I love how the most exotic journey can start in the most mundane way. We began our journey to Namibia on the Holloway Road; rolling our bags to the bus stop through litter and taxi fumes. From there we caught the number 43 to Holloway Road station and took the tube to Heathrow. Now we’re on the plane to Frankfurt and tomorrow we’ll fly on to Windhoek. The French coast has just slipped away beneath us; a golden line of sand against a sparkly sea. The sky is blue, the clouds are scattered puffs of marshmallow and we are all thinking about Namibia. I have wanted to go for as long as I can remember, lured by the adventure of the Skeleton Coast and the emptiness of the Namib desert. This is easily the most ambitious trip we have done as we’ll be driving on our own over gravel roads and desert tracks through very remote, unpopulated terrain. We’ll have a 4×4 with tents on the roof and all the kit for cooking over an open fire. Its new territory for us and we don’t quite know what to expect, but the guidebooks promise dramatic landscape, lions, elephants and eagles and a remarkable night sky. I love the idea of driving into the wilderness and not seeing another vehicle for hours or even days. Our luggage is stuffed with sleeping bags and water carriers and hats and long-johns for the freezing nights. This trip has been a long time in the planning and there will be things we hadn’t bargained on I’m sure – but that is all part of the adventure. Its hard to believe that we are finally on our way.