In October, I took a wonderful extended vacation and went to visit my brother and his family in Namibia. After a photo safari to the Etosha Pan National Park and getting far closer to lions and elephants than I would like, we headed for the Skeleton Coast and Walvis Bay/Swakupmond. One day we headed out for a boat tour of Walvis Bay and then a dune buggy ride through the sand dunes south of Walvis Bay in the Namib-Naukluft National Park. The boat tour is an interesting blend of the mechanical (Walvis Bay is the only deep-water port along the Skeleton Coast) and the natural (home to many sea lion colonies, bird sanctuaries, and Bengali dolphins that ride the bow waves of your boat). You also get an up close introduction to the burgeoning oyster fishery in the bay. It's still a small experiment, but one with great potential. They've found that the cold waters of the Bengali current that sweep north along the Skeleton Coast are so cold and nutrient rich that oysters grow to full size in 6-9 months compared to 3 years elsewhere. That's some fast growing!
The boat dropped us off on an abandoned pier along the tip of the bay where our dune buggy drivers were waiting for us. I swear these guys were transplanted stock car drivers! We went careening off up and down dunes that were 400-500 ft tall. After doing his best to get us to lose our lunches, Nick stopped for lunch. Here we are in the middle of the desert and this guy is breaking out the dining tables, chairs, champagne, and a bountiful buffet including none other than Namibian oysters. This was the first time that I had ever tried a raw oyster and I will admit to being rather trepidatious. The briny oyster juice was a little much, but the meat was one of the most tender & succulent things I have ever sucked down. And big! These oysters were almost handwidth in size.
They were paired with a very nice South African sparkling wine. I have no idea of the winery that produced it, but it was brut dry, crisp, toasty, and lightly citrusy. Delicious after a morning on the water and in the sand. We shared this feast with a few other folks from France, who didn't seem to enjoy the wine as much as I did. So I did my best to make up for them! Here's a picture of us enjoying the feast.
I'm the rosy cheeked guy with his glass at the ready! Who would have believed that I'd have a glass of sparking wine in the middle of the desert, let alone a feast of local oysters fit for a king!
Cheers,
a Wine Student
