This is not really a travel blog but we have been traveling and my camera roll is ponderous with photos from around the world. I plan to post some of the more exciting or picturesque shots over the coming months.
We spent almost three weeks driving around Namibia in a rented Ford Ranger. I could start by highlighting the amazing desert scenes or the famous Etosha National Park and its astounding animal population, but when we saw a dot on our paper map labelled as an intact meteorite we knew we had to go even though it added three hours onto a long days driving.
The young service station attendant in Grootfontein was overjoyed that we were visiting his city and seemed quite disappointed that we were just passing through on the way to the meteorite.
"Is it cool or is it just a big rock?", I enquired.
"It is just a big rock" was the somewhat grumpy reply.
He was not wrong, but what a rock.
The Hoba Meteorite is actually one of the more expensive attractions in Namibia but for N$250about US$15 at 2026 exchange rates you get entry and a (mandatory) guide for the short walk. Unlike the guy who pumped our diesel, our guide was overjoyed that we were so excited to see her rock and immediately spouted all sorts of interesting trivia.
Apparently a museum in New York tried to buy the meteorite in the 1960's but the deal fell through when they realized that they couldn't transport such a solid chunk of iron and nickel. Quite an admission of defeat considering that one museum in New York managed to Indiana Jones a whole Egyptian temple into one of their galleries.
The flattened shape and relatively slow and shallow trajectory of the meteorite allowed it to "glide" into its current position about 80 thousand years ago. Of course, being such an unique artifact and the largest hunk of space rock on the planet means that the site is protected and you can only take photos from behind a barrier.
Nah, just kidding. The guide practically ordered us to stand on top of the thing.
Somewhat disappointingly I did not develop strange powers after contact with the meteorite. But on the plus side neither did it crack open to reveal a murderous alien.
The 3 hour detour in the hot sun was well worth it, especially since we also got to see this cool dung beetle on the side of the road.
