Tempting you to visit...

How we wish all of our friends and family could come visit!

Frankly, you should be considering visiting us here in Namibia. Yes, this is our opinion anyway... Our strong, strong opinion! And not just to see us (and meet Patches!)... ;-)

When else es a better time to come to Namibia or southern Africa where your personal, unpaid tour guides will await you... either to travel with you the whole time or part (in which we send you off with a nice itinerary and everything else you need to know)? Remarkably, we've come to know a lot about this place and a great asset to any of you who come!

Namibia is a great destination for seasoned as well as less seasoned travelers. Safe (good law enforcement; low crime rates, especially outside of the cities). Healthy (good drinking water). Good infrastructure (roads that are easy to navigate and in good condition). You can stay on the well-traveled tourist route or we can help you get off the beaten track (and see some villages, for example).

Top 5(/6) Places to Visit (again, more of our opinion):

1. Victoria Falls, Zambia/Zimbabwe

One of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World.

(google)

 2. Fish River Canyon, Namibia

World's second largest canyon, after the Grand Canyon.

(google)

3. Sossusvlei, Namibia

The towering red sand dunes. A desolate place to visit, yet Namibia's #1 most popular tourist destination. For a very good reason from what I hear.

(google)

4. Etosha National Park, Namibia

An enormous, world-renouned game-viewing park, and said to be one southern Africa's best.

5. Carpivi and Kavango, Namibia

The Kavango River makes "the north" of Namibia a lush forest, as starkly opposed to the rest of the arid country.

(google)

6. Our site. Obviously... haha.

Other places of interest in and around Namibia are only as limited as your imagination (or something corny like that).

FYI though, we are pretty restricted to only being able to travel on school holidays, which are approximately as follows:

- 4 weeks in mid-December to mid-January

- 3 weeks in mid-April to early May

- 1-2 weeks in late August / early September

Unfortunately our shortest holiday is your longest, and pretty much the only possibility for American teachers. (Oh, this profession!) Still, we could work to swing something.

Money is obviously an issue for many, but if you can scrounge it up without filing for bankruptcy we think you will be glad you did. The plane ticket is by far your largest expense. If you are thinking about coming, you can search for flights (from JFK is probably best) into Johannesburg (JNB) instead of Windhoek (WDK, Hosea Kutako), and then book a separate connecting flight the rest of the way. JFK to JNB roundtrip can definitely be less than $1000. And flights to/from Cape Town instead of Jo'burg may be a bit more expensive, but scheduling a stay there for a few days would be more than worth your while.

Thought we'd post about this now since time flies, and it will be too late to consider before you know it! Do think about it! It's quite an opportunity, and there are some amazing things to experience this side...

Also on another note, if you don't know how to drive stick shift, it would be helpful to learn. Because it will save you money on a rental. And remember you'll be driving on the left (and the stick will also be on the left), which isn't really that big of a deal.

~ Metz Travel Agency ;-)

Blogging: For better or for worse

Keeping a public blog in order to share our life and experiences as we go through them, uniquely illustrated by our own voice and photos, can be a funny thing. (Something new I have been learning, since this is the first blog I've written.) It's fun and easy when life is, well, fun and easy. It's the difficult things that we (as people, in general) naturally tend to leave out with family and friends... Be it through blogs posts, facebook statuses, annual holiday cards or newsletters, or conversations that take place at a family get-together or special occasion.

We realize that situations like the site change, for example, are difficult for us to go through in addition to difficult for you to read about. Still, I hope that I can continue to be transparent in my iteration about our experiences, while exercising the best judgment possible regarding how much or little to put out there. More or less, this is something we all do everyday, granted, it may not be on a blog. And, as you may have picked up on, it is my personal preference to err on the side of transparency rather than a rosy misrepresentation. (The realist that I am! :-P )

While we appreciate concerns from home regarding things that seem scary, we hope you will continue to support, encourage, and empathize with us with bravery and love. Hopefully what you take away from the previous entry is not so much a newfound fear or anxiety about how we are doing here, so much as an improved sense of how to wrap your minds and hearts around what we are going through and going through it alongside us (even from a distance).

I will add that if we are seeking advice (such as if we should stay here or go home..!), you will certainly know it. But it's like the classic case of a woman telling her problems to a man. What she really needs is a good listening ear and some empathy, meanwhile Mr. Fix-It can't think of anything except to bing-bang-boom solve all of her problems! Which, for her, is anything but helpful! (In this way, maybe I am being a typical woman, haha.)

As always, your comments (public or private) are welcome. Though preferably not the Mr. Fix-It kind, at this stage! :-)

Dedication: Most Faithful Blog Reader

Here's to you Momma Metz!  She tells us she checks the blog almost everyday, and what makes this feat even more impressive is that she is, well.. not the most computer or internet literate of our other faithful readers. ;-)

If anyone would like to challenge Momma Metz in this position, leave your comment below. :-)

So what do you think Momma Metz?!  Were you expecting to be featured when you saw there was a new post today?!  Go ahead, leave a comment below... click "# comments" below the post in orange and then type in that white comment box!

PS... Blog posts to come on Kevin's bday, Khorixas, and our baby(!).