Camping at Omega One Police Station, 90 km from Divundu
Distance 134 + 10025 = 10159
Average 18.1
Time 7 h 21 m
Total from Amsterdam 15559
Location S18.040497, E22.199487

Nicol’s free range chickens and guinea fowl run around his garden and don’t get slaughtered for the pot, yayyy. A couple of  guinea fowl flew over the fence this morning and when we left they were running along the fence, outside, trying to get back into the garden, doff animals. We left 07h44 after a delay that was my fault. I’d left two packets of lemon cream biscuits resting on my front pannier and they fell into the spokes of the wheel. Biscuits got graunched and the wheel monitor of my bike computer broke, a cable tie fixed it and it’s registering my speed, distance etc. We bought vacuum packed frozen mince for tonight’s supper which I put in my clothing bag to thaw slowly. Within a few kms after leaving Kongola we saw zillions of hornbills, grey loeries, stacks of lilac breasted rollers, two fish eagles and a few raptors. Also saw a few buck running in the reeds in shallow waters … splashing with each romp. What a lovely sight to witness. Also saw quite a few water buck. In Afrikaans they’re commonly known as a ‘kringgat bok’ as they have a round white ring around their bottoms.

A police roadblock stopped us and the lady constable asked to see our passports, the first time ever since leaving Cairo. We rode through the Bwabwata National Park and saw two rhinos, zebra, two hyens and ellie dung but not one seen.

Nicol was telling Peter last night that his wife contracted cerebral malaria about four months ago. It was diagnosed only three days after she fell ill. She was in a coma for four days and still suffers from pins and needles in her heels and has no feeling in a few of her fingers. A lucky lady to have recovered. Stopped for egg mayo sandwiches and saw no blue bakkie in either of my front panniers. We took turns eating our oats out of this bowl this morning (that nicol said we could have) then Peter rinsed it and put it on the drying rack ????. So back to square one, no bowls and tomorrow we’ll eat our raw oats out of our mugs. Don’t have milk or bananas so may have bread instead or water with our cereal ??. Oh for a bowl of muesli, yoghurt, honey, nuts and cranberries. Flat road, s

mooth tar with quite a few patched potholes had us cruising when at 82 km Peter said he had a flat back tyre. Another small split in the seam. Five motor cycles stopped to offer assistance but Peter’s a pro at fixing punctures so they zoomed off on to Katima Mulilo. With dry throats and drinking warm water I decided that I’d ask the next overland vehicle for cold water … when a few vehicles stopped and Raini and Christiane Becker from Swakopmund stopped, filled our bottles with chilled water and gave Peter a Windhoek Draft beer which he slugged back … and a few chic chip cookies. They say things go in threes … blue bakkie left behind, Peter’s puncture and then I got tummy cramps and before I could say Bob’s your uncle I was scouting for a spot (away from locals walking along the road) to do what nature decides at most inopportune moments has to be done very soon ????. Got that out of the way, cramps gone and we were gunning it hoping to break our record of 145 km but decided to call it a day when we saw the snazzy and modern Omega One Police Station with Constable Muronga giving us permission to pitch our tent next to the charge office and the use of the mens toilets. He even gave us chilled water from a dispenser and told us that we could buy cooldrinks 1 km down the road. Pitched tent and found the shabeen Cons Muronga was referring to, where we bought a quart Tafel beer for Peter and a Hunters Dry cider for me. We perched our bums on a bench outside the loos and polished off our drinks snd a packet of nuts and raisins in no time. I felt super relaxed and a bit tipsy. Next was washing ourselves in cold water using the hand basin, hair can be washed tomorrow. Supper cooked and eaten out of the two lids of our pot and now tucked up in bed and about to read a bit before ?????? takes over. Night all, thanks for following, Peter’s already snoring ????

– Water buck grazing and drinking in the shallows of the river

– The Bwabwata National Park

– Namibia have ‘the’ best picnic spots

– Raini and Christiane Becker from Swakopmund and German friends

– Our campsite at the Omega One Police Station

– I hate going to bed with dirty feet ??