1 February 2009
Arba Minch to Turmi, Ethiopia.

We met Fr. John before Sunday mass to say thank you and goodbye to him. It was very kind of him to allow us to stay at the Mission and take the time to talk to us about his work in Ethiopia.

We drove from Arba Minch to Konso and into the Omo Valley. The roads here are bad most of the way and cannot be driven after a rainfall. There were some wonderful views of the mountains and valleys, lots of greenery, cattle and crops.

The Omo Valley is famous for its many different colourful tribes and tribal markets. Along the way, as usual, kids and adults we passed had their hands out asking to be given something…anything. The famous Ethiopian chant of ‘you, you, money, money, money’ was heard more here than in the north, and here, some even got nasty and threw stones after the trucks.
Mum spotted a lady, walking along the road with a baby on her back and a little boy, maybe about 18 months old walking with her, and we stopped to give her some fruit and I gave the little boy one of my little toy cars. He obviously never had a proper toy before and I hope he will enjoy playing with mine.
As we approached the village of Arbore, we saw a commotion in the middle of the road ahead of us. When we got closer, we realized that the girls of the tribe were blocking the road, and were asking for money. They wanted 2 birr each and there were about 30 of them. One young boy who spoke English said they wanted us to take a photo of them and pay for it before they let us pass, but if we just drove on, they would move out of the way. Talk about extortion! Needless to say, we drove on, arriving in Turmi just before dark, finding the Hamer campsite, a few kilometers outside the village.

2 February 2009

Turmi, Ethiopia

I was looking forward to today. We are going to the Hamer Tribal Market in the village of Turmi. The market did not start till 11am, but we were up early. After breakfast, we sat around talking, and soon started to see many people from the Harmer Tribe walk up and down around the campsite. A group of young girls had some handicrafts to sell, and Mum bought a small stool and a necklace from them.

We drove into the village and had a crowd of people run after the two trucks as we approached the market. The Hamer people were nice. I liked them. They wanted to shake our hands and were friendly. There were other people there too – touts and hasslers. A large group of kids were gathered around me, trying to touch my hair, pull my shoes off, anything. I was not happy. One old Hamer lady was very kind and told the kids that I was scared, and to leave me alone. She was sat next to Mum on a step and held my hand for a while. There were kids trying to climb up on top of the trucks and one was trying to peel the stickers off Tuah. It was all too much for me, and Mum eventually took me into the back of Gerrit and Sandra’s truck. We left the market soon after and returned to the campsite. It was peaceful there and I enjoyed the rest of the day playing with some of the Hamer boys at the camp and relaxing later in the evening after a good shower.

3 February 2009

Drive from Turmi to Yabello, Ethiopia

We have a long drive ahead of us today. Our original plan was to drive today to Jinka, where the Mursi Tribe can be seen, but after the chaos at the Hamer market yesterday, the thought of having to drive an extra 400km on more bad roads and the fact that some travelers who had come from Jinka told us they had to take a two hour tour from Jinka, into the Mursi Village, and when they got there, the Mursi were very aggressive and demanded a lot of money for photographs, changed our minds for us. We headed back towards Konso, and to Yabello, where Fr John said we could stay in the grounds of the Catholic Mission, with his friend, Fr Martin.

We faced the bad roads again, and passed the village of Arbore with no unofficial roadblock. Between Konso and Yabello, we saw funny looking funnels of red earth coming out of the ground. They looked like some sort of an oven, but Mum said they were ant hills. We also saw many unusual looking birds.
Arriving in Yabello, we noticed that this town seemed to be a bit different from other Ethiopian towns and villages. There were houses here, that actually looked like a house, not a hut, and hardly anyone was begging. We found the Catholic Church, but Fr Martin was away in Kenya. Some of the people around said that it was not a problem for us to camp in the grounds for the night, and we began to settle in.
Just as it was getting dark, an old man who did not speak English came along and was making a lot of noise. Of course, we did not understand him, and he eventually went away, coming back with the two young people we had spoken to when we first arrived. They told us that he was the gatekeeper and wanted to know why nobody had asked his permission for us to camp in the grounds. He was going on and on in their local language, and eventually Mum asked the two young people if he wanted something from us. As expected, the answer was ‘yes, he wanted some money’. We agreed to give him something in the morning before we left and he went away happy.
After we had dinner and were getting ready for bed, the old man came back with someone else and was making a fuss again. This time his interpreter said he wanted to know why he was not told to expect us and that maybe he could not open the gates for us to leave in the morning. We decided to ignore the old man and went to bed, wondering if in the morning we will find ourselves being held hostage within the grounds of the Catholic Church in Yabello!

4 January 2009

Moyale Border Crossing from Ethiopia to Kenya

After the excitement of last night, we woke up wondering what would be in store for us today. The church gatekeeper was waiting for us with his interpreter, asking us to pay him an amount which was probably half his monthly salary. Of course, we were up in arms and the old man settled for whatever we had intended to give him. We left Yabello feeling that we really had enough of Ethiopia and its people’s attitude.

The road to Moyale was an asphalt road, but was very narrow and not in the best condition in many places. We stopped along the way to examine one of the thousands of gigantic ant hills. They were much taller than me and solid. Hard to imagine they were built by teeny tiny ants!
We arrived at the border town of Moyale. The same town is devided into two parts – the Ethiopian side and the Kenyan side. Like all border towns, it was full of touts and not very nice. We cleared immigration and customs at the Ethiopian side and happily drove on to the Kenyan side of town. It was very quick at the immigration and customs on this side, and we headed to the local campsite, only to find that the charge for camping had tripled in the last month! We decided to ask the local police station if we could park in their compound for the night and were told that it was fine, for a ‘coffee fee’. We settled down and discussed the journey ahead of us tomorrow.

It had all been quite straight forward, us knowing that we had 2 days of 12 hour driving to get to Isiolo, some 500 odd kilometers away from where we were. There had been a problem with bandits on this route in the past, but no overlanders has been targeted in the last few years, but here at Moyale, the police were telling us otherwise. They said we needed to travel in a convoy with armed escorts, leaving Moyale at 10.30am, and that it was a dangerous road. Knowing that even a couple of weeks ago, overlanders were travelling up and down this route with no convoy or hassle, we opted to carry on ourselves, early in the morning. It was not the best of discussions to have, but we did have to talk about what to do, should we be ambushed along the way.

5 January 2009

Moyale to Marsabit, Kenya

I woke up before 6am, to find Dad and Mum already downstairs, packing up and getting ready to hit the road. On the way out of the police compound, the policeman on duty asked for ‘something to buy coffee with’. Mum told him that we had already given something to the policeman on duty last night. They seem to like coffee in Kenya.

The four grown ups were rather somber and stressed today. Me, I take everything as it comes, and was quite happy to play with my toys in my car seat. I could not even watch a DVD, as the road was too bumpy. About 100km from Moyale, we arrived at a police checkpoint and were told that the next 5km was the worst stretch for bandits. We drove the trucks as fast as the badly corrugated, stony road could allow them to go without any damage and 15km later arrived at the town of Tubi, and another checkpoint telling us that the roads ahead were considered safe.

After a cold drink from our fridge, we hit the road again, arriving in Marsabit just before dark. We had spent 11 and a half hours on the road today, and were pleased to find the way to Henry the Swiss, who is a Swiss guy called Henry, living in Marsabit, with camping facilities in his backyard. A nice clean hot shower – a luxury these days!

6 January 2009

Marsabit to Archer’s Point, Kenya

Mum made some Eggy Bread for breakfast and we were off again at the crack of dawn. The roads today are just as bad as yesterdays, and we expected to spend most daylight hours driving.

We saw many children going to school along the way, and many more who did not, but were tending cattle and sheep. Some were decked out in their tribal outfits and were very colourful. We also saw many baboons, mouse deer and squirrels along the way.

The roads were badly damaged and Dad and Mum took turns to drive, not even stopping for lunch as we usually do. Today, like yesterday, we ate on the move.We arrived at Archer’s Point, at the Samburu Nature Reserve and found the Catholic Mission, where Fr Joshua allowed us to camp in the compound for the night. I enjoyed running around in the compound

Tomorrow, we will be driving to the big town, Nairobi. Dad and Mum promised me a visit to a toy shop. I can’t wait!

7 January 2009

Archer’s Point to Nairobi, Kenya

We said farewell to Fr Joshua and headed back on the bad roads to Isiolo. The 40km took us 2 hours, but from Isiolo onwards, we had an asphalt road…phew!

We stopped for fruit and vegetables at the market in Nanyuki, the town through which the Equator runs through and then stopped at the Equator to take some photos and see how the water swirls in opposite directions on either side of the Equator. Amazing!

We made our way towards Lavington in Nairobi and found Jungle Junction – a wonderful place where overlanders and travelers can camp and stay. It was the closest thing to home a traveler could hope for. There was a lovely garden, with two resident dogs, hot water and clean toilets, and the house was open to all who stayed. We actually had a living room! Chris, who owns Jungle Junction is a star! We were so tired and worn out from the last few days on the road that we just had a simple dinner and went to bed.

No driving tomorrow, but there is an awful lot of work to be done, cleaning up the truck and clearing out all the sand that has found it’s way in over the last few weeks!

8 January 2009          

Nairobi, Kenya

I woke up early, wondering if we had to drive again today, as the sun rose, but Mum said no. Thank goodness!

We had some breakfast and then Dad and Mum got to work removing everything from Tuah, cleaning out all the sand and dust. Gerrit and Sandra were also hard at work on their truck. We have traveled together all the way from Aswan, through Sudan and Ethiopia, and in a few days, we will be parting company at Mombasa, where they will be spending 2 months on the beach, before heading down to Cape Town. I am going to miss them, as I miss Rene and Andrea, who went down a different route from us at Khartoum.

In the afternoon, a Malaysian living in Nairobi, Uncle Dunstan, came to meet us at Jungle Junction, with his son, Slava. He had read about us in The Star Newspaper and been in touch with Dad since. He took us to his home in Westlands for tea and to the supermarket on the way back to Jungle Junction, as Mum was planning to cook up some Malaysian Satay for dinner.

Everyone at Jungle Junction was in for a treat! Uncle Dunstan, Auntie Marina and Slava joined us and brought some wonderful mutton curry. It was such an exciting day, that I eventually fell asleep on the sofa.

9 February 2009
Nairobi, Kenya
Mum finally gets the time to go on the internet this morning, and I keep myself busy in Jungle Junction’s garden, playing with the dogs and on the tyre swing, running around and talking to the other overlanders.

In the afternoon, Uncle Dunstan and Slava come over and drive back with us to their home, where we will be staying for the next couple of days. They have 4 dogs, one of them is a Chinese Shar-Pei. I never knew that there was such a thing as a Chinese dog.

We made ourselves at home and were treated to nasi lemak for dinner. Uncle Dunstan, Aunty Marina and Slava are really cool people. Their friend, Jimmy is staying with them at the moment, and he’s fun, too.

10 February 2009

Nairobi, Kenya

We have breakfast and head out to the Malaysian High Commission, with Uncle Dunstan. We are met by Mr. Johnny Hew and Mr. Ibrahim, who chat to us about our travels.

From the High Commission, we fetch Sandra from Jungle Junction and go to the AA Office to get the Comesa Yellow Card, which insures Tuah on the road in several of the Eastern African Countries we are travelling through. There is no McDonald’s or KFC in Kenya, but I have some chicken nuggets and chips for lunch from a fast food stall in the shopping centre. As a treat, Mum bought me a jet plane toy and a Power Ranger mask.

We drop Sandra back at Jungle Junction and see a huge truck had arrived while we have been away. It belongs to a Belgian family, with 3 little boys, Anatole (6), Leonor (4) and Gubia (2). They are travelling around the world over 3 years with their parents, Nicolas and Catherine. Their truck is equipped with cinema equipment, and they have viewings for children in small villages, orphanages and schools along the way. Their website is www.angaleo.org 

I had a brilliant time playing with my new friends and eventually, we made our way back to Uncle Dunstan and Aunty Marina’s home for the night. Tonight, a friend of theirs joined us for dinner – another wonderful meal! 

11 February 2009
Nairobi, Kenya
We had to leave Uncle Dunstan's home after breakfast to collet Tuah's Comesa Yellow Card, which is some sort of insurance coverage, from the AA Office. Mum then returned to Jungle Junction to work on the website, while Dad and Uncle Jimmy (a friend of Uncle Dunstan) took me to the Giraffe Centre and Mamba Village.

I had a brilliant time feeding the giraffes, watching the crocodiles and ostrich. After lunch of chicken and chips, we headed back to Jungle Junction. Later in the evening, we headed back to Uncle Dunstan's home, where Uncle Jimmy was preparing a yummy BBQ dinner for us and some of their friends. There was meat, sausages, ribs and ostrich meat....yum! I also had some little friends to play with, but after dinner, with my tummy full, I fell asleep on the balcony.

12 February 2009

Nairobi, Kenya

I fell asleep on Uncle Dunstan’s balcony, but woke up in the roof tent in Jungle Junction. I had toast for breakfast – not made in the frying pan, but in a proper toaster in the kitchen at Jungle Junction…this place is a home away from home!

Mum headed out with Sandra for groceries and a haircut while I stayed back at the campsite with Dad.   
After lunch, I watched a DVD and played with my toys for a while, and then Mum cornered me and gave me a haircut and a foot scrub. I hate haircuts but the foot scrub was fun!

Tonight, Sandra and Gerrit treated us to a lovely dinner and later on, Uncle Dunstan, Aunty Marina and Slava came around later to say goodbye to us. We will be leaving Nairobi tomorrow. I will miss my new friends here.

13 February 2009

Voi, Kenya

Mum woke me up before 7am and we took off from Jungle Junction, heading for Mombasa and the beach. I am going to miss Jungle Junction. It’s such a cool, homely campsite. I will miss Nairobi, too, and Uncle Dunstan, Aunty Marina, Slava and Uncle Jimmy. They showed us such sincere and warm hospitality.

The road was initially quite bad – potholes, sharp stones and mad drivers. Eventually, we came to a newly resurfaced asphalt road, compliments of the European Union. We bought some mangoes and tomatoes along the way and stopped for lunch at a nice shady place.

Along the way we saw some baobab trees, baboons and zebra. We had seen some wild ostrich and lots of dik-dik, or mouse deer, as they are called in Malaysia in Masabit a few days ago, but the Zebra today were a special treat. They are not as big as horses, but not as small as donkeys.
By late afternoon, we arrived in Voi, about 200km from Mombasa, and decided to camp for the night at the Red Elephant Lodge, by Tsavoi National Park. On the way in we saw a whole herd of Elephants….and they were red, from the colour of the sand in the area!

After an early dinner, Mum and Thika, the campsite’s Maasai guard took me to a corner of the camp where we could see a waterhole, where animals come to drink from. This evening, we saw a heard of impala. No rushing tomorrow, as we only have a couple of hours drive to Mombasa.

14 February 2009

Tiwi Beach, Mombasa, Kenya

We take our time leaving Voi and drive towards the coast. We stopped along the way to pick up some coal to cook with on the beach. When we got into Mombasa, we made our way towards Likoni where a ferry would take us across to the south coast, where Tiwi Beach is located. I am really excited about camping on the beach for a few days, but there is a hint of sadness, as today will be the last time we drive together with Gerrit and Sandra in their Mitsubishi 4x4 Van. They will be spending several weeks on the beach, whereas we have only a few days with them, before heading off to Tanzania.

We found the Twiga Lodge and Campsite and got ourselves a nice spot to park the trucks on the beach. We settled in and had a dip in the sea. The water was nice and warm. There were monkeys at the campsite called Blue Balls. I wonder why? We had dinner and went to sleep to the sound of the waves in the sea.

15 February 2009

Tiwi Beach, Mombasa, Kenya

By the time I woke up, Mum had breakfast ready and she put me straight into my swimming trunks. I played in the sand and swam in the sea. We had fresh fish brought to us, pineapples, mangoes, cashew nuts, coconuts, trinkets…just about anything, really!

It was quite a relaxing day, but one of the hottest days we have had so far. For dinner, Gerrit barbequed the fish we bought this morning and we had that with some salad and corn and potatoes. We saw some crabs coming onto the beach as we were having dinner, and some little animal, like a baby hedgehog, which was hiding in a tree nearby. I was worn out and went to sleep earlier than usual. What a nice day!

16 February 2009

Tiwi Beach, Mombasa. Kenya

Another lazy day on the beach. I could get used to this beach bum lifestyle! I spent today shifting sand on the beach. It was hard work. I have some new friends, too. There’s Ben and Phillip, who arrived today. Ben, from the USA has been working in Nairobi and Phillip, from NZ in the south of Sudan. There’s also Frank, a German living in the UK. He’s cool – a bit of a Robinson Crusoe!

I collected some seashells and saw lots of starfish, sea urchins and sea cucumbers. There were some little fish near the shore, too. This beach is not developed – no hotels and no shops, just a couple of lodges and a place to camp on the beach, with locals bringing fresh fish, fruits and vegetables. A small piece of paradise!

17 February 2009

Tiwi Beach, Mombasa, Kenya

Today will be our last day at the beach with Gerrit and Sandra. I can’t imagine that we’ll be driving without them, after travelling together since 12 January.
We swim and sat and talked. Mum and Sandra bought fish from a fisherman to cook on the coals tonight and in the afternoon, when the tide was low, we walked out to the reefs. We could see many starfish, sea urchins, sea cucumbers and little fishes.
It was cooler tonight than it had been the last few nights, which is nice. Being on the beach is hard work and I was so tired that I fell asleep on Mum’s lap right after dinner.

18 February 2009

Nairobi, Kenya

We woke up early this morning. It was a bit gloomy – both the sky and the mood at camp. Today we are saying goodbye to Gerrit and Sandra, and also to our other new friends on the beach.
We packed up and even though the plan was for us to drive to Tanzania today, Dad thought we could make Nairobi again today and then onwards to Uganda. And so, that’s what we did.
It was a sad moment as we drove away from Tiwi Beach where Gerrit and Sandra will be for a few more weeks. We will be keeping in touch with them and look forward to them visiting us in Malaysia

We headed back to the Likoni Ferry and drove onto Voi, where we had some nice chapatti for lunch. Along the way through Tsavo National Park, we saw more zebras and baboons. It was rather late by the time we got into Nairobi and made our way to Jungle Junction. We did not expect to be back here, as it was decided only this morning, but nice to be back here again.

19 February 2009
Nairobi, Kenya
It's so cozy at Jungle Junction that we decided to stay another day. Mum wasn't feeling so great this morning and it also gave Dad and Mum the chance to catch up on some emails, and for us to meet up with Uncle Dunstan, Aunty Marina and Slava again.

I had fun this morning, with the dogs and Sharon, a backpacker from St Albans, who helped me plant a seed which will one day grow into a big tree. In the afternoon, Tania, the daughter of Uncle Chris, who owns Jungle Junction came over and we played together for a few hours. What fun!

Later in the evening, we headed out to the nearby supermarket to stock up on some groceries and then met Uncle Dunstan, Aunty Marina and Slava for a wonderful Ethiopian meal at a restaurant nearby. I even had ice cream for desert. Sadly, I did not say goodbye to them, as I fell asleep before we left the restaurant. 

20 February 2009

Kerichio, Kenya

As soon as I woke up, I was off looking for Sharon, who was also camping at Jungle Junction. She’s great fun and always has s moment for me. After breakfast, I had a few moments to play with Ulysse, the French overlanding dog, before we set off for the Rift Valley.
We were climbing uphill for ages and at the top of the hills, we had a breathtaking view of the valley below. Mum even bought me a little wooden bird from a curio shop, to add to my animal collection.

At teatime, we arrived at the tea plantations in Kerichio. The area was lovely and clean and the neat tea bushes were a wonderful sight. It reminded me of The Cameron Highlands in Malaysia!
We made our way to the campsite at the Tea Hotel. We had the camping area to ourselves and I had fun playing with my toys.

21 February 2009

Kisumu, Kenya and Border Crossing into Busia, Uganda

We left Kisumu after being mobbed by about 20 people, all trying to sell us tea leaves. When we said we didn’t want any, they asked us for money to buy tea…I don’t get it – they are selling tea, so why do they want us to give them money to buy tea for themselves? The mid boggles!

Anyway, we made our way on a very bumpy road to Kisumu. There were people everywhere, some walking, some on bicycles, some working in the fields, some filling up potholes in the road with sand and asking for money from the passing motorists.
We stopped for lunch at the Nakumatt City Mall in Kisumu. Nakumatt is Kenya’s answer to the UK’s and Malaysia’s Tesco. We had a local lunch of ugali and fish. Ugali is made from maize and reminds me of the ‘nasi empit’ we have in Malaysia.
After lunch, Mum picked up some milk, bread and eggs and a small pressure cooker from the supermarket. Now she can cook the huge bucket of potatoes Dad bought yesterday, in no time at all!
It was about 5pm, by the time we arrived at the border town of Busia. Like Moyale, where half the town was in Ethiopia and the other half in Kenya, Busia was part Kenya and the other half Uganda. The border crossing took us about an hour and a half to clear, and 2km down the road, we found a small hotel that allowed us to camp in their car park for the night. There were some kids on the other side of the fence, and I entertained them for a while, by blowing bubbles with some soapy water.

22 February 2009

Kampala, Uganda

We had some breakfast before setting off from the border town of Busia, heading for Kampala. Along the way, we came across some baboons. They were almost as big as me! There were rice fields, banana trees, jack fruit trees and lots of sugar cane on either side of the road, reminding us of Malaysia!

At Jinja, we crossed the River Nile again. We have been driving along the Nile in Egypt, Sudan and seen it in Ethiopia, and now again we meet this great river, in Uganda, as it flows into Lake Victoria.
Arriving into Kampala, we headed for a campsite, called the Red Chilli Hideaway. We got in and had a sandwich for lunch, before Mum did a load of washing. Dad was looking forward to using the new pressure cooker to boil some potatoes for dinner. It’s a funny little pot, and rather noisy, too, but it did the job!

23 February 2009

Jinja, Uganda

Dad and Mum had to decide this morning what we are to do next. They eventually decided to drive around Kampala for a bit, before heading to Jinja for the night, before doing a long track back to Nairobi tomorrow.
We drove to the Kasubi Tombs, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and were given a tour around the old palace. Interesting place – there was even a fireplace which constantly burns as long as the king is alive!

After that, we had a nice Indian curry and chapatti lunch before heading out of Kampala, towards Jinja. Mum had picked up details of a campsite from Jungle Junction in Nairobi, about a place called The Haven about 15km from Jinja, on the River Nile. We found the place, and it was beautiful! We were camped on the river itself and had a fantastic view of the rapids. There was a nice big, clean sanitary block, with hot showers, and we also had a tap and a sink and an electrical socket to ourselves. Somewhat basic, you may say, but to a traveler, it is a luxury we don’t often have!

24 February 2009
Border crossing from Malaba, Uganda to Kenya and on to Nairobi
We had a late start today - it was hard to leave the nice view and lovely lodge. We drove back towards the Kenyan border, but decided to cross at Malaba, instead of Busia, as we did on our way in. It was suprisingly painless at both ends and we were soon on our way back to Nairobi.

The roads were bad most of the way, though, and we could not make good time. We do not usually drive after dark, but as we have been on the road back to Nairobi before and knew what it was like, decided to proceed, arrivng back at Jungle Junction just before midnight. We spent about 12 hours on the road today. Tomorrow, instead of driving towards Tanzania, as planned, Dad decided that we will relax at Jungle Junction and stock up on groceries and catch up on some washing.

25 February 2009
Nairobi, Kenya

Waking up, I ran off to say good morning to the Jungle Junction dogs, Boomba and Pippa, and Ulyeese, the overlanding dog. My friend, Sharon had moved on, though. I was hoping to see her again, but such is life. I hope she’s well.After breakfast, we drove down the road to the Nakumatt Supermarket, to stock up on groceries. Mum made us some lunch, back at Jungle Junction, and I spent the afternoon lazing around in the living room and running around in the garden.
Uncle Dunstan, Aunty Marina, Slava and Uncle Jimmy came over to pick us up for a nice Chinese dinner at night. It was good to see them again. Slava had even picked out a cool red toy car for me – it was apparently his dream car! Tonight will be the third time we will be saying goodbye to them, but Dad and Mum tell me that this time, we won’t be coming back to Nairobi…well, not driving back, anyway. We are looking forward to seeing them in Malaysia when we have finished our travels, and hope to be able to return their kind hospitality to us, here in Nairobi.

26 February 2009

Border crossing at Namanga, Kenya to and on to Moshi, Tanzania

After breakfast, it’s time to say goodbye to Uncle Chris and all our friends at Jungle Junction. We head towards the Tanzanian border, using a short-cut through some lovely countryside in Ngong.

We saw some zebra and impala along the way, and plenty of cattle. There were many people from the Maasai Tribe in the area. Mum had prepared some nasi lemak for lunch, which we had just before crossing the Kenyan-Tanzanian border at Namanga. We cleared both borders fairly quickly, and headed south towards the town of Arusha. We soon saw the great Mount Kilimanjaro in the distance. We passed many Maasai villages, with many people along the way putting their hand to their mouth, asking for food/money/drink/anything. Memories of Ethiopia came flooding back to our minds! From the town of Arusha onwards, though, we had proper roads, most houses with electricity and many with water. There was proper signposting on the roads, too.

We are camping tonight at the Honey Badgers Lodge, in Moshi, by the Mount Kilimanjaro National Park. There’s a very strong wind blowing tonight. I wonder if it’ll be raining in the morning?

27 February 2009

Lushoto, Tanzania

The wind had eventually died down and it actually remained dry. We were woken up early though, from the chickens on the other side of the fence. After a big egg and sausage breakfast, we headed off to the Kilimanjaro National Park.

We saw the great mountain on the way in to Moshi, yesterday, but today, we were going to see the start of the Marangu Route. Kilimanjaro itself is 5895m high and the vegetation zone changes from forest to moorland to alpine desert to the ice cap, as one goes further up. We were not going up, though…not today, anyway.

We drove on towards Mombo, where we turned off towards Soni. This was a very scenic route, up the highlands. Mum had heard of a place here, called Marweni Farm, where some overlanders had been before us. We got there though and were told that they do not allow camping anymore. We decided then, to head for Lushoto, some 20km away, where another overlander had recommended another campsite. Irante View Point was 6km off the road, at the end of a dirt track to a cliff. We were able to park at the edge of the cliff and enjoy the spectacular view and a lovely sunset.

28 February 2009

Mikumi National Park, Tanzania

We had some freshly made chapatti for breakfast, which Mum had ordered from Tatu, the lady at the campsite. It was rather cloudy this morning, so we could not enjoy the wonderful view over the cliff. I played with the daughter of a neighbour, while Dad and Mum packed up, and soon we were heading back out the dirt track towards Lushoto and then down the highlands, back to Mombo.

It’s nice to have pretty good asphalt to drive on – it seems that we have not had smooth roads and proper sign posting in ages! It was a nice drive past small villages, up and down some hills and through some very pretty countryside. Eventually, we arrived at Mikumi National Park. Mum said to keep my eyes opened and I might be lucky enough to spot some wild animals.

Right enough, we saw a herd of giraffes, then some impala, more giraffes and zebra grazing together, a few elephants, including some baby ones and a heard of buffalo sitting in a pond of mud.

We made our way to the Tan-Swiss Lodge in Makumi and settled in. I played in the play park at the Lodge with the owner’s kids for a while, before settling down for dinner and a much needed shower.