Wow! Today was a pretty intense day!
In the morning I went for a walk inside the busy streets of Moshi to find out what they were selling in the local outdoor gear store (Gladys Adventure). It turned out that they only have second hand gear that you can hire. They get donations from people who climbed the mountain and didn't want to take their gear back home.
I have seen some really vintage stuff over here. I guess that you only hire a sleeping bag that’s 20 years old if you have no choice at all. Funny to see that there were summer models as well that they recommend to take with you on to the mountain. Seems like a bad idea to me considering the -15 degrees on the top. So always check what you rent or buy, the conditions will be harsh!
I have seen some really vintage stuff over here. I guess that you only hire a sleeping bag that’s 20 years old if you have no choice at all. Funny to see that there were summer models as well that they recommend to take with you on to the mountain. Seems like a bad idea to me considering the -15 degrees on the top. So always check what you rent or buy, the conditions will be harsh!
On my way back I passed by the most chaotic bus station ever. People were shouting that their tickets were cheaper than the ones from their neighbours, others tried to sell food and drinks to the ones who were waiting for their bus to arrive.
And on the border of this bus station people were selling chickens and other small animals.
Absolute chaos! But it was fun to watch :D
And on the border of this bus station people were selling chickens and other small animals.
Absolute chaos! But it was fun to watch :D
At lunch time I met with some people who were planning to help as a volunteer at a local orphanage.
I asked if I could help and soon the 4 of us were on our way.
We arrived at the orphanage we got a very warm welcome from the principal, teachers and the kids.
There are 550 children living here from different ages. (even babies)
I asked if I could help and soon the 4 of us were on our way.
We arrived at the orphanage we got a very warm welcome from the principal, teachers and the kids.
There are 550 children living here from different ages. (even babies)
We donated some books, colour pencils, ballpoints and other stationary that we bought during the trip towards the orphanage.
Recently they received a donation of 48 I-Pads and a laptop. So they reserved a special classroom to be turned into a computer class.
Today I helped with the cleaning of the classroom and getting it dust proof to protect all the electric equipment. There are a lot of sandstorms in the area, so extra isolation on the windows and doorstrips are a small but effective adjustments.
They also told me that they have been trying to set up the WiFi network for all the equipment but they didn’t succeeded. They work via a satellite transmission over here, but it seemed to be the router that caused the problem. I fixed it in a half hour and everyone was very thankful.
Today I helped with the cleaning of the classroom and getting it dust proof to protect all the electric equipment. There are a lot of sandstorms in the area, so extra isolation on the windows and doorstrips are a small but effective adjustments.
They also told me that they have been trying to set up the WiFi network for all the equipment but they didn’t succeeded. They work via a satellite transmission over here, but it seemed to be the router that caused the problem. I fixed it in a half hour and everyone was very thankful.
Afterwards we had one of the kids guide us through all the buildings and than we had a chat with some of the children in a class room.
It was very moving, they hugged us many times and they even made some drawings and wrote a letter specially for me.
It was very moving, they hugged us many times and they even made some drawings and wrote a letter specially for me.
After this intense day I went to a nearby bar to taste one of the local beers to cool down a bit. They had Kilimanjaro branded beer and it was super tasty and refreshing.
I met some Dutch people from my hotel that were going to follow the same route to the top and they even start on the same day. Seems like a lot of fun to travel together with these people!
Afterwards I took some time to relax because tomorrow morning the climbing will start. From the humid jungle to the rock fields all the way up to the glaciers on the top. By tomorrow evening I should already be at around 3000m. From there we still need to cover lots of kilometres in order to reach the path on the other side of the mountain that will lead us to the top of this magnificent mountain.
I met some Dutch people from my hotel that were going to follow the same route to the top and they even start on the same day. Seems like a lot of fun to travel together with these people!
Afterwards I took some time to relax because tomorrow morning the climbing will start. From the humid jungle to the rock fields all the way up to the glaciers on the top. By tomorrow evening I should already be at around 3000m. From there we still need to cover lots of kilometres in order to reach the path on the other side of the mountain that will lead us to the top of this magnificent mountain.
This means that there will be some radio silence for the next 7 days. No worries, I’ll be back soon.
Goodnight!
Goodnight!
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