Thursday, August 23, 2012

Whindhoek 061


So I have been reading a whole lot of blogs and have decided to start my own blog  about my experiences, opinions, and news updates on Namibia. Naturally my first post will be on  my general view of Namibia.

http://kylereed.com/Pictures/ForeignTravel/Africa1/index.html
I came to Windhoek in Feb 2010 it seems just like yesterday, in retrospect it  has been a great learning experience for me. Namibia aka the land of the brave is not well known by many people, in other the words the friends in my circles before I came to Namibia did not know much about the place as well. Its a city a have grown to love, and has allowed me to grow as a person.

Windhoek on the other end is nothing like any African city I have been too.  It’s Very similar to Gaborone in many ways but totally different from cities in East Africa. First thing you notice in Windhoek is that its super clean and there not that many people around so maybe that’s why its easy to keep clean. Even the informal settlements to me are relatively clean big ups to the municipality in their efforts to keep the city clean. 
  

http://www.racafrica.co.uk/namibia_photos.htm
The taller the buildings the bigger the dreams.  Clearly South African Bankers and Insurance companies have the biggest dreams in Windhoek.  Windhoek gets very busy the first week of the month then activity goes back to snail pace. The 10% rich benefit the most as majority people in Windhoek depend on SALARY! that’s why I think Namibia sucks when it comes to wealth distribution and the entrepreneurial spirit among youth is almost known existent! This for me is an opportunity to take advantage of .
http://www.peterbennett.co.uk

                                                                            I like to think of Namibia as a 10th province of South Africa. Every shopping mall in Windhoek looks like any random shopping mall in South Africa especially Gauteng area. 

You can use the South African Rand to buy anything in Namibia and the Namibian dollar does not get the same privilege in South Africa. So the Namibian dollar is a currency to make its people feel like the own a currency and an illusion of economic independence.





I want to talk about the culture shocked I experienced when I first came to Windhoek but I think that will have to be a whole post on its own but for now this post will serve as my general view of Namibia as of today. 



2 comments:

  1. Hey Frank,

    I am glad you started a blog. You know, for many who want to express themselves, (including myself) the hardest part of the process is picking up their medium of choice and taking that first stab at it. Your first blog was informative, and like you said, I probably learned more about Namibia from your few words (than I'd ever really cared to know).

    As to the other pieces, I particularly enjoyed reading them as well, because some of the issues they address are not unique to Namibia. For starters, education is a beautiful thing to have, but be careful what you study. I have heard of degrees that simply fall to the bottom of the rubbles when it comes to getting hired in the workforce. You know what...i think i will share more of this with you on FB or something.

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  2. Hahaha thanks Bra for taking the time to read. Sure thing lets shrae more on FB or something lol

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