After leaving the Okavango delta region, we head north towards the border with Zambia. Before crossing we stay for two days close to Chobe National park, one of the most populated park in the area. It’s home to a large group of elephants, which we meet already along the road towards the camp site. We spend a couple of nights just close to the park to get the chance for an early morning game drive. For the first night the Italians have the duty of preparing dinner, which ended with bruschetta made with sweet bread! In some places anything goes!
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…
Our next destination is Etosha National Park in the north of Namibia. Everybody on the truck is extremely excited about seeing some animals, because after all this is Africa! We get there in time for a game drive before sunset. The park, in particular this time of year, is an enormous dry plane, with little vegetation and little water. The main attractions of the park are its water holes. The first one we see is still quiet, only an old elephant there trying to cool down by spraying mud and water over himself.