Africa – 29th Sept 2008 – Day 28

After breakfast we said our goodbyes and drove to Winkhoek, a five hour drive. We had decided not to go to the mountains but to chill out by the hotel pool instead.

However, as we approached the hotel we saw a large cement lorry delivering a load right next to our next hotel. Yes, Audley has done it again. We had come here to relax by the pool but the pool was overlooked by a large team of workmen and the building work noise was constant. We tried to contact our travel agent but lack of phone signal and internet connection thwarted our attempts.

After settling into our very nice room, we drove down to town to get some Namibian Dollars as we needed to fill Winston up with Diesel and all petrol stations in Namibia refuse credit or debit cards.

We found a bank and John ran over and joined the security queue for the ATM machine. Here everything that has value is overseen by security men, including all ATM machines.

After returning to the building site, we sat around the pool, trying to relax but failing miserably.

We endured the conditions until 5.20 pm when the car hire man turned up, inspected Winston and then drove him away. We will miss Winni. He got us out of a few sticky situations and kept us safe and cool in Namibia.

John managed to contact his Mum this afternoon. Unfortunately Johns Dad is still in hospital. His hand and arm are improving but he has now had an allergic reaction to the new antibiotics so he is covered with a very itchy rash. They now want to keep him in hospital until they can sort out the rash and confirm that the infection in his hand and arm is under control.

At 7pm our taxi arrived to take us to Joe’s Beer Bar. As we came out of the car port we noticed some armed guards. They seem to guard certain areas of the city.

Our taxi took us too the door and we agreed to phone him and to wait for him to come into the bar and collect us once we had finished.

The bar was in fact a very good restaurant. John had prawn Chow Mein and Fifi had a massive beef fillet. Both meals were fantastic, Fiona saying it was the best steak she had ever had.

Our taxi arrived on time but it also had a German man inside who had asked for a ride!!

He had just arrived in Windhoek. He said we was addicted to the place. John said he was not surprised due to Namibia being so Germanic. He reacted badly, saying this simply was not true, as if John had meant it as a criticism, which it was not.
We sat in bed with a cuppa and watched the USA $700 Billion Financial Bail out Bill fail in congress. What a mess the banking world is in, and it’s all down to greed. At least one of the speakers said just this. We just heard that Bradford and Bingly Building Society have been Nationalised. Where has all the money gone? Where have all those billions of profits they have spent the last 10 years telling us about gone to???