We had a brief stopover at Walvis Bay on our way to Swakopmund. Walvis Bay (Walvisbaai in Afrikaans, which means, “Whale Bay” in English) is a port town on the Atlantic coast of Namibia.
The name conjured images of whales, dolphins, sea gulls, and busy harbours with ships and fishing boats. Our guide added pelicans, flamingos, Cape Fur seals, lighthouses, and palm trees to the list, but said that there are almost no more whales. They were wiped out by the avid whalers of the 19th century, which is sad.
This area has an interesting history. Throughout the years, from the establishment of the South African Union to the First World War, and then to the declaration of Namibian independence in 1990, the territory had been alternatively annexed to South Africa, then Namibia (from the time it was known as Southwest Africa), and back, as if these two nations were playing a game of tennis. A resolution of the UN stipulated that South Africa was to hand over Walvis Bay to Namibia after the war, but it never happened. Only with the end of the apartheid regime in 1994 was the Walvis Bay area handed over. Today, Walvis Bay is the third largest town in Namibia.
Our short stop only allowed us to walk along the waterfront, explore the esplanade, and look at the boats. There were a couple of hotels and clusters of cafes, restaurants, and marine-themed shops. My fellow female companion and I were glad we were finally able to use a decent washroom after hours of being on the road. Our guide said that most tourists use this as base to explore nearby areas, such as Swakopmund, the Namib Desert, and the sand dunes, but that there are plenty of things to do within the town itself.
If we ever go back, we should definitely plan a day or two here. Apart from its attractions ranging from dolphin-viewing boat cruises to bird-watching excursions, salt field visits to sandboarding on dunes, cultural tours to flamingo viewing, it is known for superb local fish, oysters and rock lobsters.
Photo Credits:
Lidine Mia (Wikimedia Commons), travelnamibia.com, namibian.com.na, afdb.org, saramsar.com, pelicanpoint-lodge.com
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