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March 6

Tarangire National Park

The Canadian's alarm went off at 6, but I stayed in bed until 7. Breakfast was served at 7:30. Richard had not returned last night. I put the clothes I had washed outside to dry while we waited. Richard finally arrived at 11 in a different vehicle. He said he broke down on the road last night on the way back and slept there until someone helped him get to Arusha this morning. He got the new vehicle, which he said is the one he usually drives, and left Arusha at 9 AM. This vehicle appeared to be in about the same condition as the other, and sounded like it also. So instead of a morning game drive at Tarangire National Park, we would have to settle for a mid-day game drive, not ideal.

Masai Women

On the way, we stopped for gas near a gift shop, and looked around in it while the vehicle was serviced. A large group of Masai women were hawking things outside. They requested 2000 shillings for a picture of the group, adn then lowered the price to 1000, and I accepted, taking a picture of just part of the group, actually. I also payed a few ladies 700 shillings for a smaller group picture. When Richard returned to the vehicle, he was sweating and said he felt like he had the fever, meaning malaria. Nevertheless, we continued to a small, empty campground near Tarangire, where we stopped for lunch: checken and an egg in tomato-onion sauce. We bought cold drinks from the bar there, and continued on to the park gate while Mushaka stayed behind cleaning up. It was now mid-afternoon and the temperature was around 100^o F as we began the game drive.

Richard said Tarangire is his favorite park in the rainy season because it is so green and has so many animals. Now, at the end of the long dry season, the park is parched and barren. Without the numerous baobab trees and sausage trees, it would look like a desert. The river is completely dry in places. Most of the animals, including zebras, wildebeast, gazelles, giraffes, water bok, ostriches, and elephants, are not far from the river, which is now barely a stream.

Giraffes at Tarangire

Tarangire River

Tarangire is especially known for its elephants, and these are plentiful, including many babies. Baboons are plentiful too, congregating in shady areas, eating the fibrous sausage tree fruit. Near the end of the drive, we stopped at a "picnic spot", where we could get out and enjoy a panoramic view of the elephants along the river below some steep cliffs. But it was unbearably hot, and we didn't stay long, ending the game drive after barely three hours. We picked up Mushaka at about 3:45 and headed back to Arusha through Masai country. This vehicle behaved rather well, and we made it to town at 5:30, when the A.J. office was still open. A.J. had no problem refunding my money for Simba Camp. He was going to bring the $20 to my hotel tonight, but I suggested giving it to Richard and Mushaka for their tip, solving both the problem that I wasn't sure I'd see A.J. again and the problem that I didn't have small bills for the tip accessible at the moment. (I hope they got their tip.)

A.J. suggested that I try Pallson's Hotel in downtown Arusha for $25 a night. It looked fine to me, and was centrally located, so I agreed. The first thing I did after checking in was to take a shower, which was hot. Since my cash was getting a bit short, I wanted to use a traveler's check for the bill, but Pallson's doesn't take them. We tried cashing them at a nearby restaurant, but they wouldn't take them either, so I got a cab to a Forex bureau at Motel Impala on the edge of town. That attractive hotel is about twice the price of Pallson's, though having to take a cab to change money effectively raised the price of Pallson's by 3000 shillings. I changed $50 for 28,000 shillings, and the hotel bill took about half.

At the hotel, I asked about a bus to Dar Es Salaam, where I could catch a ferry to Zanzibar. The receptionist suggested the Air Msae Motor Coach. A man from the hotel escorted me to the bus station to buy a ticket, since it was now after dark and security was a concern. I had heard of some security problems in Arusha, but didn't know the details. The hotel suggested carrying only 10,000 shillings to the station, enough for the ticket. We found the Air Msae bus, and I bought a ticket on board for 9500 shillings. I could choose the assigned seat. My shilling supply was again nearly exhausted.

I went to the Chinese/Indian restaurant in the hotel for dinner. I was the only customer, and had chicken masala, which was well prepared, with rice. The chicken serving dish was kept heated with some coals. Robocop was playing on the TV at the bar. After dinner, I turned on the TV in my room. The Commish was on. I went to bed early, expecting a 5 AM wakeup call. The hotel's pipes were noisy at night, interfering some with my sleep.

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