Penny George (35), who was born and brought up in Falkland, left her comfortable lifestyle in Edinburgh last month to spend the next two years in Namibia as a VSO volunteer.

She'll be putting her masters degree in tourism to good use by travelling around villages of mud huts explaining the concept of tourism and helping local communities to develop their own businesses.

Penny's mother Anne Pattullo, who lives in Falkland, has since spoken to her daughter, who she says is coping well despite conditions being even tougher than she anticipated.

Having landed in the capital, Windhoek, she embarked on a 10-hour drive to the north of the country — to find that her accommodation only consisted of a broken single bed.

Shortly afterwards, she went into the bush with some Namibian companions, none of whom spoke English, where floods had devastated the landscape and the party had to keep vigil during the night for fear of marauding elephants.

Ablutions were carried out in muddy river water, and Penny was attacked by bees while washing her hair.

But among the more positive experiences has been working with the women of the Himba tribe, distinctive for the rancid goat butter and red ochre with which they cover their skin.

BEAUTIFUL

A stunningly beautiful country, Namibia has been ravaged by HIV and AIDS, with as many as 25 per cent of its population of two million affected and the average life expectancy only around 50.

VSO volunteers like Penny aim to achieve change for disadvantaged people in Namibia and other poor countries by helping them to help themselves, and thus bring about a fairer world.

Penny's adventure represents the culmination of a dream she's had since her student days, when a friend invited her to an African dance and drumming class.

From that day she knew she wanted to visit Africa, and when she finally got the opportunity it was everything she had imagined.

Before she left, Penny said: "Namibia is four times the size of Britain, but the population is smaller than Glasgow's. It's largely empty desert, and it's a really beautiful, unspoilt landscape.

"I love the image of Africa that everyone has, of sunsets and sunrises and big animals — and that's exactly what Namibia is."

Though the trip represents a dramatic change in lifestyle for Penny she said she's not a materialistic person and is quite happy travelling light.

She said: "Tourism is increasingly important to developing countries, but at the moment it's the Americans and Europeans who own the big resort hotels and the beaches, with just 10p in every pound spent there benefiting the African people. I want to help change that."