We had the privilege to visit a Himba Village on the Namibia/Angola border

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A village consists of one extended family with huts on the outside of a center corral for the goats and cattle

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A typical Himba hut is made of sticks and covered with a mixture of clay and cow manure

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Covering the roof of the hut with clay and cow manure. Women do most of the strenuous work

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The women bring water to the village carrying it on their heads from 2 kilometers away

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This young boy looked after the goats

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He was delighted to be photographed and enjoyed seeing himself on the camera screen

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Himba are semi-nomadic, raising goats and cattle as well as growing maize and millet

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Young children's heads are shaved

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The women cover their bodies with a mixture of butterfat and ochre pigment to cleanse the skin and protect from the sun

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Women who are married for a year wear an ornate headpiece sculpted from sheepskin

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At about puberty boys and girls have their two lower front teeth knocked out as part of Himba tribal identification

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Men are away from the village for extended periods herding the cattle and goats, leaving the women to maintain the village

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Women raise the children and milk the goats and cows

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Elaborate hair style of married women

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Older girls have 2 braided hair plaits that are brought forward. Boys have one that goes backward

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Himba are polygamous with men typically having two wives

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Julie showing the children their photos on the back of the camera

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These indigenous people of northern Namibia number only about 50,000 now

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We were invited into a hut to learn more about Himba life

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Himba interact with the local urban culture as seen here in Opuwo. They shop at the supermarket and sell their crafts

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In Opuwo we photographed the Himba and paid them a few dollars

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Back in the village we gave them salt, sugar, maize, and razor blades. Our Himba guide is on the right

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We spent an informative and entertaining day with the friendly, happy Bushmen

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Our guide took us into the bush to show how they survive in the Kalahari desert

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The medicine man demonstrated how they hunt and gather

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The young woman accompanied us and was learning how to be a guide

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Eating a fruit that causes diarrhea and intestinal gas which he vividly demonstrated

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Medicine man building a snare to catch birds

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Showing how they hunt using poison arrows and then track the game until it falls

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Dislodging animals living in burrows

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Bushmen speak with 7 different clicks in their language called Khoisan (see YouTube for an example)

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Bushmen are in transition, clinging on to some of their traditions yet being absorbed into modern society

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Drilling a hole in a shell to make a necklace

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Girls demonstrating a ball game they play

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A boy jumping rope

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Medicine man with his 4 children who were a bit camera shy at first

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The Bushmen population is declining fast; only about 82,000 remain

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All human races have their origin with the Bushmen

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The children quickly warmed up to us and enjoyed having their picture taken

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This was a spontaneous pose by these children

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Our guide was throwing cool water on the children which brought about this action

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Julie, and friend Paul, found an opportunity to purchase some crafts made by the Bushmen

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