The Clayhouse
Trip Start
Jul 09, 2008
1
20
Trip End
Jul 30, 2008
Windhoek,
Namibia
Friday, August 29, 2008
This time the lodge did live up to expectations, a beautiful clayhouse in Dordabis just outside Windhoek. Eningu Clayhouse is built in adobe style, using 120000 handmade bricks which were made from clay found on the farm. The colour of these clay bricks contrasts wonderfully with the surrounding red sand of the Kalahari Desert. The name eningu stands for porcupine after the large spiny creatures that visit the lodge after dark to eat the scraps that are put out. Eningu Clayhouse is located in the midst of the Namibian bush savannah and it seems far away from the bustle of Windhoek even though it was only 65km to the airport from here. There is a large swimming pool with whirlpool, a rooftop deck with telescope, an archery range and a wine cellar filled with a 1000 selected South African wines. The souvenir shop provides you with selected Namibian arts and crafts as well as Eningu souvenirs with the ever present porcupine painted on them
Porcupine
. The whole place is delightfully fitted out with Namibian artefacts, hand woven karakul rugs and the most amazing photography of the Namibian people.The clay buildings that make up the lodge are russet coloured just like the sand and blend in beautifully with the surroundings. Apparently clay houses are 5 degrees cooler in the summer and 5 degrees warmer in the winter than conventional buildings so ideal for the African climate. The food here is a gastronomic delight and some of the best we had on the holiday. For dinner we had Impala Carpaccio and Kudu Casserole which was absolutely gorgeous. The owner was an incredibly friendly German who had bought it off the people who had originally built it and nothing was too much for him. He even offered to pick us up if the car didn't make it to the airport.
The garden was lovely with cacti and interesting pots dotted around and sculptures dotted around. Our room was really nicely decorated in African style with more beautiful photos and interesting pieces of Namibian art.
The birdlife here was good and every day one of the staff put out seed to entice them and there was even an African Scops Owl who made a daily visit and slept in a tree all day. After dinner we went up to the hide to watch the sunset and to see the porcupines and jackals that visit to munch upon the food scraps that are put out. It took a little time for them to appear and we thought we might be out of luck but eventually they did. The porcupine that did finally materialise was huge and we could hear the rattle of his spines as he moved about. This really was a lovely end to a beautiful holiday.
