Zanele Hartmann
A couple of years ago, I visited Namibia, and part of the visit included the Sossusvlei-dunes and the Dead Vlei in the Namib-Naukluft National Park. I was met by a spectacular and striking landscape that was extremely contrasting. On the one side, there were these tall, red, beautiful sand dunes, and on the other side, there was the Dead Vlei. Vlei is the Afrikaans word for “marsh”, simply translating to “Dead Marsh” in English. The Dead Vlei was once an oasis, that is now a white clay pan. The dead acacia trees are estimated to be between 600-700 years old (Bliss, 2018). The Namib desert, containing the Namib-Naukluft National Park, is thought to be the oldest continuous desert in the world (Bliss, 2018). This desert has endured an arid climate for 50-80 million years, and this lengthy dry period has influenced the endemic plants and animals in the area (Bliss, 2018).