Ever since buying a series of photographs of Kolmanskop at the Hout Bay market, I’ve wanted to visit this ghost town on the outskirts of Luderitz. I have a fascination with ruins – I love to imagine what life must have been like in their heyday. We visited Kolmanskop this morning. At its zenith, it was a testament to what can be achieved with lots of money and ingenuity.
It was quite incredible to see how those wealthy German diamond prospectors were able to recreate an almost hedonistic European lifestyle in the middle of the desert. Bear in mind, this was the early 1900s and there was absolutely no fresh water. A million litres of potable water was shipped from Cape Town to Luderitz every month to sustain the town. But don’t think that life was an arduous struggle for survival: they skimped on nothing. There was an ice factory, bakery, butchery and general supplies store which imported luxuries like Camembert cheese and salmon from Germany. Furthermore, to ensure that life was not dull, the quartermaster arranged for European opera singers to perform for the Kolmanskoppers. There was also a bowling alley, restaurant, casino (!), champagne room for the ladies and a whisky room for the gentlemen. A massive saltwater swimming pool, complete with diving board, was yet another indulgence in this bizarre European outpost in the African desert.
Bowling Alley
Now, all that remains are derelict buildings filling with sand, slowly being reclaimed by the desert.
Originally a guano mining area, the deposits on the stairs of one of the former mansions suggests that the wheel is turning.
Southern Safari 2 