News

Many years ago a tourist from South Africa told nature conservation officials in the Etosha National Park that instead of Blacky he had spotted “die ander merrie” (the other mare). Blacky was almost completely black and at that stage probably the best known plains zebra in the park. But there was another zebra whose black stripes were blurred, except for the usual white underbelly and parts of the legs. After the excited visitor from the Transvaal had reported his sighting of the “ander merrie”, this second mare was named Annemarie because the English-speaking nature conservation official was a little lost with Afrikaans.

Enduring Imagination. Koos van Ellinckhuijzen, artist, sculptor, musician, poet, skydiver, amateur astronomer, writer, philosopher, visionary, outsider, invested with a free spirit fired by genius, died on September 5th, aged 73. He explained his approach to his work as interweaving art with science, and making the abstract real: “Art is in essence the artificial. You must paint with something in mind that does not yet exist.” His art was marvelous work of the imagination that grew out of the vast expanse of his boiling mind.

Tourism in Namibia is booming. In August the Gondwana Collection experienced their best monthly occupancy since its inception 20 years ago. More and more overseas tourists are travelling to Namibia to enjoy the luxury of space and guaranteed sunshine. “The bed occupancy for August reached a surprising 78.56%. This is a number we have never reached before,” says the Reservations Manager, Leez Hövelmann. “The numbers have increased with nearly 10% when comparing it to the August statistics of the past five years, and the coming months are looking very promising.”

If you have ever seen a sausage tree you probably will not forget it. This robust medium to large tree with a rounded crown has striking pendulous burgundy coloured flowers, growing in sprays that hang downward, reminiscent of orchids. The large opulent blooms have velvet inners and long pollen-bearing stamens, thought to be pollinated by fruit bats. If the tree is not in bloom to dazzle you, then the enormous brown-grey gourd-like fruit hanging from the branches definitely will.

Damara Mopane Lodge is currently undergoing a soft revamp. Fresh wall paint in all the lodge buildings as well as renovated, newly equipped and decorated rooms will enhance the Damaraland experience of our guests. As the lodge complex is spaciously designed current guests can enjoy their visit completely undisturbed. The hospitality operations are not affected by the renovation works which will be completed at the end of February 2017. 

Early this morning a fire caused some excitement at Hakusembe River Lodge. It started at 5 o’clock at a separate scullery building and spread over the lawn to the grass-roofed restroom at the swimming pool area. The staff reacted promptly and kept the fire under control until it was extinguished at 7.30 a.m. No one was injured. The cause and a damage estimate have not yet been determined.

Dust whirls up as the men march forward, thundering across the sandy field. Orders ring out back and forth, riders decorated with medals file past on their horses. On one side of the field women line up in a long double row. The men are dressed in khaki uniforms, the women wear voluminous black and red Victorian-style dresses and a red head-garb resembling the horns of cattle.The ceremonial procession of the Hereros in Okahandja, known as Herero Day and also as Red Flag Day, takes place every year on a Sunday at the end of August.

Help where help is needed. That is the motto associated with the ‘Gondwana Memes & Tates’, an initiative driven by dynamic Gondwana employees. Working with dedicated partner organisations they ensure that donations and assistance reaches the needy and that their actions have the desired effect on the community. An example would be the relief operation in Swakopmund, which has recently been launched after a fire that broke out in the DRC informal settlement.

Many believe that the enormous crater of Brukkaros west of the national road between Mariental and Keetmanshoop is an extinct volcano. Geologists initially shared this opinion because of the mountain’s external shape. It is 1,603 metres high, rising 600 metres above the plain, and the shape of the slope is typical of a volcano. But the rock types that are usually found in the vicinity of fire-spitting mountains are absent around Brukkaros. Only when geologists studied the rocks in and around the crater thoroughly was the secret of the formation of Brukkaros finally unravelled.

As guests explore the Canyon Village they will come across clusters of curiously beautiful quiver trees along the way, thanks to a project launched by the Gondwana Collection that aims to preserve these extraordinary but rapidly declining trees. The quiver tree is one of Namibia’s national plants and is widely regarded as a symbol of the south. The fascinating trees were named by Simon van der Stel in 1685 after he was told that the San (Bushmen) used the branches to make quivers for their arrows.