A river runs through it

While we are feeling quite at home here in the capitol city, there are things that we are still amazed about this week. Like how the water that has completely washed out many of the paved side streets in many parts of the city. Water is running (not even standing) in places that we did not even realize there were river beds. Everything is so green here, and it keeps raining on and off. And yet Windhoek still has a serious water shortage problem. With all of the growth, I don't know how they can maintain this kind of expansion and still have enough water for everyone.

We are told that this is the high tourist season. That Windhoek has a high season especially starting this early in the year is remarkable. We could not stay a fourth night at the Chameleon Guesthouse because they were already booked. It's been interesting to see such a diverse group of people at this former old-school backpacker's place this week - families, young backpackers, older travelers, locals - that made it a different crowd from years past. For tonight, calls to a dozen other places did not yield anything. We finally found Casa Piccolo, a lovely guesthouse in Klein Windhoek, where we can sit in the shade to read and catch up on some internet business. The school in Kuwait has been sending us much to read and work on. It is odd being here in Africa and thinking so much about our lives there in Kuwait later this year.

As much as we enjoyed staying at the Chameleon and walking through town, we love the Klein Windhoek area, and spent a lot of time here when our friends Irene and John lived in town. It's where twelve years ago, I became addicted to the X-files, and could indulge in what seemed to be incredibly exotic food items such as stuffed grape leaves, hummus, olives, and pesto. What a haven from dusty Mariental that only featured iceberg lettuce and potatoes!

Portuguese might as well be the twelfth official Namibian language now. With the influx of foreign aid into Angola, there are also a lot of people with money in a country with little infrastructure. Windhoek is booming with Portuguese businesses, restaurants, bakeries, and guesthouses. There are brochures in Portuguese and apparently the medical industry is booming with people coming over the border. We are of course pleased with the addition of the eateries as we enjoy Portuguese food quite a bit.

We might be enjoying the food here too much. There is still a lot of meat in our daily diet more than we are used to. Tonight we will meet a friend at Joe's Bierhouse, a Windhoek tradition for it's fine selection of German beers and local game meat. Without doubt, it will be excellent!

We have been walking through much of the downtown area, and spending some time at Peace Corps. It's nice walking through the souvenier shops, sitting at the outdoor cafes, and getting simple errands done. In particular, I enjoy going into the pharmacies too look at the OTC drugs that you would normally need a prescription for. They are much cheaper than in the States too, and I will probably pick up a few small things as well as some homeopathic remedies.

Russ had to get more pages added to his passport and based on past experiences, we were dreading going to the US embassy. But the people there were pleasant, helpful, and seem to have their act together (none of which were the case twelve years ago). What irritates me ever so slightly is that the US government now charges USD 80 (previously free) for additional pages. Que sera sera...