Wednesday 3rd April 2013

I think I am finally starting to relax after a week on the trail as I had a really good night’s sleep last night. Or maybe we have good neighbours who allow us to sleep by being quiet. Whatever it is, it is good ……..

We have been debating about where we are going to get provisions as the shops are few and far between and do not stock any fresh fruit or veg. Whenever we ask the owners of the camps on the Orange River where they get their food they all say Springbok which is about 120 km from the border. We are not going that way so will have to scrounge some more. Even the farm stall in Namibia had no fresh stuff or much else for that matter.

There is a shop here at Ai-Ais where we bought some tinned food at exorbitant prices. It was rather funny really as the cashier has limited experience in how to add up and subtract for change. She uses a calculator even though there is a cash register and Lesley still spent ages trying to sort out change. By the time she was finished I had already gone to reception to pay for our stay as well as gone back to the car to fetch my towel (we were going swimming). Speaking about swimming, that was pretty much what we did all day.

We also caught up on our reading and went for a walk a little way up the river, which is totally dry at the moment even with the rain of the last few days.

So in short it was a chill day. Lesley has been chasing birds with the camera again and has managed to find quite a few different ones around here. L: I think I have identified one as a Blue Cheeked Bee-eater and a European Bee-eater.

We saw one baboon today and that was it. Also four mice in a tree.

One thing I have noticed since our last visit two years ago is that the place seems to be a bit run down. Maintenance seems to be a little lacking which is a pity. This is echoed by other campers who come here regularly.