The Himba tribe has a long history and they have migrated here as part of the Bantu tribe from East Africa. Most still live in villages in the northern part of Namibia. We drove to Opuwo, which is about 8 hours north of Windhoek. After staying one night there, we headed into the village to spend the rest of the weekend with the Himbas. We had our own guide, Elia, who is a Himba himself. He told us all about the tribe and was able to translate for us as no one in that village spoke English.

We had a great time playing with the kids and laughing with the women. I pictured us on one of those TV shows where the audience is able to see the English captions at the bottom of the screen of what the Himbas are saying, but we don't have a clue. I'm sure they thought we were pretty interesting, probably even a bit silly! They asked us about our hair and wanted to touch it. They also asked if our parents put something on our noses when we were babies to clamp them to keep them small. We also asked them several questions about their families, village life, and so on. I spent a good chunk of time with a couple ladies when Elia wasn't around. We started sort of language game where we'd point to something and I'd say it in my language--they'd repeat--and then they'd say it in my language and I'd repeat. We had a few laughs when one or the other had trouble pronouncing something. :)

I will say that Saturday was quite possibly the longest day of my life. I don't know how hot it was, but it was hot enough that our water bottles had bubbles in them. We were parched so we drank the hot water anyway. I'm sure our bodies found it refreshing even if our minds did not. I'd really have to learn how to adapt to living in a place that hot with no really good place to find relief during the heat of the day. (I'm thinking solar powered A/C and refrigerators!)

We had a great time though. It was such a wonderful experience! We slept in our brightly colored tents next to their huts and woke up to the sounds of roosters, chickens, and goats. This is Africa! :) We even helped collect and carry firewood... on our heads! Unfortunately we couldn't quite balance it without hands like they do, but we were quite proud of ourselves nonetheless. And I can attest to the fact that it is much easier on your body overall to carry something like that on your head than in your arms. Surprising but true.

Let me close by sharing photos. I'll include some in the next blog entry as well. I really wanted to go to the Himba village so I could get a bunch of photos. My OWN photos... instead of just buying them from the shops. So I was really excited to stay in the village and be able to take as many shots as I wanted!

...and looking at photos of my family and I that I gave them right before we left.

Getting ready to roast our "hotdogs".

Despite the heat, we really did have a great time!!