30TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATIONS To celebrate Rich's birthday we chose to stay in a room with a real bed! It was the first hotel room we have had since we had left Moshi in Northern Tanzania. Rich woke in the morning to balloons, birthday cards and much appreciated birthday hot cross bun with a candle in it. A good beginning to what was to be the most fantastic day of celebrations. First on the agenda was a trip to the Namib dunes to undertake the rather silly act of chucking yourself down a 93m sanddune on a snowboard! Rich had never snowboarded before and thought this was as good a time as ever to learn. After clambering to the top of the dune (no easy task in the heat of the day) he undertook his first descent. Unbelievably he managed to get to the bottom of the slope without falling over! Up and down the slope he went, determined not to fall over and to master his first turns. The experience was fantastic - a lot like skiing on snow but moving the board in deep sand required more force to swing it around. To hit an adrenalin high, Rich agreed to lie down on a piece of plywood coated with wax and whizz down the highest dune. With no way to break or to steer on the board, the only thing he had to do was to hold on and try not to fall off. He managed to clock the fastest speed down the dune, a whopping 75kmh, which sped him down the 96 meter dune in 4.5 seconds. The stop wasn't quite so stylish as he wiped out and seemed to swallow half the sand dune! To end the morning on a natural high, Rich decided to brave a jump...if crashing on a board at 75kms didn't hurt then wiping out on a jump wasn't going to be that much worse. He launched into the air, crashed on impact and finally landed in a heap of sand at the bottom. It was all great fun and hilarious to watch. After a quick lunch accompanied by numerous beers, we both took off for the airstrip. Hearing that the scenic flight over the Namib desert is something not to be missed we decided to do it with a bit of a twist...we would see the dunes and then plummet 10,000 feet from the plane by way of a sky dive! We have both always wanted to try skydiving but never been in the right place to give it a go - now was our opportunity... After donning our 'Austin Powers' jump suits and practicing our 'Saturday Night Fever' dance moves we made our way to the small Cessnar. The company prided itself on it's safety record and "quick instruction" was one of the bonuses....Camilla wasn't so sure that this was a benefit. However, once up in the air, strapped to a strapping instructor, there is not a lot that can go wrong (although lots of thoughts go through your head a few minutes before it's time to jump!) Camilla went first - one second she was on the edge of the Cessnar and the next she disappeared...freefalling for 30seconds and 5000 feet before the parachute opens for about 4 minutes of gliding to the dunes below. Rich was so shocked that she had disappeared that he didn't realise it was his turn...and all he could think about is how he would explain Camilla's disappearance to his parents-in-law! There is absolutely nothing to compare to the experience of throwing yourself out of an aeroplane. The adrenalin kick we both felt was massive and the experience was made all the more amazing by the spectacular scenery. We soared like birds and as the parachute opened we had plenty of time to view the Naukluft Mountains and dune scattered coast below us. As we both landed we rushed to each other absolutely amazed we had survived the decent and pleased to have reached the ground in one piece. It was an amazing way to celebrate being 30! After the next round of beers we headed off to the pub to celebrate with Bill and Claire. John and Cathy, our South African friends we were stranded with in Zambia, made a surprise appearance which made the night even more enjoyable. To thank Rich for his recovery effort the day before Bill and Claire kindly sported us to an amazing birthday supper at The Tug restaurant on the Swakopmund beach front. The restaurant was housed in a converted old tug boat and it was the best place in town to eat king prawns and fantastic fish. The meal was excellent with Bill ordering bottle after bottle of Sauvignon Blanc. We were the last to leave the restaurant, allowing just enough time to pile into a cheesy club. Suffice to say the hangovers the following day were well earned. It was a great way to finish an amazing birthday and one we will both remember for many years to come. A big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Rich's twin sister, Caroline, and to Rich's father, John, in preparation for his 60th Birthday on April 15th. We look forward to celebrating our joint 120 years in style when we get back to the UK later in May.