The spectacular Marianfluss valley is only accessible by well equipped 4x4's. It is known for it's desert appearance but after so much rain we were fortunate to visit whilst the grass was high, littered with wild flowers and wildlife. The valley is famous for the abundance of Hartman's Zebras and mysterious circles of cleared ground where nothing grows dotted throughout the valley. There are many theories to explain these circular phenomena, mainly due to poisonous plant life in the area hundreds of years ago. Camilla, however, prefers the theory that they were actually made by fairies or Himba spirits in search of a play area. As we drove away from the valley the heavens opened. We had to drive some more demanding terrain in the pouring rain. Having come down so far it was time to go up, sometimes climbing what appeared to be more like a dried up waterfall than a track! Biggles took a bashing and we received our sixth puncture of the trip as well as a broken shock. When we started this trip we would have been a little worried to have to deal with this situation 4 days away from any adequate help. However, now with eight months on the road Rich tackled the challenge without a second thought - he is now a very experienced Land Rover mechanic! The one main thing the trip has taught us is that the best way to deal with set backs such as these is not to worry about them and actually enjoy the taxing times as well as the good times. The trip has taught us that any problem, however large, is manageable by having the right attitude to problems and keeping a healthy sense of humour. After all it is not everyday we will have to fix new shock absorbers and punctured tyres 50 miles from the Angolan border and in 40 degree heat. We are sure we will miss these everyday challenges when we return. That night we bush camped in a spectacular valley where there was no one for miles and miles. As the lightening forked in the distance and the birds chatted away we settled down to an evening of conversation and wine followed by Camilla's Coca Cola chocolate cake baked in our makeshift oven on the fire. (It tastes much better than it sounds!)