“Extraordinary things are always hiding in places people never think to look.” – Jodi Picoult

Windhoek, Namibia’s capital, is located 1655 m (5430 ft) above sea level in the country’s central Khomas Highland Plateau, surrounded by mountains and sustained by twelve freshwater springs. The city makes for a pleasant stop for a day or two, though few visitors stay longer; despite the altitude, it is a hot, sunny, and semi-arid spot between the Kalahari and Namib Deserts. The city is full of contrasts: an extraordinary blend of old and new and a mix of cultures, and all in a town of less than a half million residents, which is also by far the largest in a country of just 2 million. As the country’s administrative, commercial, and industrial center and as home to the University of Namibia, major media, and the only theater, Windhoek encompasses all from government to the arts.

First settled in 1840 near a hot spring by Jonker Afrikaner of the Orlam people, he named the town after the Winterhoek Mountains of his ancestral South African homeland. His settlement was destroyed during tribal hostilities and neglected until 1884 when a request from the merchants of Lüderitz Bay resulted in Germany declaring the country a protectorate. The town’s second founding occurred in 1890 when the groundstone for the Alte Feste (old fortress) was laid, establishing colonial German South West Africa. After WWI, Namibia came under South African administration and formally gained independence in 1990.  

Windhoek spreads out in a wide valley between bush-covered hills and suburbs, below which the city center’s wide boulevards of tall, modern buildings are interspersed with old German architecture. The pace is busy yet not frenetic, and the slightly European feel mingles with the reminder from street vendors that it is unmistakably Africa. Leading off Independence Avenue, the city’s main street is the open-air Post Street Mall, where, between pastel-colored buildings, shops sell everything from fast food to fashion, and street vendors crouch beside blankets spread with jewelry, crafts, and souvenirs. At the mall’s center, a fountain includes twenty-nine pieces of the Gibeon Meteorite, which fell in prehistoric times and was discovered by the Nama people who used the iron for tools and weapons. At the end of Post Street, there’s an indoor mall for air-conditioned shopping.

On Robert Mugabe Avenue, the monumental, free-entry Independence Memorial Museum towers over town between the Christuskirche and the German fortress, Alte Feste. Exhibits focus on the anti-colonial resistance and liberation movement, and the rooftop restaurant affords panoramic views over the city and surrounding mountains. In the roundabout outside, stands the historic Christuskirche, built in 1910 and still serving Windhoek’s Lutheran congregation. Just up the hill past the high school playing grounds, the columned colonial Tintenpalast Parliament building rises above the lush tropical Parliament Gardens. Adjacent to the gardens, the Windhoek Bowling Club, with its quaint thatched-roof clubhouse, is well-frequented on weekends during the season.

The nearby Namibia Crafts Center features independently owned and operated stalls on 2 levels, where friendly, chatty vendors offer basketry, beadwork, textiles, ceramics, leather goods, and carved wooden figures. Next door, the Old Breweries is a music venue and bar. Further up Independence Avenue, the National Art Gallery of Namibia is a small but fine showcase for the country’s art achievements, and it has a shady courtyard café for a resipte from the heat.

Don’t Miss:

A visit to the Namibia Crafts Center to speak with vendors and purchase some authentic local crafts in a lovely atmosphere.

Serendipity:

Finding the unexpected- arriving at a recommended lunch spot to find not only great local food and drink but also a place decorated most whimsically with salvage finds.

Lunch Tip:

Joe’s Beerhouse, the place mentioned above with great food and whimsy, is well worth a trip to the northern edge of town.

Dinner Tip:

The Stellenbosch Wine Bar and Bistro, featuring a wonderful food and wine selection in a location reminiscent of Tuscany.

Bedtime:

Auas City Hotel, a modern hotel in the south-eastern part of town with very good breakfast.

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*All photographs are mine, taken with my Nikon D5600 or iPhone 14 Pro.*