After crossing the border between Namibia and Botswana, our first stop is in Ghanzi, home of the Bushmen, the oldest group of humans, at about 100 000 years. These tribes are spread between different countries and are becoming fewer and fewer over the years. Nowadays, they have rights to live over most of the land, but still have a hard time to be able to continue their traditions, like hunting and migrating. The Bushmen are highly respected here, they are considered wise and strong. They live all their lives outside and when you look at them you feel they have an incredible sense of confidence. It is almost like you are immediately convinced that they know better. Many young people from this group has tried to go to school, but most fail and go back to their groups. I ask the guy who is bringing us around how old the oldest woman is, he translates to her and then she looks at me and starts talking. Her skin is thick and dry, the wrinkles are deep, but she is extremely agile and flexible, she could be 80, but she sits on the ground and gets up very quickly, like a kid. I don’t understand anything and just nod (like Merly Streep in Out of Africa, talking to the chief of the Kikuyu), but I feel an immense sense of respect for her. She doesn’t know how old she is, there is not such thing as birth certificate, she just remembers that when she was a kid there were no cars around…

We are still in the Kalahari, the semi-arid desert which covers most of Botswana and Namibia and also extends to South Africa. Everything is dry, sandy and dusty, but we are soon leaving to one of the most spectacular and rich area of Botswana: the Okavango Delta. The Okavango river flows into the desert forming an immense delta which makes an impressive contrast between the desert in the South and the rich, green and wet area in the North. We camp in Manu for the night and get ready for a 2 day outdoors experience in the delta. We bring just our tents, water and sun screen. To reach the different islands in the shallow delta, the local people move around on extremely low canoes: the mokoro. We get into the mokoro and receive instructions NOT to move, no matter what…these little boats flip easily. Like on a gondola, at the back of the mokoro stands a guy pushing the boat forward with a long wooden pole.

The water is relatively shallow and the reeds are dense, but it’s easy to move around along some small channels between the reeds. It’s a relaxing feeling to just sit down and feel the wind in your face. Just a few drops of water to keep you awake. On the islands of the delta all animals are free so we need to camp in thick vegetation, this way we’ll hear if some animals will come close during the night. Around here there is no electricity, no toilet (so we make a hole in the ground), but a filling sense of nature. When darkness comes, it’s pitch black and when it is silent, it’s dead silent. Now we can take a walking safari, which is one of the most exciting things ever! You know there could be a wrong turn and there is no running which is fast enough! We make small groups of 5 and start walking together with our guides. It’s full of life and animal tracks: elephants, hippos, zebras, hyenas and so on. As we get closer to a swamp, we can hear some noise, we get closer very slowly and there it is: a group of elephants few meters from us bathing. It’s beautiful. In the afternoon we get back to the mokoro and sail around until sunset, which is spectacular over the water. The red is so intense as if the sky is bleeding, a few hippos in the distance calling out to remind us the delta belongs to them, but we are welcome for a little while. The night comes very quickly and we enjoy the company of the guides, who sing and dance for us.

Juliana prepares a great breakfast with french toasts cooked on the fire and some hot coffee. It’s then time to go back to the mokoro and to our camp site in Manu. The girls will cook tonight and tomorrow we are off to Chobe National Park, on the border to Zambia.