We decided late last evening that we would take a short trip to Zanzibar, the islands known as the African Spice Islands that are located right off the coast of Tanzania.  We took…

 Going to church in Africa is always a treat.  Today Andrew and I had the opportunity to attend church with Tom and Mariam in one of four branches in Dar Es Salaam.  The…

        We started our day with a delicious local breakfast of herbal tea, bread, and fruit prepared by Mariam.  The local experiences we have been having are incredible and I wouldn’t…

      We woke up today with the intentions of getting ourselves as close to Dar Es Salaam as possible.  We ate delicious fruit, yogurt, muesli, and breads for breakfast and then proceeded…

            We woke up today to the sound of monkeys above our tented lodge.  What is neat about staying in tented lodges in Africa is that you get to hear…

                I am actually very sad that we have to leave Abdul and his village.  We took the “African luxury coach” at 9:30 in the morning from Arusha to Tanga.…

   I often wonder how people with so little can be so giving.  Five of the nine people on our Kilimanjaro team live in a small village called Kahe, about one hour outside of…

    The Sunrise from Jamaica Rock on our way to the summit.         The first lookout on Kilimanjaro,  Gilman’s Point.  The second lookout point, Stella point.        Uhuruu Peak, the…

We entered the third climatic zone of Kilimanjaro today, alpine desert.  Unlike the first two days, when we woke up at 7 for morning tea and washy-washy (warm water in a bucket for…

            We woke up to lots of rain… But I am still very excited to climb! Hopefully when we start hiking the clouds will break and we can see a clear view…