Country Number: 68
Total spent: ~$400 + 22,500 Marriott Rewards Points, inclusive of flights into Namibia, 4 nights accommodation, and all expenses.
Number of Big Five seen: 0. I did see some pelicans, though.
My country counting ways really gets in the way of enjoyment sometimes. My friends tell me about the awesomeness of the safaris in Namibia, the dunes. You get the drift. Except, these activities cost money. However, I am currently on a mission to visit as many countries as possible, with the hope that I can hit the round number of 100, before I get a job again. I am currently at 67, and need another 33. I have ~2200 USD to do it, so in other words, I gave myself a budget of some 100 USD/week to do this. 100 USD/week is a lot of money in a lot of places. But you know how it’s not a lot of money? When you are trying to get from point to point. Those long distance buses, those necessary cab rides from the airport, those all add up.
May I present to you, the cheapskate’s way of visiting countries, miles and points required. It’s not going to involve anything spectacular – no safaris, no dune bashing, no quad bikes. But it does allow you to visit a new country.
Costs:
Flights (from Johannesburg): 300 USD on British Airways. You can get flights from ~200 if you book strategically
Accommodations: 25,500 Marriott Rewards Points (4 nights)
Other expenses: 1400 NAD (1100 NAD for transportation, 300 NAD for all other expenses)
Itinerary:
18 August: Johannesburg to Windhoek
19 August: Windhoek to Walvis Bay
20 August: Walvis Bay
21 August: Walvis Bay to Windhoek
22 August: Windhoek to Johannesburg
Wanderlust 