After crossing the bridge over Rusumo Falls and entering Tanzania the passport and customs controls did not take long and I could now get on the road to my first destination. In Tanzania you pay the price of entering the country on a Sunday in the form of overtime wages for the personnel. I am sure this is not the case for the international airports is Dar es Salaam or Arusha but it is a rule you have to follow when crossing the border overland. It's not much anyways; you pay five thousand Tanzania Shillings in exchange for receipt. It is about USD4.30…

I was about to thank the customs officers and leave when one of them asked me if I could drop someone at Geita, which was on my route. I checked the map; it is 243km to Geita, about two-thirds of a total 367km drive to my destination. I said "Alright!" Then we can chat some on the way and avoid boredom.
The first 90km of the road from the border is asphalt paved. The remaining part until Mwanza where I am heading is partially improved according to Michelin. I remember well this term "partially improved" from Ethiopia where I had to drive on a road classified as such. It was an extremely difficult drive. So I have doubts on the 277km road ahead, after the first 90.

My travel buddy showed up. She is about 18 - 25, can't really tell by looking at her face but her outfit makes her look a bit older, wearing stretch pants, tight shirt. Behind her a customs officer was carrying her small suitcase. The lady is waiting for the door to be opened for her, as if she is going to get in a limousine. So we opened the door and invited her on board, then loaded her suitcase on our limo. Off we went. I started asking a few questions. Every answer I get is a "Yes!" "Are you working at the customs?" "Yes!" "Do you commute this far everyday?" "Yes!" "Isn't it difficult?" "Yes!" "Do you live in Geita?" "Yes!" "What job do you do here?" "Yes!" "Ah! Ok, now I got it. You don't speak any English." "Yes!" "Well, why didn't you tell me?" "Yes!" That's when I shut up.

The first 90km is asphalt paved just like it is on the map. I missed the turn off to Mwanza; it was an inconspicuous intersection. I haven't seen any signs up to it either. It was only a few kilometers later when I glanced at my GPS I realized that I passed the intersection and I turned around. I tried to tell the girl by gestures and mime that we missed the Mwanza intersection; she looked at me with a blank expression. I think English is not the only thing missing.

There was in fact a little sign with faded writing on it at the intersection but I think it is perfectly normal that I missed it. We entered a narrow dirt road. If the term "improved" used to describe flattened dirt, then yes, it seems to be improved. Add "partial" to the beginning of that term and it becomes a bit disturbing. And that "partial" part was over in about 20 - 30 km. After that point till Mwanza I did not see a trace of even partially improved road bits. The deep fissures caused by the rain and the holes on the road surface were so bad at places that I had to stop, get out of the car and check to see how I could pass. In the meantime, after I completed this update, on March 20th (I had difficulties sending it due to very limited local internet facilities, hence the delay) I received an "Urgent Message" from my old travel buddy Chris, which said the vehicle he was traveling in on the same road was shot at by automatic weapons but fortunately the driver reacted fast so they were able to escape unhurt with only some physical damage to the vehicle.

Next to me a girl who is not uttering a word, the car that is continuously bouncing up and down on the rough road and myself, we are moving along at an average speed of 25kmph. We arrived in Geita at about 15:30, I was driving through the town slowly so I wouldn't miss if she pointed and gestured something like "I will get off there". I passed through the town center and I began to think maybe she is living in a suburb on the outskirts. In a little while there were no suburbs or houses left. I stopped and pointed to Geita on the map and asked her "Aren't you getting off here?" "Yes!" "Ok then, you can get off now." "Yes!" "No, look Miss, this IS Geita. You know how your house; it has a roof like this, you live in it etc. Well, that's here and you will need to get off." "Yes!" Great! I turned around and went back to the town center; one of the young men there spoke English and I asked him for help. "Can you please explain to this lady that this is her stop; we are in Geita, the place where she wanted to go." The young man explained her the situation and told me the reply he got: "But I am not getting off at Geita." "So where is she going to get off then?" "Shall I ask her?" "No, let me try to find out using telepathy. Of course you will need to ask buddy!" People here do only as much as they are asked. If I want him to find out where she wants to go, I will have to ask him to do this. "And?" "She is going to Sengerema". "But she said she was going to Geita." "?!" "For heaven's sake!" I stepped on the gas. Well, I stepped on the gas as much as the road let me. Meanwhile it was four already. I was thinking if I didn't have this girl in the car I would stay here in Geita overnight. Not a chance. I got into it so I have to do the right thing.
We got back on the road but we have more than 120km to travel before we reach Sengerema and at this speed it would take 5 hours. I tried to increase my speed some but it is not possible. There is the rattling noise over my head again. I pulled over to the left, stuck my head out of the window and looked at brackets of the roof rack straightaway. Yes, this one is broken as well. This is the fifth one to break. Personally I think Otokar needs to look at this and improve it. Not partial improvement though, a total improvement.

We arrived in Sengerema at around half past eight. My entire body, especially arms and shoulders are aching from constant tension. All I want to do is take a shower, grab a bite to eat, and sleep. This time I didn't wait for the girl, I just stopped in the middle of the town and shouted, "Excuse me! I need help from someone who can speak English!" A young kid approached the car. I said, "Can you please ask her where her house is?" He asked her and turned to me "She is going to Mwanza. Not here." Ah, now I understand. She either latched on to me herself or was made to. I can almost hear those of you who have experienced this before say, "You just figured it out?"… I told the kid "Look, tell her I will drop her at a hotel, motel, wherever she wants. Or she can get off the car here right here." "She doesn't know a hotel here." "Then" I said, "I can see a motel, I will drop her off there." I asked around for the best hotel in town, they showed me. It had even a shower and toilet in the room. The only problem; there was no water. They brought two buckets of water. I took my "shower", had chicken for dinner in the restaurant in the garden and went to bed nice and early. Neighbors were chatting and listening to the radio about 1 meter away from my window, which didn't have a glass. I was waiting for them to turn off their radio and end their chatter in order to fall asleep. Their chat ended at around one in the morning but the radio stayed on and I think it was on till the morning. Africans love to listen to the radio. Anything on the radio, music, news, educational programs, doesn't matter what… I guess in a way this is their connection to the rest of the world. You see a lot of people around on the streets, listening to their small hand-held radios attached to their ears.

I woke up early the next morning. The air is heavy with impeding rain. I need to replace the broken bracket on the roof rack and I need to do it before the rain starts or I will find myself in the same situation as I did in Rwanda. Luckily I am now more experienced and I can change them around faster. By the time the first raindrops started to fall I was already done. I ordered a black tea; got bread, cream cheese and olives from the car and had a quick breakfast.

I need to give you a little geographical information before describing the location of Mwanza. My point of entry to Tanzania from Rwanda was at the northwest end of the country, to the southwest of Lake Victoria. My route in Tanzania is eastward from Rwandan border to Dar es Salaam and then southwest to cross over to Malawi. On the way to Dar es Salaam, first you travel along the southern shores of Lake Victoria and then you have to go through the Serengeti and Ngorongoro National Parks. Then you turn southeast as you drive along the southern outskirts of the legendary Mount Kilimanjaro. The first most suitable place to stay at after the border is Mwanza, situated on the southern shores of Lake Victoria. It lies on a peninsula that juts into the lake and on the eastern side of an inlet. Since there are no roads going around the inlet to reach Mwanza along the route I picked, I have to cross the inlet on a ferry. I plan to leave at eight in the morning and complete the 25km road to the ferry dock in 45 minutes. Meanwhile the rain is picking up. The dirt road is in much worse condition than it was the day before. I fear that one of the trucks with their good and human cargo might get stuck on the slippery and muddy surface and close the road.



The road from Sengerema to the ferry dock.

It doesn't look like I can cover the 25km road in 45 minutes. The rain has picked up; it is falling heavily and filling the holes on the road turning them into puddles. You can't escape some of those puddles so you have to drive through, and as you do, at times the car sinks up to the frame. Almost halfway to my destination, my fears came through. The back left wheel of a bus was stuck in the mud. It was stuck diagonally, blocking the road. There was no space along the sides for me to drive through. I had to find another route but the ground was all flooded around me. The rubber boots I took with me to this trip became useful for the first - and hopefully the last - time here. I put on my boots and raincoat, and jumped out of the car to search for solid ground on the side of the road where it was partially flooded. The villagers helped me as well in my search. In the meantime I was scanning around for vehicles suitable to hook up a winch in the event that I get sink. After surveying the ground for about half an hour I set up a path, I thought I could drive through without sinking. At the end of the path the ramp where I'd join the road was a bit risky because the mud there was deep. I thought I could use the winch there if needed. On the other side there was a vehicle strong enough to hook up the winch and do the rescue. Passengers on the bus and the villagers standing around were not convinced that I could pull this through yet they were all curious, watching intently. I reversed back from where I was to the beginning of the new route I picked for myself; took a deep breath and drove into the water on the right side of the road. The water did not go above to the top of my boots, that is deepest point was 40cm max. I drove slowly on third gear and with middle differential locked. At some point it started skidding but we managed to go all the way to the end with no problems. When I came to the part that I was dreading I sped up a little. The back wheels danced a little, right and left, but it still climbed up despite the tires it had and gave me no troubles. I love my car!

I responded to the cheers with a wave of my hand and continued on the road. When I arrived at the ferry dock, I realized that I had been on the road for 2 hours. If we take out the half hour survey, 1.5 hours for 25km is not "that bad". It was now time to wait for the ferry scheduled for 11:00.


We are waiting for the Mwanza ferry. Check out the name on the bus behind me: Sheraton!

I count the vehicles; there are a total of 2 buses, 2 trucks, 1 pickup truck and my car. As for the people, there are about fifty or sixty passengers. The ferry docks at 10:30 and we begin to board slowly. As a favor, they are going to let me board last so I can be the first to get off.


I will be the last to board the ferry

Mwanza
Mwanza is the second largest city of Tanzania after Dar es Salaam despite the huge population difference. It was built by the Germans to serve as an advance post in 1890. Mwanza owes its current position as the second largest city to two things: First, gold mines in the area; and second, its position as a suitable port on Lake Victoria for trade with Kenya (limited) and Uganda. Mwanza began to attract attention in 1920 by the discovery of the gold mines located around the area and Musoma. It became a port city of importance when it joined Tanzania's railroad network after the completion of Tabora - Shinyanga - Mwanza line in 1928.

Gold is one of the most important export products of Tanzania, which is the third largest gold producer in Africa after South Africa and Ghana. Gold is mined in Geita, Mwanza and some parts of Busoma. Despite its benefits to the country, gold production presents a serious risk to Lake Victoria. Cyanide, which is used in processing of the gold ore, leaks through the soil into Lake Victoria as a result of heavy rains in the area, and seriously threatens the ecological balance of the lake along with other pollutants. As opposed to Kenya and Uganda both of which have strong control over disposal of sewerage and industrial waste, in Tanzania 2 million liters of sewerage and industrial water flow into Lake Victoria each day.

I went to Iko Hotel I picked from the book. It was more run down yet more expensive than described in the book. I can't say I liked any of the mid-range hotels that I looked at besides Iko Hotel so I returned to Iko and checked in as the only guest of the day. Then I headed downtown Mwanza to try the ATM's and also to find an internet café to check my messages. Nice! The ATM's accept my card so I won't have to exchange my Dollars here in Tanzania. Although I will most likely be able to find ATM's almost everywhere after Malawi and Zambia and I have enough Dollars to keep me going until then, I still don't want to put my hand in my pocket for cash - just in case. You never know.

After the internet and ATM missions were complete I found a blacksmith to get the broken bracket welded. Since all the necessities were taken care of now it was time for dinner.

Dinner at an Indian restaurant was a bit of a let down. I returned to the hotel and watched TV for a little while and chatted with three cleaning ladies at the hotel bar. Then it's straight to bed.

The next morning, Tuesday March 7th I check out of the hotel in Mwanza and get on the road to Musoma. I have not decided whether or not I will stay in Musoma. As I mentioned before in order to go from Mwanza in the direction of Arusha - Dar es Salaam you have to go through Serengeti, Tanzania's biggest and most popular national park. You have to pay the park entry fee… Kind of like paying toll fees, but a little more expensive. I thought if I am paying this fee why not go on a safari in Serengeti, so I made a plan which involved entering Serengeti early in the morning through the Ndaraka gate at the west end of the park, leaving in the afternoon through the Ngorongoro gate and arriving in Arusha. I also planned to stay at the Serengeti Stopover 1 km out of the Ndaraka gate, a very popular campsite among the overlanders, but when I got there I found out that all the bungalows were full. I didn't feel like sleeping in the car either - too much dust. So I decided to spend the night at Musoma, a town again situated on the shores of Lake Victoria a little up north. Having changed plans though, now it was impossible to implement the original "daily Serengeti safari" program.

Musoma has remained small a lakeside town. With the recent cancellation of the ferry services to Kisumu and other Tanzanian ports it turned into a holiday town that lost its popularity. Unfortunately privatization has not contributed much to the once painstakingly constructed, now generally neglected Peninsula Tourist Facilities.

I think that evening I was the only foreign guest at the hotel apart from a few members of the parliament. In the afternoon the hotel manager and I had a nice chat as we sat out on the beautiful terrace facing the lake, despite the ugly and deserted ferry building that blocks out the sunset. Later he tried to help me when I was trying to make a reservation at one of the lodges in Serengeti. He used his own mobile phone to make the call since the hotel phones were out of order (!). He called one of the lodges I picked from the guidebook but they didn't answer the phone. When he called another he told them to wait and handed the phone to me. I told the women on the phone that I wanted to stay there one or two nights and asked how much a single room was. I was surprised to find out that it was USD80.00 per half-board basis but I figured it was due to off-season. In the book the rate was shown as USD140.00. I thought when the price is this reasonable I could stay two nights and could even go on a safari properly. I have to say I was not that enthusiastic about Serengeti after the safaris in Kenya and then in Uganda, despite the fact that it had a much larger animal population than others and seasonally speaking it was the right time of the year. When the rainy season begins from mid-February onwards and the green vegetation grows lush Serengeti receives herds of migrating herbivorous animals, especially the wildebeest - a larger member of the antelope family. As part of what is known as the Great Wildebeest Migration, hundreds and thousands of animals travel up north to Maasai Mara (Kenya) beginning from July and return mid-February. Maybe some of you will remember from the documentaries the famous images of the wildebeests picked randomly by the giant African alligators as they try to cross Grumeti River in the north at beginning of the migration. This migration cycle attracts the carnivorous animals, especially the big cats, into the area.

I am not in much of a hurry the next day. I had my breakfast at a reasonable time, at about 8:00. By the time I packed up the car and left it was already 9:00. This time I will enter Serengeti from the Fort Ikoma gate in the northwest, instead of the Ndaraka gate in the west. After leaving the asphalt-paved road, I drove on a long dirt road to reach Fort Ikoma. It was relatively smooth with occasional rough spots. Considering the relatively reasonable rates of accommodation and the popularity of Serengeti I have decided to stay there for two nights. So I coughed up a total of USD160.00, USD100.00 of which was the park entry fee and USD60.00 vehicle fee for two days. As long as the craze continues, provided that they act wisely, these countries will continue to rack up so much more money from this safari business.


Serengeti National Park
Serengeti is spread to a very large area, approximately 15,000km². When it is such a big area it is not that easy to reach your destination. You usually drive through the savannah and sparsely wooded areas. I see many of the not-so-rare inhabitants; zebra, gazelle, impala, dik dik and others.

After a while you get tired of seeing these...


On the way I see a dalla-dalla on the side of the road. People's heads are sticking out of the roof, their attention focused on to one point. Dalla-dalla is typically a (Toyota) van or a 4WD (Toyota Land Cruiser or Land Rover Defender) vehicle custom built longer to increase the number of seats converted into a safari vehicle with rooftop that opens up with a mechanism much like the ventilation hatches on the roof of our good old 0302 Mercedes buses. I have before but let me explain again, that these hatches serve two purposes; for the tourists to be able to stand up and look around comfortably, and also to protect them from the sun and possible rain.

I pulled next to the dalla-dalla and saw that there were two female lions taking their afternoon nap under the shade of a tree. As I pulled next to it, the dalla-dalla took off. Probably the tourists got tired of watching the lions sleep for a long time. I am left with the lions alone. This is the first time I see a lion this close in its natural environment. We have at most ten meters between us. I take lots of pics.





Not a bad start at Serengeti

My reservation is at the Seronera Wildlife Lodge in the Seronera region of the park. I arrive at the lodge at around 15:00. I tell the woman at the reception that I made a reservation the day before on the phone. She asks my name and I tell her. She looks at the records and she can't find it. "How can it be? It was a lady with the name Zehra who handled the reservation." The woman tells me that there is no one working here with that name. I open the guidebook and doublecheck the phone number; she looks at the number and tells me that the number doesn't belong to them, that it has changed two years ago. Well whose number is it then? She offers to call and find out, I say "Yes, please." The person on the other side of the line tells her that it is Hotel so and so in Arusha. I ask her if she could cancel that one please. Apparently I have made a reservation at a hotel in Arusha instead of Serengeti. The number changes but it is another hotel that takes over the same number; what are the chances of that happening? Should I say bad luck? USD80.00 was too good to be true anyways.

So what are the prices like here then? The lady is telling me that half board is USD280.00. What? Thanks, but no thanks. Darn it! I have already paid park fees for 2 days. I check the rates at other lodges from the guidebook. There are eight more. Five of them are up north and too far away. If this were Kenya there would be at least 50 lodges that would have already been built in a park as big as Serengeti. Sopa Lodge catches my eye; seems to be relatively cheaper and Sopa is a well-known chain. I call them; their half-board rate is USD180.00. The woman on the phone tells me they will give me a special discount (why thank you!) and quote a discounted rate of USD140.00. I accept this offer since there is no better alternative and book a room there for two nights. Before I leave, I thank the person at the reception of Seronera Wildlife Lodge for her assistance. She tells me the price for this "assistance" is TSh6,000.00, that is about USD5.00. I take my thanks back and instead, hand her the cash, grumbling under my breath.

Luckily Sopa Lodge is also recorded on my GPS. For someone who is not familiar with it, it wouldn't be possible to find any place in Serengeti, mainly because of the size of the park and the inadequate signage.

It started to rain as I approached Sopa and was pouring when I arrived there. We have entered the the rainy season in mid-February and because of the unexpected three-week delay in Uganda, I got caught in it.

For the first time since Buket and Alican left I have two days of living in luxury again. I need to make the best of it and start the safari with the first light of day. I feasted on a scrumptious dinner with meal selections I made from the multiple-choice menu. It is obvious their chefs are pretty good. I worked on the updates in my room for a while and then went to bed. I left the bolted balcony door wide open all night. I could hear all sorts of sounds coming from the wildlife down in the Seronera forest.
I woke up before dawn to the sound of heavy rain. If it countinues to pour down like this I can forget about the safari. Finding and seeing the animals as well as managing to walking on muddy ground without sinking will be very difficult.

I still got up at my planned time. Rain has stopped and the forest was cloaked in fog. I ate my breakfast quickly and left the lodge. That day I drove around the Seronera region of Serengeti for 7 hours and covered a distance of 230 km. I must have driven nearly on every road in the area. Towards the end rain started again and I had to return. It wasn't an exciting expedition. The most interesting images were a close-up of a spotted hyena, a family of 6 lions. Besides those, I captured images of hippos and baboon monkeys.

Photos from a seven-hour safari

After my last night at Seronera Sope Lodge I left early the next morning on Friday, March 10th. I am planning to drive straight through Ngorongoro National Park without stopping and arrive in Arusha in the evening. Of course I will still have to pay the entry fee of another USD60.00 there. I think I will stay clear of the national parks for a long time to come. I am just about national parked and wildlifed out. I haven't had a chance to play with the leopards and the cheetas, except for the cheetas Buket, Alican and I saw at Maasai Mara, the ones whose memories will stay with us in Alican's photos. Also in Serengeti I saw a couple of cheetas playing in the distance and that's it. Still, from now on zoo is the only place I will go to see any and all wild animals. I am not sure anymore that pouring so much money into the trouble of trying to see them. Maybe once or twice but after that, I think not.

Once out of the rought dirt road of Ngorongoro, I began to drive down slope on asphalt-paved road towards Arusha. Rain started pouring down not too far from Arusha and continued dropping visibility almost down to zero all the way to the city.

I will be staying in Arusha for two days. I moved the car maintenance plans from Dar es Salaam to Arusha. One of the safari drivers who drives Land Rover recommended a service shop in Arusha. I will get the 30,000km service and maintenance done and also take a serious look at the oil leak problem in the front differential.

Arusha
It was already six o'clock when I entered the city. Following the directions that the driver gave me I found the Land Rover service shop easily, but it was closed. As I always do, I went on a city tour to record the tracks of important points in the city into the GPS; I took cash out from an ATM and drove out to the place recommended by the book; The Outpost Lodge B&B run by an Australian woman. Just like everywhere else, the prices here are also 50% more than the prices quoted in the book. Thanks to the safari addicts the rate for a single room with breakfast has gone up from the USD26.00 quoted in the book to USD38.00 per night. Far from the hustle and bustle of the city, its safe and tranquil atmosphere captured me, I have to say. They have internet available here as well, so I won't have to go out and about to get online.


Peaceful place, the Outpost Lodge B&B in Arusha

Outpost Lodge consists of a line of adjacent bungalows. Two cyclists, one Kenyan and one American and I settled in two bungalows next to each other. They are ride to Dar es Salaam and back, then the American will return to his country... It doesn't sound as interesting as Nando's 10-year around the world tour, does it? It certainly is not the case. Well, check this out: Kenyan Moharrem is missing a leg. While I don't know how to ride a bike with my two, people ride from Nairobi to Dar es Salaam and back with their one leg. It is a 1,852 km trip in total. I have so much respect for Moharrem.

Built at the foot of 4,556m high Mount Meru, Africa's fifth highest mountain, Arusha is Tanzania's "safari capital". Tourists visiting Tanzania to go on safaris fly directly to Kilimanjaro International Airport approximately 40km outside of Arusha. One thing to remember; if they have organized your trip through a travel agency, they will be fine. If they are thinking, "I will see what is available once I arrive in Arusha; face to face bargain might get me good deals" then I pity them. They will be left in the hands of tourist agencies in Arusha waiting for them like a pack of hungry wolves. And once these hungry wolves find out that time is an issue for these visitors (if that's the case), then they will rip them off like you wouldn't believe.

Land Rover service is closed the next day, probably because it is a Saturday. I suppose I will have to do it myself. First I need to get my car washed and cleaned; it has different shades of mud stuck on it from various places I have visited. If I can find a place that has a lift I want to get the bottom of the car washed as well. I query at a few places; unfortunately there aren't any places that have a lift and a car was service together. Meanwhile I check the bottom of the car, the drive through heavy rain on asphalt-paved road must have cleaned it all up. No problems there.


It was definitely time to get it washed.

I found a good car-wash place and get my car cleaned inside out. I can say this was the best place I got my car washed since I got on the road for this trip. Still nothing compares to the ones in Turkey. I got in my super clean car and pulled up at a petrol station which also has a car service. The guy doesn't look too busy; no hassles, I can work on the car. I need to change the oil and the fuel filter. I changed them about 4,500km ago and got the drive shaft joints last greased in Kigali. Apart from these, I will be checking the brake pads along with the oil situation in the front differential (and of course the rest of the pinion boxes). The front differential oil level relatively level but still within acceptable limits. Though the quality of the oil seemed to be poorer compared to the oil in the other pinion boxes. I decided to change it. The leak was originating from the cap seal, that was for sure. Especially since the bottom had been "washed" it was easy to figure this out. I tightened the nut some more (I don't have torque wrench but I know tightening it too much would do more harm than good anyway), and I changed the oil. I removed one front and one back wheel to inspect the brake pads; they will be fine at least till the end of the trip so I didn't touch them. Brake, clutch and steering wheel hydraulic fluid levels and engine cooling fluid all fine. I inspected the engine compartment and the bottom of the car, nothing is amiss. I drained the fuel sedimenter, nothing came out. Tire pressure still the same. 30,000km service complete once I changed the oil and the fuel filter. Why would it need to be serviced anyway? I will need to get the oil / air filters and the oil changed only once until the end of the trip if nothing else goes wrong. The next day I will set out for Dar es Salaam and drive past the southern foot of the Mount Kilimanjaro. The initial trip plans included a climb up Mount Kilimanjaro. I can almost hear some of you say "What on earth are you doing, planning a climb up Africa's highest mountain with an altitude of 5,895m?" Honestly, I would have thought the same up until a few years ago but it is really not that hard to climb up Mount Kilimanjaro. I think there aren't many mountains as high as this that you can climb as easy as this one. They say anyone who is semi-fit and doesn't have a heart problem or any other health issues can climb it. A 7 year old kid became the youngest to climb up Kilimanjaro a few years ago.The temperature drops down to 20°C at night towards the peak. All you need is a good pair of hiking shoes and warm clothes to protect you against the cold at night. You don't need any special equipment to climb this one.

It is compulsory to have a have a guide with you for the climb. There are hundreds of agencies that organize mountaineering expeditions and climbs and they all supply you with a guide. You can either join a group or form a "group" by yourself. There are also few porters that carry the tent, food, etc., during the climb that takes about 6 days to complete (ascent 4 days, descent 2 days). In mountaineering these are considered as personal belongings and are carried by the climbers themselves, but as I said you don't have to be a mountaineer to climb this particular mountain. The total cost of a climb up Kilimanjaro is about USD1,000,00, including the entry to the national park since Mount Kilimanjaro is also a national park.

So then you do the climb. Just not during the rainy season when torrential rain falls once or twice a day. I don't know who can stand the -15°C cold in the evenings - close to the peak -especially after getting soaking wet under the pouring rain everyday. At least, not me. So I give up on the idea. And this is another one of the consequences of the compulsory delay in Uganda...

In the next update I will tell you more; the road, Dar es Salaam and the Zanzibar surprise, after Arusha.

Page 2 >