As if we hadn't already had enough travel, we started out our day at 11pm..... why you might ask?!?! Well jetlag is why! Marilyn and I enjoyed a pizza and some drinks on the Impala Hotel patio and were amazing to confirm it was only 7pm. Both of us were more than ready for bed so we decided, why not! We were getting up at 5:30 am anyways for an early start, being in bed by 8 couldn't be such a terrible idea.... boy did we think wrong! Both of us were WIDE awake at 11pm. Marilyn suggested a cold serengeti and I was not to argue. We enjoy our cold drinks, some internet, and reading hoping that it would do the trick. This was not the case. We both remained awake until the wee hours of the morning and had probably just fallin back asleep by the time our alarm sounded at 5:45!!! Oh well! We had a long drive ahead of us that we knew we would have ample time to sleep during.
We made our way to breakfast and loaded up the Land Cruiser for the long journey ahead :) A short stop for the choo (bathroom) was all we needed until our half way stop for chips ma yai (french fries and eggs... a staple of our Tanzanian diet!) We then headed on the rest of the way. It took us a total of 9 1/2 hours to arrive at our "third of the way there" point, Kihama. The drive was extremely beautiful. We got to view a side of Tanzania that we had never seen before. It was just a glimpse into what lay ahead :) We had to drive around a bit to find a sufficient "guest house" for the evening accommodations. The town of Kihama was busting. It has been quickly growing due to the Australian "gold minding" company that has taken route just outside of town. We were also interested to learn that diamond mining has become a big thing in TZ, as well as the gold mining... none of which is owned or operated by Tanzanians :/
The three of us finally found a place to call home for the evening at "Pine Ridge Hotel". It was much like the "resort" hotel we like to stay at on our way to Ngorogoro crater. As long as it had a bed, warm showering water, and a cold beer we were happy with it! We checked in and grabbed some wonderful food for dinner and then decided to hit the sack before heading out again for our driving adventures at 8am tomorrow. Our plan is to drive to Kigoma, stay the night, and then head out for a 2 hour boat ride in the morning to Gombe National Park. From there we will take a "trek" to locate the chimps! We are so thrilled! This is something we have talked about doing for years now and are so happy to share it for the first time with Efraem, who will also be visiting for the first time :)
We look forward to sharing those adventures with you! Stay tuned!
Usikumwema (good night!)
We made our way to breakfast and loaded up the Land Cruiser for the long journey ahead :) A short stop for the choo (bathroom) was all we needed until our half way stop for chips ma yai (french fries and eggs... a staple of our Tanzanian diet!) We then headed on the rest of the way. It took us a total of 9 1/2 hours to arrive at our "third of the way there" point, Kihama. The drive was extremely beautiful. We got to view a side of Tanzania that we had never seen before. It was just a glimpse into what lay ahead :) We had to drive around a bit to find a sufficient "guest house" for the evening accommodations. The town of Kihama was busting. It has been quickly growing due to the Australian "gold minding" company that has taken route just outside of town. We were also interested to learn that diamond mining has become a big thing in TZ, as well as the gold mining... none of which is owned or operated by Tanzanians :/
The three of us finally found a place to call home for the evening at "Pine Ridge Hotel". It was much like the "resort" hotel we like to stay at on our way to Ngorogoro crater. As long as it had a bed, warm showering water, and a cold beer we were happy with it! We checked in and grabbed some wonderful food for dinner and then decided to hit the sack before heading out again for our driving adventures at 8am tomorrow. Our plan is to drive to Kigoma, stay the night, and then head out for a 2 hour boat ride in the morning to Gombe National Park. From there we will take a "trek" to locate the chimps! We are so thrilled! This is something we have talked about doing for years now and are so happy to share it for the first time with Efraem, who will also be visiting for the first time :)
We look forward to sharing those adventures with you! Stay tuned!
Usikumwema (good night!)
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