Tanzania – Part 2

It was seven o'clock in the morning and we met our guides. First, we visited the farm, where they are planting various plants, vegetables, in order to preserve them in the country. They are financed by the revenues that tourists bring with hikes and in also employ the locals this way.

Shortly after the start of our visit, the guides wanted to convince us to go a different way. We were determined and, after half an hour of persuasion, the guides finally made our wishes come true. The path itself was not steep or strenuous, but the burning sun quickly drained our strength, since there was no shade where we could hide.

Around the noon we reached the first remote village. We quickly realized that there are not many tourists here, because the children did not ask for money and they came to us very shyly. The children just wanted to hang out a little, hug us and touch our hands and hair.

There was a long way to go before us, and we had to continue. Somewhere between the fields and meadows we made a picnic, as it was time to dine. Avocado salad, fruit and chapati – yum!

After lunch, we moved on, but here we started to realize that we have very unexperienced guides. The way to our accommodation was getting longer and in every village they were asking for direction.

Although we do not speak their language, the expressions on the faces and the waving with their hands said everything. Our pace was also getting faster.

On the way, we met some other locals. The kids asked us for our empty plastic bottles so that they would have them for toys and a smile on their faces when we gave them the bottles was invaluable. For the first time in my life, I really felt what poverty means and I've seen a lot.

It started to get dark, we were tired, our feet had so many blisters and were not able to carry us anymore. Our guides still did not know how far is our accommodation. But then we lost our patience. We told them that we will not sleep or walk outside at night because it's too dangerous. We managed to get to our accommodation before the nightfall. We were pleasantly surprised when we saw the house where we were staying and the owner already had dinner ready for us. We sat by the fire a little. We walked about 30 km and our legs were already very heavy. It was time to sleep.

After breakfast, we slowly went back to the village, but I soon realized that I would not be able to walk such a long journey (again about 30 km). That is why we found a small van that drives between the villages to lead us to the foot of the hill where we were intended.

After a good 2 hours of walking, we reached the Irente sightseeing point.

The view itself was not so breath-taking to me as it was simply to stand on the cliff. It felt like I was floating. We made a few photos and enjoyed a picnic. We still had to get back to the city. On the way back we saw chameleon.

Then we met a lot of kids who were just going to school and liked to pose for the camera. They knew how to beg for money.

Then a surprise followed. When we crossed the schoolyard, a small, ragged boy started walking behind us and shyly spoke to us. He asked us if we could give him a pencil so that he could write something and learn. I got goosebumps. Our guide went to a barrack, where he got pencils and gave them to him. I cannot describe the happiness on his face. He thanked us and quickly ran towards the school.

We were slowly approaching the city and the trip was over. In the evening, we decided to go and see their market and grab a bite to eat.

We have already discussed the future plans with the guide, what we still want to see and where to go. We wanted to see Kilimanjaro and go to the safari, but we did not have anything booked, because everything was so expensive. We planned to do this in Arushi. The guide had a friend in town and immediately called him. They wanted to book everything by telephone, but we refused and only took a number. You can't trust everything they tell you.

We continued our journey towards Kilimanjaro, the highest peak of Africa. At this point, we have not decided yet whether we will go to trekking or not, but you will surely find out in the next article.