Day 1…. Cape Town to Cederberg Region. Thursday 21st November had me up early and in an Uber on the way to meet my fellow ‘camp mates’ for the next 20 days. 7am saw 12 strangers being very polite with each other on the streets of Cape Town, probably all a bit nervous about what was in store for us. Our ages range from 51-80+ years. There is a Danish couple, a Dutch couple, an Australian solo man and 7 Brits…..3 couples and solo me ? Our Guide for the next 20 days is a SA man called Norman (he’s young despite the name) and our driver is Chrispin (Chris), from Zimbabwe. We loaded up the trunk with our belongings, choose our seats and were on the way. After leaving Cape Town, we stopped briefly at Table Bay to have on last look at Table Mountain.
We travelled for a while to the Cederberg region in SA. This part of the country is called the ‘bread basket’ of SA because of the amount of wheat and other crops that are grown here. It is also the home of the Rooibos bush and we visited a working Rooibos Tea farm. We saw the plants of the Rooibos and Buchu that grow naturally in the wild but are farmed here for exporting. These plants are indigenous to the mountain slopes of Cederberg and are unable to grow anywhere else in the world. Rooibos has earned an international reputation as a healthy and refreshing alternative to regular tea. Not being a tea drinking I felt I had to try some…not for me I’m afraid. Buchu is used as a herbal remedy for aches and pains as well as a ‘tea’ drink.
Accommodation for that night was very comfortable, much better than I was expecting.
Day 2 Cederberg to Gariep (Orange) River, Namibia. Another 5am start had us heading towards the Namibian boarder. On route we happened to pass near where Norman’s family live, Bitterfontein. Some of the teenagers from the village are off soon to Cape Town for the final of a ‘traditional’ dance competition, having won all their local heats. Norman very kindly arranged with the kids to show us their dance. What an amazing treat, something that I’m sure very few people get to witness. The young people were brilliant. The dance represents how tribe people would have communicated with each other before ‘language’. I feel so privileged to have seen this.
We continued north until we got to the boarder with Namibia. I may have mentioned before ‘I love a boarder’ ?. Nice easy process saw us 1 minute in South Africa, then on a bridge over Orange River (The boarder line) and into Namibia.
A short drive from the boarder and we were at our accommodation for the night. Really lovely ‘huts’ on the river bank, with great views etc.
Day 3….Gariep (Orange) River to Fish River Canyon. We were allowed a bit of a lie in today as no one wanted to get up early to do canoeing on the river ??. Back on the road and we were really getting into the desert now.
Spot the mountain zebra?
We continued travelling until we reached Ai-Ais National Park where we were going to spend the night at a hotel where there was a hot spring (a little underwhelming). Nice big out door swimming pool though, and baboons that were quite happy to go onto balconies and steal food from guests ?
Day 4…….River Fish Canyon to Keetmanshoop Back to an early start, and a ’gentle’ walk around the rim of the canyon. This was the 1st real test of the ‘state’ I had let myself get into since my bike accident. What should have been an easy walk saw me at the back, behind the 80 year olds, struggling, puffing and panting. But I didn’t give up and made it very red faced to the end, even though I had the choice to get a lift in the truck at the half way point. The group is now starting to really bond, and these ‘strangers’ were very encouraging to me and extremely supportive. Small achievement met ??
Lunch that day was at a really unusual ‘Roadhouse’. It was so quirky and unique (the food was ok too)
Our next stop was Quiver Tree Forest and Giants Playground. We also visited a place that looks after orphaned cheetahs and we saw them being fed. The Quiver Trees are amazingly beautiful and we watched the sun set through them.
Yep I am in the enclosure with real cheetahs!!! 
Finally, I am actually on day 16 of my trip, but due to long, tiring days and poor WiFi in most places, I’m a little behind with my blog. But lots of exciting things to write about as soon as I can ??
Oh how I love reading about your journey Michelle. It’s all so amazing. The scenery, the animals. The history of each place you have been to. You could write your own book when you come home. Look foreward to hearing about the next place you visit. Take care and keep safe. Jill xxx
Thank you Jill ??