Miles and Money
Blog: Africa Attraction - 22 September 2009
By: Olli
A long-wheel based Land Rover with all the trimmings, weighs just over two tonnes and is 4,599mm (not including the winch) long. For the inexperienced (us), it’s more like driving a tank than a car. Our first day started out rather shakily (me nearly reversing over Giles – hilarious, yes, but would have been a pain since we wouldn’t have been able to split the driving three ways), but as time and distance passed, with each of us taking our turn behind the wheel, we became more comfortable with the vehicle’s handling, weight, and engine. Confidence grew.
Our automotive education was set against a backdrop as eclectic as our journey’s soundtrack (we didn’t know how to work the i-Pod adaptor): the craggy terrain that tore into the bright blue sky soon ironed out into thirsty scrubland, then classical desert, which eventually crashed into the sea. This collision of wasteland and water is punctuated by Swakopmund – a surreal toy town for local and German holidaymakers.
Since December is holiday high season in Namibia, the town was all but empty when we arrived – its emptiness accentuated by wide, dusty roads and twee toy-town buildings (puzzlingly described in guidebooks as ‘traditional’ colonial German architecture).
Africa’s big – this goes without saying – but I never appreciated just how big until we finished our first day of driving. We’d travelled for six hours on well maintained roads (gravel for the most part). If not for the previous night’s escapades, we could have set off, and consequently arrived, earlier than we did. Nonetheless, we felt we’d had a good innings that day – until we charted our progress on the map. We’d covered just over the width of a thumbnail (221 miles in reality). The distance that lay ahead (over 16,000 miles) spanned over three huge maps. Refuelling was another reality check: N$518 (£50) to fill up. So far, we’ve used at least half a tank every day. The maths isn’t looking promising.
Our automotive education was set against a backdrop as eclectic as our journey’s soundtrack (we didn’t know how to work the i-Pod adaptor): the craggy terrain that tore into the bright blue sky soon ironed out into thirsty scrubland, then classical desert, which eventually crashed into the sea. This collision of wasteland and water is punctuated by Swakopmund – a surreal toy town for local and German holidaymakers.
Since December is holiday high season in Namibia, the town was all but empty when we arrived – its emptiness accentuated by wide, dusty roads and twee toy-town buildings (puzzlingly described in guidebooks as ‘traditional’ colonial German architecture).
Africa’s big – this goes without saying – but I never appreciated just how big until we finished our first day of driving. We’d travelled for six hours on well maintained roads (gravel for the most part). If not for the previous night’s escapades, we could have set off, and consequently arrived, earlier than we did. Nonetheless, we felt we’d had a good innings that day – until we charted our progress on the map. We’d covered just over the width of a thumbnail (221 miles in reality). The distance that lay ahead (over 16,000 miles) spanned over three huge maps. Refuelling was another reality check: N$518 (£50) to fill up. So far, we’ve used at least half a tank every day. The maths isn’t looking promising.
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