Poverty, infections, crime, bad roads, etc.

And obviously, these are real issues.

But in reality, there's also an Africa that is safe, civil, without malaria.

And most importantly, it is beautiful.

And right now, we are in exactly such a place.

My friends, welcome to Namibia.

To kick things off, let's take a look at a map to get a better idea of where exactly we are.

Namibia is located in the southwest of Africa, near South Africa.

It is one of the least populated countries in the world, and judging by this map, it may seem like this place is tiny, but in reality, that couldn't be farther from the truth.

Namibia is a vast country, with huge distances between cities.

One of the main difficulties in navigating Namibia is that less than 10% of the roads are asphalt.

The rest are either gravel or straight up off-road, which is why you need a special vehicle to travel across it.

SUVs are the best means of travel here.

Something like a Toyota Hilux, for example.

These are very popular here, and ours is a full-fledged camper.

It has big tires and crazy off-road capabilities.

It also has a 140 liter double gas tank, good for a 1,200 kilometer range.

There's also some square thing on the roof, we'll explore that later.

But the best feature of all is how much equipment this thing carries.

That's worth a whole other conversation too.

What's great is this SUV comes with all sorts of little knick-knacks.

It's packed to the brink with a whole host of things that will help you to stay alive in the desert.

We have a fridge that is powered by an auxiliary battery, all the cutlery and dishes you will ever need, a gas tank, a water canister, and last but not least, two spare wheels, just in case.

The best part is that these guys even teach you how to change the wheels, because there's no one to help you in the middle of a desert, and it's not like you can call anyone either.

Once the training is done, you fill out the paperwork, and pay the rental.

I've decided to stock up on food, and of course, water, which we'll need a lot of.

Now, we're ready to go.

Oops, I forgot to mention that in Namibia, you drive on the left side of the road, and the steering wheel is on the right side, which is why you may be getting into the passenger seat in the first few days.

And you'll probably be putting the wipers on every time you want to use the blinkers, but you'll get used to it eventually.

If you're sick of traffic, and people for that matter, and just want to drive for pleasure, then Namibia is for you.

It's all about vast distances and empty roads.

I mean, you can drive for over 40 minutes and not see a single car.

Also, this is a country with a very small population.

In fact, it is second only after Mongolia in terms of population density.

That's from the end of the list, that is.

Namibia is larger than Turkey, and even so, its population is only about 2.5 million people.

The population density here is 2.5 people per one square kilometer.

In comparison, Singapore has over 7,000 people per one square kilometer.

This is the best place for coronavirus social distancing, right?

We'll spend the next two weeks on the road, and I've planned quite an extensive trip so that we can see the most of what Namibia has to offer.

I hope that this episode will turn into a good old-fashioned travel vlog, where I kind of broadcast to you everything I see.

The first thing you notice on Namibian roads are the fences on both sides of the road.

They span over miles and are pretty much there wherever you go.

Most of the country is occupied by farms, so in addition to setting boundary lines, these fences also protect animals from reaching the road, and this place is full of them.

You can practically study the local fauna just by the road signs, and animals are really everywhere here.

Shortly after taking off, I came across a group of baboons, which were causing a ruckus right in front of me.

By the way, animals are one of the main reasons why you shouldn't drive at night here.

The bottom line is that everything that surrounds you here is a little different than what your eyes are used to, and one thing becomes apparent from the get-go.

This is Africa.

Since I was really tired after my flight, I could only do 300 kilometers on the first day, and then I checked into the hotel.

Nevertheless, I got a glimpse of my first African sunset.

This is my first sunset in Namibia, and it is unreal.

I can't even imagine what's next.

But now, I need to take a short break just to tell you guys about today's sponsor, NordVPN.

By the way, this is not Namibia, I'm in Norway right now.

You can see the fjords up there.

You can also switch between countries with one click to install the NordVPN.

Every time you provide your credit card details, order tickets, or connect to a Wi-Fi public network, someone can steal your data.

But you can protect all your online activities with NordVPN.

Technically, it replaces your IP address with an IP from some server in the country of your choice.

To learn more, follow the link in the description, and get 4 months free when you buy a 2-year subscription.

There are more different discounts, everything is down there.

Now it's time to head back to Namibia.

The next morning, I took off early before the sunrise.

And now, I want to tell you a little bit about what traveling across Namibia is all about to me.

It's about the road, and believe me, this is exactly what I love.

Traveling is like a meditation to me, and regardless of how tired I was last night,

I started to feel rejuvenated as I left early in the morning and drove through places I'd never seen before, seeing the sunrise unfold upon me.

It was like hitting a reset button, and with every new kilometer, everyday problems became simply irrelevant.

You just hold the wheel as your thoughts take you away.

Oh, and since Namibia is all about long distances with not much else going on around, it's an ideal place for this so-called automotive meditation.

You drive and relax.

Alright, here's a story for you.

I checked into the hotel yesterday and went downstairs for dinner.

And then I started to realize that people around me were speaking a language I'd never heard before.

It was a language that didn't sound anything like I'd heard.

Just listen.

Khore in Khareesa, si-cha-sen-ri-nam-bi-ap-nya.

Fascinating.

The language is called Namo, and many of the people speak it here.

It's part of a very rare language group specific to this region in some places in

Tanzania.

And instead of familiar-sounding consonants, they make these unique clicking sounds.

You won't find it anywhere else in the world.

I expected this from some tribes, but not all across Namibia.

Especially in the north, they speak this language everywhere, at gas stations, in restaurants, hotels.

Amazing.

There are roughly 30 languages spoken in Namibia, and they are all pretty unique.

This is why to understand each other, people from different regions of the country need to find a common language.

And wouldn't you know it, there is one.

What's your native language?

Rukwagali.

And yours?

Sierrero.

But you speak together only English?

English.

English, Afrikaans.

The first common language is Afrikaans.

Life is good, and you enjoy it, my friend.

Time is good.

Afrikaans is 90% Dutch.

The second most common language is English.

It carries an official status here, which makes Namibia much easier to navigate for a foreigner, since everyone speaks English.

In the meantime, we reach the first milestone of our trip, the Quiver Tree Forest.

The Bushman ancestors used to make arrow quivers out of them, hence the name.

Everything is so simple.

Quiver trees look pretty alien, and the most interesting fact about them is that these are not actually trees, but rather, aloe plants.

And another thing I should mention about this forest are these giant nests, looking more like bird dorms.

The most interesting thing is that all these bird dorms are constructed by tiny weaver birds.

You can see these huge nests all over Namibia.

See this nest here?

It's not even the biggest one.

The nests can reach 8 meters in length and contain up to 500 individual nests, which in turn house hundreds of birds at once.

Alright enough with the ornithology, let's get back on the main gravel road.

I know, it sounds a little bit treacherous, but the roads here aren't all that bad.

Let's take a second to talk about the different types of road in Namibia.

So check this out.

Right now, we're driving on a gravel road and the camera isn't even shaking.

Plus, you can do over 100 kilometers an hour on it, which is 60 miles per hour, as if it were a German Autobahn.

I wish we had gravel roads like these back at home.

Here in Namibia, asphalt is something you should just forget about, and try to get used to the thought that 90% of your time, you are going to be driving on roads like these.

And actually, these gravel roads are taken care of and leveled by graders, which makes for a pretty comfy ride.

The only disadvantage is the dust that envelops you from the oncoming traffic and blocks your view for a few seconds, and you can't see a thing.

That's why the speed limit is set to 80 kilometers an hour, and this is monitored by the car itself.

There's an alarm in the car that starts beeping every time you go over the speed limit.

Right now, we're doing 100 kilometers an hour, and it starts to beep.

It's like it says, dude, slow down, which is really great, actually, because it kind of snaps you back to reality when you start daydreaming.

Leaving the Kalahari Desert behind, one of the two deserts on our route, we edge closer to the south, which brings me to the next checkpoint, a place that you don't want to miss in Namibia.

Meet the largest canyon in Africa, and according to some sources, the second largest in the world.

This canyon spans over 160 kilometers in length, reaching over 500 meters in depth.

This is the trail that takes you to the bottom of it, but because of flash floods and extreme heat that can reach up to 50 degrees Celsius in the summer, trail passes are only given out during the African winter, which is from May to September.

As you may have experienced, canyons are often compared to the Grand Canyon in Arizona.

Sometimes these types of comparisons don't seem fitting, but in this case, I actually really do see many similarities.

The Horseshoe Bend, for example, greatly resembles the one at the Grand Canyon.

You'll never forget the first time you see the Grand Canyon.

At least, that's how it was for me.

This one is arguably perhaps not quite as jaw-dropping, but the fact that it exists here in Namibia is quite impressive.

All in all, Fish River Canyon is a great place, even though I had to deviate from my route and spend half a day getting here.

That's why I didn't bother with a hotel.

I enjoy these quiver trees so much that they made me want to stay here for the night.

And it's about time I show you what the rack on the roof is for.

This box transforms into a tent that fits two.

It's like a transportable house that you always carry with you, which makes it possible to stay the night almost anywhere.

This is really convenient for a trip like this.

I love this thing.

It only took 7 minutes to put up.

I really hope it's comfortable to sleep in.

The plus of it being on the roof is that you don't get stomped on by an elephant at night.

Since there are a lot of wild animals here in Africa, it's safer to sleep on the roof of your car.

A little later in the evening, I was greeted by a majestic African sunset, nestled in the quiver tree forest.

Just thought I'd be alone.

Trees tie the skyline.

Sun is on the run.

There's no turning back now.

This love has just begun.

And I've never known.

No I've never been, so sure of anything.

I hope you didn't think I was going to go straight to bed at a place like this.

Of course, I can't.

This area is a very well-known location for astrophotography workshops.

It's not as packed these days due to COVID.

The stuff you see out here is mind-blowing.

And once again, we'll attempt to take some pictures of the starry sky, and this time

I have a good feeling about it.

Let's go.

I know, I know, you guys are probably tired of my astrophotography adventures, but I simply can't pass on it this time.

And I've located just the right spot with a quiver tree.

I think it's exactly what I need.

A few settings later, we take the first pic.

It came out a little dark since the actual tree wasn't lit up, but I managed to come up with a quick workaround.

I'm not trying to brag, but this might be the best night sky picture I've ever taken.

I'm proud of myself, guys.

It's the first time I managed to capture such a bright Milky Way.

It was a small victory.

It did get a little chilly at night, but sleeping in a tent with a flat floor is pure bliss.

And I mean, just look at this morning and at these colors.

So dope.

In summation, the Quiver Tree Forest is a top tier location, and you absolutely have to spend the night here if you ever come to Namibia.

Then I paid a visit to a gas station, which took a lot of time given how big the 140 liter gas tanks are.

I probably even should have planned ahead for it.

Let's go on with our travels, heading towards the coast in the west part of the country.