Namibia - the first excursion of hope

Part of our humanitarian mission in Southern Africa is to end human trafficking by preventing it from happening in the first place. This heinous crime is happening worldwide, and the victims of this horrendous act are often our most vulnerable children. We aim to give an opportunity of hope for the futures of at risk teens and impoverished youth, a future in which they can stand on their own two feet with dignity and confidence. We want to give them hope for their future, and the future of wildlife, by equipping them with experience and skills in wildlife conservation. We believe that the conservation industry offers a life of abundance and aspiration, giving honest individuals the chance to lift themselves up, provide for their families, and take part in establishing a future for their entire country’s wildlife.

Through hands-on experiences in the natural world we will be introducing the kids to a possible career in wildlife conservation. And with continuing exposure to wildlife conservation and skills being shared by local guides and reserve teams, we will be able to start the youth on a path to completing nationally recognized qualifications like FGASA (Field Guides Association of Southern Africa). Which will then open the door to employment on local game reserves.

Report from Enslin and Savannah Scheepers:

Our day started early, with a fog from the Atlantic Ocean hovering over the little coastal town.

We met with the transport driver from Carlo’s Shuttle Service and headed to pick up the very excited youth at the local children’s home.

As we arrived we were greeted with waves, smiles, and a ton of energy!

The youth, whose ages ranged between 12-18 years, piled into the shuttle and eagerly awaited the start of the journey. A total count of ten. Many of these kids had never left their establishment their whole lives. This would be the first outing they had ever had.

It was a very lively two and a half hour journey. Not once did the drive lack laughter and happy chatter, and much singing. We enjoyed a good half of the journey laughing as all the kids sang every song they knew, which was quite an extensive playlist!

Some of the kids commented on the ever changing topography as we continued to drive, leaving behind high, pale dunes on the one side, contrasted with the Atlantic Ocean on the other, and this later morphed into flat, rocky desert, then changed into grassy plains and this slowly turned into bush country…with the Erongo Mountain range looming in the distant background. For many of them, this was the first time they had received an opportunity to witness the natural world and the diversity within their own country.

As we neared our destination, we pulled off the let everyone stretch their legs.

Many of the younger kids ran around taking everything in with gusto, cries of “I love nature!” was heard several times. They were totally overjoyed by the large rocks in the area, and tried to lift them. We have never seen kids so excited about a simple rock, but it goes to show how much this experience meant to them. And it certainly makes one more appreciative of our own lives that we often take for granted.

At some point, everyone noted a sign that indicated “Gems for Sale”.

A shop built of wood and tarp held a mini market of locals selling beautifully crafted gifts of gems and stones from throughout Namibia, everything from garnets to amethysts and sculptures made from wire and mica. All of the teens were awestruck by the beauty and variety of the shining gems, homemade earrings and necklaces.

We noticed that they were fascinated with the interesting gems, and after a brief consideration and some expert negotiations with the vendor, we were able to buy each of them a gem necklace to commemorate the experience. They were ecstatic! Seeing how incredibly grateful they were to have something unique and beautiful that could belong to them... It was extremely moving for us and cemented the absolute privilege it was to see them so happy over receiving this gift.

Once everyone had chosen their necklace, it was time to go. This was when we noticed two of the little daughters of one of the shop owners calling us to see their side of the market, so all of us went to the other side to see the other stalls. We spoke with the owners of each stall, and worked out a deal with them that every time we come by with a group we will buy a souvenir for each of the kids from all of them.

As this detour was coming to its end we noticed that one of the older kids was having a friendly conversation with one of the merchants, and went to see what the discussion was about, only to be surprised with what had transpired…

The vendor exclaimed “I know this kid’s uncle and I know this kid’s face, his uncle lives and works here.” And with the biggest smile we have ever seen the man rushed to the back and collected another gentleman, ushering him towards us. The likeness was uncanny. If we were not told this was his uncle we would have thought it was his father.

The children’s home house representative was called over and we excused ourselves from the rest of the conservation due to our respect for a delicate situation. We were informed later that the contact details of the man was collected and an investigation to the legitimacy of the claim will be verified.

At the end of the day, the youth, who recently turned 18, said that this made him extremely happy and made his day a wonderful experience because he thought that he didn’t have any other family left, he had arrived at the children’s home at a very young age living under the impression that he was alone...only to find a glimmer of hope on this wayward street in the middle of nowhere.

(A week later we were informed that this youth was in fact the nephew of the man. We are so happy to have such an incredible outcome like this for him!)

As we left behind the tar road and began the slow, bumpy drive on the gravel road, the kids didn’t miss a beat, commenting on how strangely wonderful and different it was for them riding in a car over the corrugated surface of the gravel road. There was a deafening sound of them holding their breath every time the car’s tire threw up a stone that hit the inner fender with a big bang.

The land around us became increasingly beautiful. We were met with tall, golden grass rippling in the warm breeze, acacias trees and sparse bush scattering the savannas, and towering red mountains and koppies (small peaks) outlining a blue sky.

The kids took everything in all the while, they asked questions on the new and exciting world they were witnessing, and they scoured the land for signs of wildlife. They were excited when we spotted a Kori Bustard, the largest flying bird in Africa, moving gracefully through the tall grass.

But then, looming out of the flat surroundings, rose the ancient granite peaks of Spitzkoppe...our grand destination.

As went entered the world renowned conservancy and unloaded from the shuttle, everyone was lost in wonder by the expansion before us. Many of the kids immediately took to climbing the surrounding boulders, exploring the various trees, and calling out in excitement as multiple species of lizards scampered about the rocks.

Our cultural guide awaited our arrival further in the park, and so all were excited to start hiking. We followed the road through the conservancy together, stopping from time to time to explore the wonders around us. There were many lizards and birds to identify, but identification took a back seat to pure excitement, we even saw a Kaoko Ground Squirrel which gave us a nice surprise during the walk.

The day was certainly heating up, but this was no hinderance to any of the teens, who mainly continued run up and down and climb on rocks throughout the hike. Their joy was palpable and they were all constantly looking for where the guide would be.

We met with the guide, Frans, who not only was happy to show us the 4,000 year old Bushman Paintings, but also offered a very exclusive tour to try and show the kids some more wildlife! Frans lead the way up the mountain, it was a straight up hike over various very massive, steep boulders. It was a good 20 minutes of climbing up, with an incredible view of the Erongo region from the top. From there, Frans lead the way downward a bit into any area of trees, and lead us to the massive over hang where we could take a break to sit down and catch our breath and view the multitude of paintings. Frans was an incredible guide and teacher and held the interest of the kids right through out his entire demonstration, we found him to be very knowledgeable about the paintings as well as the history of the surrounding area.

We called in for reinforcements and had the driver of our shuttle meet us at the bottom of the trail because at this point is was really hot and the kids were getting tired. We did the rest of the experience from the comfort of an air conditioned car.

From this point we went to exclusive section of the property where we were able to observe a group of Plains Zebra standing out in the open. Frans gave us permission to get out of the car and move a little closer on foot, most of the kids were so enthralled by this because they have never had the opportunity to see a zebra, let alone be as close to one as we were. This was definitely a highlight for some of the girls on the trip.

We headed for a location called the Golden Snake and, to the grave disappointment to some of the boys, there were no live snakes to be found, this feeling disappeared quickly though as Frans took us into a seemingly solid boulder, through a crevice and into a maze of natural stones to a point where you could see a massive painting of a giant snake that was left here by the local San bushmen thousands of years ago.

When we got back in the car it was a short drive to our final destination before lunch, and that was the Great Arch where we took the coolest group photo ever. Everyone loved it!

We then finished our tour and had a great lunch at the restaurant on property. Everyone had a burger and chips with a coke, which was welcomed and well received because after the whole adventure, we were starving.

Lunch was followed by a short yet long and quiet drive back home.

Short, because it was only 2.5 hours long.

Long, because it was a 9 hour day and we were done with sitting in a car.

And quiet, because everyone but the driver took a power nap till we reached the children’s home were the gratitude of the kids came though in spades, and we left with a massive urge to plan the next adventure…