Blogs from North, Tanzania, Africa - page 189

Wednesday 9th February We got up again fairly early; there just wasn’t time for any lie-ins on this holiday. I had decided that I had to get back to Emslies Travel as I was sure Shafiq was working there and I really wanted to meet him. I realized that we both had been at ISM at the same time in 1977-78, but I couldn’t remember him. I wanted yet again to thank him for starting our ISM alumni group web site which has given us so much pleasure this last year. The plan for this day was to go and see a snake park which was situated along the Arusha road, not too far from the Mount Meru Game Sanctuary where I had spent a lot of time in my youth. Harriet wanted to pop in ... read more

Monday 7th February Sleeping in these semi permanent tents is great. You get the feeling of being under canvas but it still feels safe and secure as there is a proper roof and a raised floor. The tents at Kisima Ngeda had very comfortable beds, unlike the ones we used to have in Mikumi National Park, when we stayed at that camp in the 70s. We adored this camp and there was always lots of wildlife right around the tents. But the beds were terrible and there was perhaps a little too much wildlife inside as well. I don't mind the bats and I can handle mice running over my sheets, but beetles, cockroaches and centipedes sharing your bed are more difficult to accept! We had breakfast at 8 am as usual. Another glorious morning with ... read more

Saturday 5th February We had early breakfast, for us that is, at 8 am. Paul lives a musician's life with staying up late at night and getting up late in the morning, and we tend to follow suit as a family. It creates problems with school and work, but all is relative anyway. This whole trip was good training for us as we got up early every morning, and I must say Paul has kept it up here at home as well this last week. The hotel (its real name is Spices & Herbs Ethiopian Hotel and Restaurant) has a wonderful African Grey Parrot, sitting in a cage in the dining room. It talks a lot and is very friendly; one can stroke its head without getting bitten. My parents-in-law have an African Grey called Twifo ... read more

Prologue: This is a journal of the trip my family and I did to Tanzania. My family consist of myself, my husband Paul, Scott 14 years old and Anja 9 years old at the time of travelling. We visited my sister Harriet and her family consisting of husband Jon-Erik, Ossian 17 years old, Vidar 14 years old and Carita 12 years old. Both Harriet and Jon-Erik work on different projects in Tanzania. Tanzania also has a strong background for me as I spent a lot of my childhood there, as my father was involved in various projects in the country. So this trip is as much a revisiting of my roots if you like, as showing Tanzania to my family. I wrote this diary mainly for my fellow alumni from International School Moshi (ISM), so I ... read more

The "Coca-cola Mountain Kilimanjaro stands at 19,340 feet and is the highest free-standing mountain in the world. It has three high peaks namely Shira (the oldest volcano peak), Mawenzi (erupted after shira) and Kibo (the highest peak). For the twenty thousand or more mountain climbing tourists who visit Kilimanjaro each year, it is apparent that it is not something they want to do by themselves. It is not possible to climb to any of the peaks without guides. I'm proud to say I'm one of a few people who has braved this mountain route (Marangu) 4 times and Machame once. 3 climbs in 10 years feels righteous. Well the last climb was more than 5 years ago. I climbed the Machame route with a group of 7 German climbers. (I used to be a travel and ... read more