Welcome to Africa

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After two flights on Qatar Airways (which had awesome service) and a 9-hour layover in Doha, I arrived in Nairobi, Kenya. I had about 5 hours to kill while waiting for my brother, Sarah and Jared to arrive, so I made friends with some of the airport employees who were extremely welcoming and taught me some Swahili while I hung out in their office. In Kenya, the two official languages are English and Swahili, and a lot of the citizens speak a mix of the two languages. I learned that in Tanzania, people are more strict about speaking pure Swahili, versus the hybrid.

When the group arrived, we caught a taxi to Nairobi. There didn't seem to be any traffic laws in place and locals were wandering along the street selling items to passing cars (slightly reminiscent of Tijuana). We arrived at Nairobi Safari Club and were impressed by the wonderful suites and the panoramic view of the city.

After a great dinner, we got some sleep (even though we woke up a few times to gunshots roaring through Nairobi). We woke up refreshed and ready to catch the Riverside Shuttle to Arusha, Tanzania, where we would be spending the next five weeks.

Day two in Africa was a bit rough (literally). It started with a great buffet for breakfast and then our shuttle ride. After piling the shuttle full of people, we head out on a dusty, bumpy road for 7 1/2 hours. The ride was okay, but we kept getting showered with dust and breathing felt a bit suffocating.

It was interesting passing along the roads because we would see the occasional Masai villiager, many times they were out walking herds of cattle and goats, but often they would just sit on the side of the road, observing and passing the time.

We made it through the border crossing from Kenya to Tanzania without incident and were able to get into Arusha, where a person from Good Earth Tours was waiting to take us to Le Jacaranda Hotel. We got to the hotel and heard the mosque call to prayer for the Muslim population of Arusha. The call usually resonates throughout the city through the day and is a reminder to pray toward Mecca. We also heard a group of Masai warriors jogging past the hotel while singing a traditional song.

At the hotel, which was nestled in a lush-looking area in Arusha, we had our safari orientation with David. We were then taken to a supermarket by a Masai man who had been hanging around the hotel. We had dinner at the hotel (while watching a spastic cat) and packet our bags in preparation for our safari. We were leaving for safari at 9 am, so we made sure to get a great night's rest under the cover of mosquito nets (while still shaking dirt out of our clothing and ourselves).

It was a rainy Tanzanian morning when we departed for our safari... see "Safari" blog.

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Photos

Jacaranda
Front of the hotel.

Jacaranda
Balcony of the lovely little hotel.

Jacaranda
An art dealer on the Jacaranda premises.

Clock Tower
"The Center of Africa" if you drew a line from the tip of South Africa up through Egypt.