Lüderitz, Namibia

New-to-us Port #29.

A glorious sunrise while we were still hours from reaching Lüderitz. I always consider a colorful start to the day as a good omen for what lies ahead.

Indeed, we had a great day. Partly due to the fact that the wind was light. This is an important factor in this part of Namibia, which sees very strong winds 250+ days out of the year. Sand and wind don’t play well, after all.

Another reason we had a great day was that we managed to book a tour on the pier from the concessionaire who manages a nearby ghost town … Kolmanskop. But that story is for the next footprint.

After our tour, we asked the shuttle driver to drop us off at the church we had spied atop a hill. This was also the area where we knew there would be some colorful buildings dating back from the German colonial period.

We visited the church … 🙂. Felsenkirche (aka Church of the Rock) was built for the German Evangelical Lutheran congregation in 1911-12. Inside, we found beautiful stained glass windows … the ones along the sides donated by the German aristocracy … the one at the altar a gift from the German Emperor.

We strolled down the street with the colorful buildings 🙂. Fewer than I expected, but still good photo ops. In the cigar/gift shop housed in one of the buildings, we saw a jar labeled Izmir … my hometown in Türkiye. Turns out that it was one of the brands of tobacco they sell at the shop.

We missed visiting the beautiful home built by a German businessman 🙁. Apparently, he did so to impress his wife … and to hopefully convince her to stay in Lüderitz. It didn’t work and they returned to Germany. We’ll have to catch the house next time.

We wrapped up our stroll with a delightful meal at the Portuguese Fisherman, a restaurant recommended by a local woman. Rustically charming … fishing nets hanging around the outdoor seating; the bow of a fishing boat set up as the waiting area; picnic benches in lieu of tables. The place was hopping with passengers from the ship … as well as crew and staff. We were seated at a table with fellow passengers, and enjoyed the company of Nancy and Tom, who turned out to be from Colorado as well.

Returning to the ship after our satisfying lunch, we went through the departure face-to-face immigration process (this time retaining our passports for the immigration formalities in South Africa), and then enjoyed quiet time on the ship.

Dinner tonight was the Chef’s Market Dinner at the Terrace Café. On the menu: crocodile, ostrich, springbok, and goat … and a whole bunch of other specialties of the country we will be visiting for a week after we spend a day at sea tomorrow.

Oh, and yes, we had more color in the evening sky … a lovely sunset!Read more