My trip began with two flights. One long one to Johannesburg and a short hop from Johannesburg to Windhoek International in Namibia. All went exactly to plan and soon I was ready to start my adventure!
After meeting the driver at the airport, we (three other new arrivals and I,) were quickly driving down dirt/gravel roads towards the sanctuary with awesome views of the open Namibian landscape surrounding us.
We arrived a little too late to join in with afternoon activities, so were shown our rooms/tents and told where to meet for dinner, followed by a general run down of how our daily routine would pan out.
Amanda, the volunteer coordinator at the centre, introduced me to the meerkats who instantly took to investigating & climbing all around me. I was wrong to assume they would be shy, as they weren’t at all!
She then took me into an enclosure to meet the youngest baby baboons, and within seconds I had the little ones climbing up my legs and arms, and leaping onto my shoulders! They were very excitable and very sweet and, aside from the occasional test bite, I successfully proved myself as a tough monkey by ignoring them as instructed!
On my way back to my room, I walked past two members of staff (Jo and Liz), who had a little lamb in tow. He was only two days old and had been abandoned by his mum bless him, so I spent the next few hours keeping an eye on him, to keep him safe from the jackal who is known to live around the farm, and to keep him warm, so that Jo and Liz could carry on with their usual routine without needing to worry. He kept me warm too as the temperature soon began to drop once the sun went down!
I joined the other volunteers who gathered around the fire pits (or The Lapa as they’re known) for dinner at 6, we all chatted and ate together, and gradually the group dispersed as people turned in for the night. It had been a long first day so I was thankful for the chance to catch up on some sleep!
