This last week has been incredible. One of those
moments that open up your eyes to life outside one's own.
Making our journey north as far as the border with
Angola, we found ourselves in the land of the indigenous Himba people. With hundreds
of kilometres of rough dirt roads seeing very few people ever passing, one must
come prepared: a week's worth of water and food. Getting punctures is easy;
getting stuck without help for days could be disastrous. With the isolation
comes the preservation of local culture.
As we see three young Himba girls at the side of a
nearby settlement their striking appearance gives an immediate sense of
timeless existence.
The Himba are one of the last remaining hunter
gatherer groups in Africa. Until 20 years ago, many of them still hunted with
stone implements. Without any real land entitlement, they are nomadic, settling
in temporary homes for a few months before moving on. When the earth is no
longer ripe for cattle and crops, they pack up their few possessions and walk
as far as necessary to find fresh land.
Calvin & Sharon
photo: Janin Klemenčič
photo: Janin Klemenčič
(to be
continued)
