Windhoek

Understand

The city was spelled Windhuk during the German colonial time and is sometimes still referred to as such in German. The name is pronounced wind-hook, as "oe" in Dutch and Afrikaans is pronounced like "u" in German.

Get in

thumb|right|upright|Christus Church, a Windhoek landmark

See

thumb|The Tintenpalast, housing the Parliament of Namibia National Gallery of Namibia Dictator street names Although Namibia isn't a dictatorship, there are a few dictators with whom Namibia's first president was quite friendly during the days of the struggle for independence (and still is). There are two in Windhoek, both downtown: Fidel Castro St. and Robert Mugabe Ave. thumb|Christuskirche is a feature of the downtown area

Buy

There is a craft market in Post Street Mall in central Windhoek, though prices are quite high. There is another in Independence Avenue outside the Hilton Hotel. Prices are lower at the craft market in Okahandja, which is about an hour north of Windhoek.

There are a number of arcades and small shopping centres in the centre of Windhoek. Between them you can find pretty much anything you need. There is also a larger mall called Maerua Mall in the south end of the city (Jan Jonker Road), easily accessible by taxi.

For arts and crafts you can visit Jennys Place located at Bougain Villa 78 Sam Nujoma Drive, Klein Windhoek. . It is the largest arts and crafts shop in Namibia. They also provide a variety of art classes such as painting, card making and scrap booking. It has a calm and tranquil atmosphere.

Many places including shops, restaurants and internet cafés included are closed on Sundays or stay open only until 13:00. Alcoholic beverages aren't sold after 19:00 (weekdays) and after 13:00 on Saturday (until Monday morning). On public holidays only restaurants and night clubs are open, all ordinary bars have to close.

Supermarkets and other shops close in the evenings.

Drink

Bump Located in the Southern Industrial section of Windhoek, Bump features a spacious outdoor area, mid-sized dance floor and a large bar. Although the music is often limited to house and rave music, the service is friendly. Popular with the Afrikaner crowd. The Wine Bar Located on a hill overlooking Windhoek with fantastic sunsets, perfect for that romantic occasion. The staff give excellent service and have good knowledge of the wines being served.

Connect

The area code for Windhoek is (061). When calling Windhoek from outside Namibia do not put a '0' between the country code and the area code.

It is cheaper to buy mobile phone starter packs than rely on roaming. Starter packs, including SIM cards and airtime, can be purchased from the two operators MTC (shops are called "Mobile Home") and Telecom ("TeleShop") at less than N$20. You need to bring your passport in order to have the card registered.

There are a number of well-equipped Internet cafés in Windhoek.

Stay healthy

thumb|275px|Windhoek's Zoo Park and Independence Avenue, the city's main street. Due to its high elevation of about 1,600 m you can be sunburnt easily, even on the (few) cloudy days. Wear a hat and sunscreen.

Windhoek is not within the endemic malaria area. The mosquitoes can still be a pest during rainy season (Nov-Apr). Repellents are available at every supermarket.

At night hookers are everywhere tourists may go, including the casinos, larger bars and restaurants, and on the street. Consider that the HIV prevalence rate still is around 15% nationwide, and presumably still higher than that among sex workers.

Stay safe

Windhoek is generally safe for tourists but the usual precautions should be taken. Do not walk around displaying jewellery or electronics. Take a radio taxi at night. Do not visit the townships unaccompanied, or after dark. The city centre is not very big and newly arriving tourists are quickly spotted by aggressive beggars who like to start conversions like "Kommen Sie aus Deutschland?", thereby targeting, and taking by surprise, the many German visitors. Just ignore them.

Be careful with the traffic. Many drivers ignore red lights, zebra crossings, and a lot more. For a car that wants to turn, a green pedestrian traffic light means nothing, and generally people in cars are deemed to be more important than people on foot, and therefore have the right of way.