UPLOAD TANZANIA
DOWNLOAD KENYA
BRING LOTS OF MONEY!
BORDER BREAKFAST
CRESTED CRANES
BYE BYE KILIMANJARO
BYE BYE ELEPHANTSIt’s a bright sunshiny morning as we upload our luggage into the minivan and say ‘Bye-Bye’ to Amboseli National Park. But first we have to stop for a few more photos. Amboseli is definitely the best place in Kenya to take elephant pictures. And the birds aren’t too shabby either. I love the crested cranes!
Then it’s time to hit the road. Back across dusty Lake Kilimanjaro and onto the single- track dirt-road to the park entrance. At the gate, we wait in the van for Robinson to pay the exit fees. Rena scores three really nice necklaces of hammered copper and tiny glass beads from some Masai Mamas. Margaret and Jon resist the hard sell by rolling up the windows and looking the other way. But I am careful to make eye contact with each vendor and apologetically shrug shoulders while gently saying, “Hapana pesa, pole.” (‘sorry out of money’ in Swahili). I’m trying my best to dispel the impression that all foreigners are harsh. The Masai must marvel at how threatened mzungu’s are by markets and bargaining. I find that a kind look costs nothing and is greatly appreciated, wherever one travels.
From the park entrance it’s a one-hour drive to the border at Mahanga. Outside Mahanga, we stop at a lovely café for breakfast. I spring for some mandazi – the square donuts of East Africa . Everyone else is afraid of food poisoning but I overdose on hot, sugary fried dough. Lucky for me, I’m protected by a cast iron stomach and the doxycycline antibiotic that I take to prevent malaria. (Incidentally, the Swahili word for diarrhea is tchi-tchi-tchi. I believe it’s onomatopoetic for the sound of thick liquid dropping into a pit latrine.)
At the border we have to change everything – our minivan for a 4-WD Range Rover and our drivers and money for their Tanzanian equivalents. We soon find out that everything in Tanzania is more expensive than in Kenya – beginning with the visa to enter the country. In Kenya a visa costs $50 as you enter – in Tanzania it’s double that! But only for Americans! At first I thought we were singled out because we’re supposed to be wealthy. The real explanation is that America charges the most of any country in the world for its entry visas. So Tanzania, Brazil and a few other countries are asking Americans to pay tit-for tat at their borders. Payback is a b**ch!
After emptying our wallets of major moolah, we cross the border. (and find that lunch in Arusha, Tanzania is twice as expensive as in Mahanga, Kenya.). If you go on safari in Tanzania be sure to bring lots of cash.
Then it’s time to hit the road. Back across dusty Lake Kilimanjaro and onto the single- track dirt-road to the park entrance. At the gate, we wait in the van for Robinson to pay the exit fees. Rena scores three really nice necklaces of hammered copper and tiny glass beads from some Masai Mamas. Margaret and Jon resist the hard sell by rolling up the windows and looking the other way. But I am careful to make eye contact with each vendor and apologetically shrug shoulders while gently saying, “Hapana pesa, pole.” (‘sorry out of money’ in Swahili). I’m trying my best to dispel the impression that all foreigners are harsh. The Masai must marvel at how threatened mzungu’s are by markets and bargaining. I find that a kind look costs nothing and is greatly appreciated, wherever one travels.
From the park entrance it’s a one-hour drive to the border at Mahanga. Outside Mahanga, we stop at a lovely café for breakfast. I spring for some mandazi – the square donuts of East Africa . Everyone else is afraid of food poisoning but I overdose on hot, sugary fried dough. Lucky for me, I’m protected by a cast iron stomach and the doxycycline antibiotic that I take to prevent malaria. (Incidentally, the Swahili word for diarrhea is tchi-tchi-tchi. I believe it’s onomatopoetic for the sound of thick liquid dropping into a pit latrine.)
At the border we have to change everything – our minivan for a 4-WD Range Rover and our drivers and money for their Tanzanian equivalents. We soon find out that everything in Tanzania is more expensive than in Kenya – beginning with the visa to enter the country. In Kenya a visa costs $50 as you enter – in Tanzania it’s double that! But only for Americans! At first I thought we were singled out because we’re supposed to be wealthy. The real explanation is that America charges the most of any country in the world for its entry visas. So Tanzania, Brazil and a few other countries are asking Americans to pay tit-for tat at their borders. Payback is a b**ch!
After emptying our wallets of major moolah, we cross the border. (and find that lunch in Arusha, Tanzania is twice as expensive as in Mahanga, Kenya.). If you go on safari in Tanzania be sure to bring lots of cash.
Tanzania travel tip #1 :) On second thought, the next time I cross into Tanzania maybe I'll take off my underwear, don a plaid blanket and hike across with the Masai. There are benefits to being a member of a traditional tribe that has never been conquered, doesn't believe in school, and has no concept of borders. The Masai just follow their herds and if the animals head south from Kenya into Tanzania - so be it.
Tanzania travel tip #2 :) Many places in East Africa will only change U.S. bills Series 2006 or later. Apparently, counterfeiters have a much easier time making fake bills to match earlier Series. We had to go to three banks in Amesbury to find $1000 in Series 2006 spending money to bring with us! (By the way, paying with plastic is OK in Nairobi but not common anywhere else in East Africa.)
DAKTARI
