Airport Pickup in Windhoek
Good day, February 13th. So I am in Windhoek and shouldn’t be a problem to pick up Gerjan at the airport at about 1 o’clock. At least that’s the intended time. So I took my time and made it to the airport in time. All smooth sailing. It turns out they have two separate buildings, one where you leave and one where you arrive. So one gets to figure that out.
VAT Reclaim Process
Another thing that had been brought to my attention was I could probably reclaim the value-added tax on what I purchased for replacements for phone and computer. So I inquired about that and pretty much got the right form, found out I couldn’t get the money yet because I wasn’t leaving the country. I have to do that at the border. But that’s nice, as long as I don’t forget at the border, that should work out.
Waiting and Arrival
So then it was a waiting game. Plenty of services there, coffee and whatever. And at the appointed time, the airplane did arrive and people started dropping out of the airplane. I mean, coming through the gate. But Khachan took a long time. And that was because he had filled out a form that they obviously wanted a different form. So had to do things all over again, but eventually he made it out. He also had been wearing his mask the whole time since in the Netherlands apparently there’s a flu going on. So rather be safe than sorry, uh, he took precautions. So about 2 o’clock he came through the gate, and that was good times.
Journey to Okahandja
So we made it. We, we were going to go to Okahontja to Janneke and Berend and Christian and Anne in Okahontja for tonight. So that all worked out. We got there about 4:30. And they were certainly prepared. Both were there, or four were there.
Paint Factory Tour
And then we, uh, took the occasion to go visit their factory, which is a manufacturing of paint. Or, um, yeah, they’re mixing all the paints, they get all the ingredients, and they have 160 different products coral coatings, and they are working to get to be the highest volume reseller in Namibia. They sell through all of Namibia, and therefore Okahandja is a very good location.
Their Home and Location
Their home is next to a river, but that only really looks like a river once or twice a year. And then next to the river is a golf course which always looks like a golf course, however a sand one. But they are looking— living in a very nice place, very private, and are enjoying it there.
Factory Operations
It was so good to see the manufacturing plant and see some of the people that are working there. Altogether about 60 people with sales and taking orders and accounting and mixing and selling and delivering and lots to do about all that stuff. So we got a pretty good feel for all that and then had some delicious food in the evening, very, very enjoyable.
Hospitality and Future Plans
And thanks for their hospitality, especially for me, it being already my third visit. And we basically were able to determine that that could be our first and last as far as Gettjan goes, because the route that, uh, Barend helped us put together to go on from here on out, it would be just an extra trip to come back. It did not make any, any sense, and Gert-Jan is probably going to see them again in May anyway, because then they are visiting the Netherlands. Very nice to have a place to stay and know people in a, in a foreign country. Thank you for coming along and welcome, Gert-Jan.
