The drive was interesting, as all of them are interesting, as we passed through several towns and villages as we climbed higher and higher into a mountain terrain.
It's difficult to get photos from a moving vehicle so I didn't get any really good ones - always hoping to get some, though!
The most familiar sight is the women sitting alongside the road with their wares while all the guys hang out with their motorcycles, visiting and not getting much done. A lot of the women are selling produce - tomatoes, potatoes, some corn, yams and yarrow.
There also are stores that sell everything from furniture (which remains outside, even in the rain), hardware, lumber. We passed a location at which there were bags and bags of carrots getting ready to be loaded for transport.
There are quite a few hair salons as well.
There are also other similarities: everything is dirt except the paved highway, most all of the buildings are either concrete blocks or kind of ramshackle. It was raining as we passed through the towns/villages, so everything was mud.
A lot of people have motorcycles because it's cheap transportation but they don't wear helmets and, well, they drive dangerously. The photo I got was of a young man riding the bumper of a large truck - I mean he was no further than a foot from the bumper, and if the truck had slammed on its brakes - well, you know it wouldn't be good for the young man. We saw an accident in which a car overturned. We suspect he was going too fast, hit the guardrail (which was bowed), lost control and there ya go.
We saw a funeral procession. Well, it was a hearse with two vehicles doing really fast to the village in the foothills of the mountain. There was a band waiting in the back of a truck, all of them dressed in white but we didn't stop. Dangit. There were tons of folks there when we descended the mountain, and it looked like quite a gathering.
We got to the mountain, and we still couldn't see it but we went for a three-hour hike along the foothills of it with Rogath. He has eight children, one of whom is in university studying geology and wants to get a Ph.D. in Europe or possibly the United States. When Rogath heard we were retired university professors, he promptly called his son so he could talk with me. So, I'm on the phone with his son for about 15 minutes as we strolled through the forest. For some reason, I guess he thought we could be helpful. I left my email address but I also left him with Beth's phone number because we only have her phone and she downloaded WhatsApp, which app everyone uses in Africa.
As I write this Friday afternoon, Beth just told me she got a message on WhatsApp from his son.
Rogath is Chaga, a tribe located on Mount Kilimanjaro, and he knows a lot about the forest flora and fauna when it comes to how to use it medicinally. He learned it from his mother. So he was pointing out different plants and explaining how to use them. We came upon one plant that he said you can high from chewing the bark. It's legal in Kenya, but illegal in Tanzania.
We saw some blooms, lots of ferns and moss as well as some animals such as an African slug. There are wild mango trees but only the monkeys eat the fruit, and we spotted one fruit that had been split open. As you can see, we also saw a pretty waterfall that was about 40 meters in height.
When we stopped in an open spot from which you should be able to see the mountain if the sky was clear, this guy with a backpack shows up. We thought he was a hiker but turns out it was Rogath's friend who had something to sell. It was very odd - you're out hiking in the woods and someone shows up to sell you something. We figured Rogath was helping his friend, and he called him to tell us where we would be at what time.
Unfortunately, a lot of men (yes, it's all men) make money by hawking stuff. There were several in the parking lot, and we've encountered them elsewhere. They are very persistent. We don't want to be rude but… Alfred, our guide, told us to say no, and if that didn't work, tell them "maybe tomorrow."
We did not see Mount Kilimanjaro - which is the first disappointment of the trip. Maybe we'll see it Friday before we leave Arusha or perhaps when we fly to the Serengeti.
The rain was spotting on the trip back to our boutique hotel, which used to be a plantation farmhouse that now has lots of rooms and cottages. It is tucked away down an impossible road, a road on which only four-wheel drives or very sturdy vehicles can drive.
But we've got an "exclusive" safari guide who drives a honking Toyota Land Cruiser that can go anywhere. It also has charging stations for our phones or camera.
Did I tell you our room here has a television? We ate supper and tried to watch some television but we were pooped, and we were asleep before we knew it.
This woman was sweeping the dirt path at Kilimanjaro National Park.
Begonias that are on trees.
A wild mango split open by a monkey. Only. monkeys eat the fruit.
An African slug. It's about six times larger than the slugs we have in Wisconsin.
Hiking the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro.
Rogath, our safari guide at Kilimanjaro.
A water fall to which we hiked.
A fern growing on a tree.
Beth is pointing to where we should be able to see Mount Kilimanjaro, if not for the clouds and rain.
A village scene in Arusha.
A family in Arusha.
A family waiting and resting in Arusha. Sorry, it's not sharp - shooting from moving vehicle!
Vendors alongside the highway.
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