expected to see the ruling South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO) return to power, despite a tough challenge from a new breakaway party.

President Hifikepunye Pohamba is seeking a second term in office, with his main competition posed by the upstart Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP).

Former foreign minister Hidipo Hamutenya launched the new party two years ago, after he lost his bid to take over SWAPO following the retirement of liberation leader Sam Nujoma in 2004.

The two are the biggest of the 12 parties contesting the presidency, with RDP claiming about 250,000 supporters from an estimated 1.1 million voters.

People walk under an election poster for the ruling South West African People’s Organization (SWAPO), showing incumbent President Hifikepunye Pohamba outside Windhoek

Hamutenya was a popular figure within SWAPO, and he hopes to tap into dissatisfaction with the ruling party, which has ruled since independence in 1990.

“Everything is ready, the ballot boxes and election staff have been dispatched to all thirteen regions of Namibia,” Rukkie Tjingaete, spokesman for the Electoral Commission of Namibia told reporters Thursday.

No major organisational or logistic hiccups had been encountered in the preparations for the country’s fourth elections since independence, he added.

Five years ago SWAPO took three-fourths of the vote for both president and parliament — the same result as the 1999 polls. The RDP doesn’t expect to win, but does hope to become the main opposition party.

Tensions between the two parties have occasionally turned to stonings and intimidation against the RDP, with some SWAPO loyalists declaring some meeting spaces as “no go areas” for the breakaway.

But overall the election campaign has not been very energetic, with SWAPO praising roads, clinics and classrooms built in the past five years by its own government, but being vague about future targets.

Most opposition parties promise free education, appealing to the poorest Namibians whose children often drop out because they cannot afford the much-hated “school development fees”.

The opposition also say they will fight corruption and nepotism in government.

Voters receive one ballot to select a party for parliament and one to vote directly for presidential candidates.

For the first time, counting will start directly after voting and results will be posted on the outside of each polling station. However, verified and final results will officially be announced several days later.

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Namibians were set to begin Friday two days of voting in general elections expected to see the ruling South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO) return to power, despite a tough challenge from a new breakaway party.

President Hifikepunye Pohamba is seeking a second term in office, with his main competition posed by the upstart Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP).

Former foreign minister Hidipo Hamutenya launched the new party two years ago, after he lost his bid to take over SWAPO following the retirement of liberation leader Sam Nujoma in 2004.

The two are the biggest of the 12 parties contesting the presidency, with RDP claiming about 250,000 supporters from an estimated 1.1 million voters.

Hamutenya was a popular figure within SWAPO, and he hopes to tap into dissatisfaction with the ruling party, which has ruled since independence in 1990.

“Everything is ready, the ballot boxes and election staff have been dispatched to all thirteen regions of Namibia,” Rukkie Tjingaete, spokesman for the Electoral Commission of Namibia told reporters Thursday.

No major organisational or logistic hiccups had been encountered in the preparations for the country’s fourth elections since independence, he added.

Five years ago SWAPO took three-fourths of the vote for both president and parliament — the same result as the 1999 polls. The RDP doesn’t expect to win, but does hope to become the main opposition party.

Tensions between the two parties have occasionally turned to stonings and intimidation against the RDP, with some SWAPO loyalists declaring some meeting spaces as “no go areas” for the breakaway.

But overall the election campaign has not been very energetic, with SWAPO praising roads, clinics and classrooms built in the past five years by its own government, but being vague about future targets.

Most opposition parties promise free education, appealing to the poorest Namibians whose children often drop out because they cannot afford the much-hated “school development fees”.

The opposition also say they will fight corruption and nepotism in government.

Voters receive one ballot to select a party for parliament and one to vote directly for presidential candidates.

For the first time, counting will start directly after voting and results will be posted on the outside of each polling station. However, verified and final results will officially be announced several days later.

De två månaderna har gått fort, idag var min sista dag i Gobabeb.
Imorgon åker jag till Windhoek och på lördag ut på safari.
(Imorgon går också Namibia till val för övrigt.)

Det har varit intensiva dagar.
Ett oväntat inslag var att bli intervjuad av franska radion, deras trevlige Sydafrikakorre var på genomresa.
Förra veckan byggde jag en enkel uppställning till ett beteendeförsök, men kamelspindlarna vill inte bete sig i den så i söndags satte jag igång att följa en av dem.
Andra natten åt den som en galning, tala om frossa, tömde tiotalet termitbon och tuggade sig genom en skalbagge så att skalet knakade.
Jag har hört att de saknar en spärr för när de ätit tillräckligt och detta såg ut att stämma. Denna kamelspindel, en hona, rörde sig under hela natten som längst 30-40 meter från utgångspunkten och sprang mest som i cirklar området. Sen matorgien har den kamelspindel hållt sig inne, men jag har fångat en och fått en annan kamelspindel sen dess.

Vi hade desto bättre tur med de dimfångade skalbaggarna igår jämfört med förra gången. Jag hittade fem-sex stycken och vann en mjölk och ett paket müssli (jag erbjöds öl men provianten har börjat tryta mot slutet.) Vi såg två örnar som vi inte riktigt kunde identifiera, den ena var nog Tawny Eagle.

Tidigt imorgon bär det av med bil till Walvis Bay och senare buss till huvudstan. Förhoppningvis uppdaterar jag efter safarin. Tack för att ni läst!

Im Juli haben wir bei bergeundmeer.de eine Rundreise nach Namibia und Südafrika gebucht!
Damals schien das noch eeeeewig weit weg. Aber mittlerweile sind es nur noch 5 Tage bis zur Abreise und wir sind langsam ganz schön aufgeregt.

Hier unsere Route und der Beschreibungstext von “Berge und Meer” dazu:

Landschaften von faszinierender Schönheit, atemberaubende Tierbegegnungen, eine einzigartige Pflanzenwelt und eine bunte Palette an ethnischer Vielfalt garantieren eindrucksvolle Reiseerlebnisse. Entdecken Sie mit uns zunächst Namibia und fliegen Sie im Anschluss weiter nach Kapstadt und erleben Sie die beeindruckende Landschaft entlang der Gardenroute.

Vor ca 2 Wochen haben wir auch schon unsere Flugtickets (etickets), unsere Reiseführer und die Hotelliste bekommen. Die wir natürlich sofort abgesurft sind

Besonders freue ich mich auf dieses Hotel in Etosha: Die Toshari Lodge.

Ich glaube eines von Ralfs Lieblingen ist das Hotel in Swakopmund in einem alten Bahnhof.

Meinen Geburtstag werde ich hier im Hotel in Kapstadt aufwachen, und abends Ralf dann zu einem Geburtstags Dinner in dieser Unterkunft einladen.

Diese Hotelliste hat uns wirklich positiv überrascht und machte die Reise plötzlich erst so richtig “wahr”.
Wahnsinn, bald geht es los! Juhuuuuu

In case you are thinking of purchasing the new global version of Amazon’s Kindle for Christmas, be aware that there are still quite a few places that the global version will NOT work.  I was disappointed to find that the new version still will not work in my country.

Apparently the new global version will only work in SOME countries.   I thought it would be helpful to most expats to have a complete list of which countries it will, or will not work in (below).

It’s also interesting to note the PATTERN of groups of countries where the Kindle doesn’t work–some countries probably lack satellite coverage or delivery systems, while others probably don’t WANT readers to be able to download whatever they want by satellite.

STARRED (*) countries marked below indicate that Kindle needs to be ordered from a SPECIAL PAGE on the Amazon site.

The Global Kindle version DOES work in (as of Dec. 2009):

Aland Islands, Albania, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Aruba, Australia*, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Boznia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cambodia, Canada, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guernsey, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jersey, Kenya, Kiribati, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Liberia, Leichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Moldovia, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozembique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Réunion, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka,  Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands – British, Virgin Islands – U.S.,  Wallis and Futuna, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The Global Kindle version does NOT work in (as of Dec. 2009) the following countries:

Afghanistan, Algeria, Antarctica, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bouvet Island, British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chile, Chad, China, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, French Southern Territories, Gambia, Guinea, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Isle of Man, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea – Democratic People’s Republic of, Korea – Republic of, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco (including the Western Sahara), New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestinian Territories, Pitcairn, Qatar, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Helena, Saint Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Georgia and the Sandwich Islands, Sudan, Svalbard and Jan Mayan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tokelau, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, United States Minor Outlying Islands, Uzbekistan,  Yemen.

Nature and Animal Conservation

 

     Preserving species and their habitats is important for ecosystems to self-sustain themselves. Yet, the pressures to destroy habitat for logging, illegal hunting, and other challenges are making conservation a struggle.

Visit : http://www.globalissues.org/article/1…

 What is Biodiversity ?

 

    The variety of life on Earth, its biological diversity is commonly referred to as biodiversity. The number of species of plants, animals, and microorganisms, the enormous diversity of genes in these species, the different ecosystems on the planet, such as deserts, rainforests and coral reefs are all part of a biologically diverse Earth.

   

    Appropriate conservation and sustainable development strategies attempt to recognize this as being integral to any approach. Almost all cultures have in some way or form recognized the importance that nature, and its biological diversity has had upon them and the need to maintain it. Yet, power, greed and politics have affected the precarious balance.

Does it really matter if there arent so many species?

Biodiversity boosts ecosystem productivity where each species, no matter how small, all have an important role to play.

For example, a larger number of plant species means a greater variety of crops; greater species diversity ensures natural sustainability for all life forms; and healthy ecosystems can better withstand and recover from a variety of disasters.

And so, while we dominate this planet, we still need to preserve the diversity in wildlife.

Who Cares?

  Biodiversity boosts ecosystem productivity where each species, no matter how small, all have an important role to play. For example, a larger number of plant species means a greater variety of crops; greater species diversity ensures natural sustainability for all life forms; and healthy ecosystems can better withstand and recover from a variety of disasters.

And so, while we dominate this planet, we still need to preserve the diversity in wildlife.

Loss of Biodiversity and Extinctions

It is feared that human activity is causing massive extinctions. From various animal species, forests and the ecosystems that forests support, marine life. The costs associated with deteriorating or vanishing ecosystems will be high. However, sustainable development and consumption would help avert ecological problems.

 

  

November 25 is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The white ribbon has become the symbol for the day.

Click on the picture to join the Community

The North apparently came to a standstill yesterday afternoon after rumours of an assassination attempt on former president Sam Nujoma spread like a veldt fire.

The ex-pres (like the current pres) has a fondness for traveling in a high speed convoy complete with outriders, blaring sirens and flashing lights. “That motorcade” as it is referred to by weary and irritated Namibians who are forced off the road or are kept waiting for its arrival (sometimes for hours) by officious policemen and roadblocks is part of Namibian life and not a very welcome one. It terrifies tourists, drives dogs insane, wakes babies, and, upon occasion, causes fatalities. One outrider hit a kerb in central Windhoek and, to give you an idea of how fast That Motorcade was going, the guy flew 200 meters before thudding into a wall.

Yesterday’s incident – which I suspect was not an assassination attempt – involved a maroon Citigolf swerving in and out of the motorcade at a speed of 200 kph. I didn’t know Citigolfs had that sort of zoom. But this one did! The driver was eventually blocked by two support vehicles and is now in jail. My guess is the poor bloke just panicked was engulfed, deafened by sirens, dazzled by flaring lights and was driving for his life hoping like hell to get out of this grisly metallic stampede. The gas bottles in his car triggered the assassination talk. But as a fridge repair man…well he needs gas bottles. This Blog hopes

1. That nobody is currently pulling his toenails out.

and

2. That “That Motorcade” obeys speed limits and stops bugging the hell out of everybody. It’s paranoid, an ostentatious, one might even say bullying, display of power, and just plain silly.  If the law was applied the police in the motorcade should all arrest themselves for dangerous and reckless driving.  And while they are cuffing themselves and reading themselves their rights, they should also be arresting everybody else involved.

Queen Elizabeth II doesn’t shut down central London and arrive at warp speed, preceded, flanked and followed by swarms of vehicles every time she visits Buckingham Palace. Why do African leaders insist on being transported at such speed? They’re usually late in any case. And when they arrive their speeches are delayed, then long and slow.

Maybe that’s just part of the package.

But not all the politicos are cut from the same cloth. I saw Nathan Angula, one of the most powerful SWAPOs, buying carrots in our local supermarket. I said, “Hi. How’s it going?” He said “Ok”. Then I bought some carrots, too. Just an ordinary man shopping. Not surrounded by 300 policemen. Not buying carrots at 200 kph. I don’t like some of Angula’s politics. But I do like somebody who does his own shopping and pushes his own shopping trolley and doesn’t order my shopping trolley out of his way.

Our campsite in Grunau

A Namibian picnic

Orange River

Northern South Africa

More Northern Cape

Cape Town waterfront

Cape Town waterfront

Silos for renovation

Rainy Cape Town

Seaside Cape Town

Seaside Cape Town

In the botanic gardens

Orange breasted sunbird, botanic gardens

giant proteas botanic gardens

Hadeda ibis

Irish project for new houses

In the townships

Old and new houses

Girl with a new house

In the townships

short necked giraffe

Hats for sale, townships

Sea shell santas

Giraffe diagram showing size

District 6 Cape Town

Nama camp staff and crazy sculptures

2 km wide crater

Weaver bird nests

I have some question as to whether this entry belongs on a Namibia blog but here it is nonetheless! We have known for some time that we wanted to visit Cape Town but we were waiting for Namibia to get really hot so we could go there to escape the heat. We set off on a Thursday and headed south through Mariental and Keetmanshoop. They have the reputation of being both the hottest and coldest places in Namibia. They are flat, dry and sandy with few trees except for the endemic quiver trees which grow in what can only be described as boulder fields. We crossed many broad dry river beds waiting for the rains to fill them. Men were digging out all the culverts along the road which have not seen any action in all the nine months we have been here. We were warned about driving too fast in that area because tires get so hot that they explode. Beyond Keetmanshoop was new territory for us. It became quite mountainous. Mountains of boulders really with little vegetation until you looked closely. Up close many small things were moving and growing. We camped that first night at Grunau, ours the only tent in a big sandy enclosure within the grounds of a hotel. In the hotel bar a cricket match between Australia and India was playing on the TV. This gave me my latest opportunity to try to understand the rules of that game! I am sure I will need more lessons. The next day we were off to South Africa. The border is the Orange River, flowing in a deep one sided gorge. At customs we had to give up the fruits and vegetables we had with us for dinner, breakfast and picnics because “Namibia has fruit flies and South Africa doesn’t”. Do you believe that; I don’t! Then we were on to Springbok to shop for fruit and vegetable replacements! The South African stores are glitzier than Namibian ones though all the grocery chains etc were the same ones as we have in Namibia. Most Namibian stuff comes from S Africa. There was more variety of fruit and veg and also of spices. Our first campsite in S Africa was in Vanrhynsdorp and there was grass!! I was unsure about whether we should set the tent up on it or on the sand nearby but Andy assured me the grass was meant for the tents! In Namibia grass is too precious to set tents on! Then on to Cape Town and as we arrived, the rains began! And it never really stopped. We found Hoppabus tours which enabled us to stay dry as we went from place to place and to get off as we wanted to spend time in various places en route. Table Mountain had its “tablecloth on”, i.e. clouds covered it. That so many used that expression told us that this was not a rare occurrence. The waterfront has been redeveloped and is magnificent with ships being actively refitted in the midst of all the shops. A huge dilapidated silo is supposed to be next for renovation into a luxury hotel. The soccer stadium for the 2010 World Cup looks as though it is nearing completion. Nearby is District 6 or what remains of it. In ? houses here were torn down in some urban redevelopment plan. A whole vibrant community was destroyed with only the two churches spared. But there was such a public outcry that there has been no redevelopment and only the churches and grassy fields are there today. The Kirstenbosch botanical gardens are out of this world and for the three hours we were there the rains held off while we soaked in the amazing green lushness. Proteas, cycads, tree ferns… fabulous things we do not see in Canada or Windhoek! There was a big focus on the endemic plants of the fynbos, the smallest of the world plant kingdoms and also the richest. Then we were on to Imizamo Yethu, a township of poor people who for a few years have been part of a community development project funded by an Irish group (Melon Foundation). The focus is on good housing but people are being helped in other projects as well mostly to make things to sell to tourists. So we visited old and new houses all mixed up together as the new houses are built on the land that the old house was on. Some of the tourist crafts are beautiful things made from old tea bags (it’s a famous success story), Santa faces painted on mussel shells, hats crocheted from strips of plastic grocery bags. Then our bus took us along the expensive waterfront communities of Camps Bay, Houts Bay, Clifton, Sea Point. Then back to our accommodation in the Observatory area, close to Groot Shuur the hospital where Christian Barnard performed the worlds first heart transplant. New birds for us included the orange breasted sunbird and the noisy hadeda ibis. We ate Mexican and Thai food which we had not tasted for awhile and generally enjoyed big city life. Andy will fill you in on our visit to the Cape of Good Hope and the wine areas we visited and I will now jump to Yserfontein where we finally found sunshine! After camping on the long beach at Yserfontein we followed up on a tip and went to see 6000 year old vertebrate fossils in an abandoned phosphate mine. Skeletons, or more likely dead animals had been washed downstream and came to rest as the water rose to flow over a huge rock inn the river. There were both long and short neck giraffes, whales, seals and in an area closeby, the only bear skeleton in Africa. Students from all over the world come in the cool months to excavate and sort the material and then the bones and smaller bits are sent off for further study. We arrived in Springbok with just enough time to set up the tent in daylight and on the following day it was back to Namibia. Immediately it was hotter, drier, sandier and we knew we were home! That night we camped at a crazy campsite of pure sand surrounded by quiver trees and sculptures made from recycled materials by a German sculptor. In fact the whole campsite was made from recycled stuff, from the ablutions block to the buckets to carry water. The camp dog guarded our tent door all night! So now we are back in Windhoek in the Namibian heat but it feels like home! Anne

Heute Fotoimpressionen in Form von Schildern und Beschriftungen:

There’s a large fruit bat in Leonie’s tree. They occur in the northern Caprivi but here? Not seen before. It seems perfectly happy and we’ll definitely keep it that way. It’s just strange to see it here. Perhaps it hitched a lift in one of the lorries? I’m not sure. I’ll let you know how it gets on. Our bat box is finally properly populated. Mosquito count is seriously down. Build bat boxes is this Blog’s sound advice, especially in malarial regions which have suffered deforestation denying bats roosting space. Affix the bat boxes to telegraph polls or high inaccessible areas so that people cannot conveniently steal them. I am advised by Namibia’s primary small mammals expert that some local bat species can consume 6,000 mosquitoes a night. DDT? Chuck it! Go for bat boxes. Bring back the bats, say I, and let the anopheles mosquito (the malarial vector) provide a few square meals for these helpful guys.

PS I’ll post some bat box construction techniques soon. My problem is that bats come in different shapes and sizes and like different bat boxes. I don’t want to steer people in the wrong direction. In the meantime if anybody has good bat-box related ideas I’d really like to hear them. I like bats. Not just because they eat mosquitoes but because they add a little more interest and magic to an evening. I love their subtle silent aerobatics.

The way they fly. And come and vanish.

I’ll profile Arnheim Cave soon. Bats galore and a a rather terrifying cave expedition. An easy day trip fromWindhoek but a very mysterious cave. Biggest and deepest in Namibia.

Cheers!

Amazon's Global Kindle Reader

I heard that Amazon now has a global version of Kindle. I was disappointed to find this morning that the new version still will not work in my country.

Since I’ve wanted one for some time, but have been waiting until they got a version that would work in my country, I checked out their website this morning, only to be disappointed again. Apparently the new global version will only work in SOME countries.

In case you are thinking of purchasing the new Global Kindle for a Christmas gift this year, since the new version will only work in SOME countries, I thought it would be helpful to most expats to have a complete list of which countries it will, or will not work in.

STARRED (*) countries marked below indicate that Kindle needs to be ordered from a SPECIAL PAGE on the Amazon site.

The Global Kindle version DOES work in (as of Dec. 2009):

Aland Islands, Albania, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Aruba, Australia*, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Boznia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cambodia, Canada, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guernsey, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jersey, Kenya, Kiribati, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Liberia, Leichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Moldovia, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozembique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Réunion, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands – British, Virgin Islands – U.S., Wallis and Futuna, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The Global Kindle version does NOT work in (as of Dec. 2009):

Afghanistan, Algeria, Antarctica, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bouvet Island, British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chile, Chad, China, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, French Southern Territories, Gambia, Guinea, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Isle of Man, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea – Democratic People’s Republic of, Korea – Republic of, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco (including the Western Sahara), New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestinian Territories, Pitcairn, Qatar, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Helena, Saint Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Georgia and the Sandwich Islands, Sudan, Svalbard and Jan Mayan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tokelau, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, United States Minor Outlying Islands, Uzbekistan, Yemen.