An earthy embrace

When I came across this unusual gravestone in Otjiwarongo, it caught my attention. It was as if nature was having the last word, and doing it beautifully.

Termites had constructed a cathedral-shaped mound around the stone like an earthy embrace and a tree had sprung up from it in a leafy symbiosis, spreading its branches like wings. A blanket of leaves fell softly over the grave. It struck a chord of harmony in me that the earth had responded in this way in this very spot.

I found the name ‘Gianni Alfredo Lardelli’ inscribed on the stone, an unusual one for Namibia, and decided to look into it. A quick Google search led me to Susan Lardelli in Oshakati, the owner of a small guesthouse. She graciously shared the story of her family and their photographs. Her late husband Gianni, a Swiss man, was a keen hunter and was initially drawn to Zimbabwe. When he explored southern Africa further and arrived in Namibia, he instantaneously fell in love. After independence in 1990 he decided to make the country his home. Susan told me how he loved the Namibian people – and the Namibian climate. He was an electrical engineer by profession and started an electrical company in Oshakati.

The story of the couple’s meeting is an interesting (and dear) one. It was before the days of internet and Gianni placed an advert in the newspaper, looking for a pen pal. Five hundred Filipinos replied to the advert. He narrowed it down to twenty and started corresponding with Susan. They got to know each other through letters and eventually met up, fell in love and got married.

When Gianni passed on in 2004, Susan converted their home into a guesthouse. Their daughter, Lyana Lardelli, is a legal practitioner living in Windhoek. When asked how she remembers her husband, Susan replied that he was a wonderful, caring human being, one of a kind, who held the Namibian people in his heart.

I’ve come to realise more and more, after working in the tourism industry for the last thirty years, what a wonderful country we live in. With the turmoil in the world today, an increasing number of people are appreciating the beautiful attributes of Namibia, reminding me how very special our country is.