Namibia> Places to visit in Namibia

Gobabis is a town situated on the route from Windhoek to Botswana, the town is 110 km from the Buitepos Border post with Botswana. In the heart of the cattle farming area, it is considered to be the capital of the east and also known as the “Little Texas” of Namibia. In fact Gobabis is so proud of it's cattle farming that a statue of a large bull with the enscription 'Welcome to Cattle Country' greets visitors to the town.

Like many other towns in Namibia, Gobabis developed around a mission station which was established in 1856 by Friederich Eggert of the Rhenish Missionary Society. In the latter half of the 1800s and the early 1900s several conflicts flared up between the Mbanderu and the Khauas Khoikhoi, as well as between the settlers and the indigenous people. The Gobabis district was proclaimed by the German authorities in February 1894 and in June the following year Gobabis was occupied by a German garrison. While the military fort, built in 1896/7, has long since disappeared, one of the few buildings dating back to that era is the field hospital, or Lazarette, which has been declared a national monument.

Of special interest is the Gobabis Museum on the outskirts of the town, where a variety of old agricultural implements are displayed in the grounds, and a collection of historic artefacts in the museum itself, which is opened on request by Mr Eimbeck. Tel (++264 64) 56 2489.

There are a few hotels in Gobabis and nearby lodges offer accommodation for tourists.. Gobabis also has services such as shopping, banking and medical facilities available. Many Namibian safaris pass through Gobabis en-route to South Africa or Botswana.