On our travels.....

Nearing the finish line.....

katkelley — Thu, 29 May 2014 18:07:00 GMT

Day 10

Well we did it... We survived the Nullabor! Actually the drive is pretty easy, very straight in parts and little traffic but you can make pretty good time without any obstacles in your way.

Since my last update we have covered 1,870km crossing from Port Augusta in South Australia to Esperence in Western Australia.

First stop was to Ceduna. There is honestly not a lot to say about Ceduna.... It's on the water which provided a lovely sunset and there was a pretty good pub on the shore where we got a good feed. Apart from at it is a pretty small sleepy town.

It rained off and on most of the night and we had a job trying to dry off the equipment before setting off again. We left heading due west for the SA:WA border and onto the Nullabor Plains. There are some beautiful views along the way. We didn't see much wildlife but we did stop at a few places along the coast line to get some photos. First stop was the Head of Bight which is where the whales come in for the winter to protect their young in the shallow waters. Unfortunately it's a little early for them but we did see a school of Dolphins playing on the waves which was really nice. Even without the whales the scenery is worth a stop. This is really the start of the Nullabor cliffs and you can see right along the shoreline into Western Australia. The one downside is that there is no running water so pit toilets only :(

From here the road meanders in and out from the shoreline but every now and then there are lookout points which are well worth the stop - if anyone if ever doing the drive lookout 1 is the best. The cliffs are limestone and constantly changing under the force of the wind and sea.

We arrived at the WA border around 4.30 which instantaneously became 3.00 as we crossed over. All cars are stopped and inspected at the border but it was pretty quick and we arrived at Eucla by 3.30... Now along the Nullabor there are a number of 'towns'..... But what this actually means is there are a number of places to re-fuel (your car and you) and sleep. Most stops are made up of a petrol station and Motel. Eucla is no different but is a little larger and had the best restaurant and bar that we saw on the way so this is where you should stop. The only thing I would say is you must book ahead.... When we arrived there was only 1 budget room left and we were pipped to the post because of our dithering; so camping again it is! There are plenty of camp sites but not a lot of grass..... More rock and stone.... So it took us (when is say us I mean Dad) a while to find a spot we could get the pins through the ground. But he is becoming a dab hand at getting the tent up so before long were organised and off for dinner.

The sky is beautiful at night. The darkness and vastness of the sky makes the stars really stand out. Dad got out the big camera lens (I don't know what they all do) and wanted to get some photos of the sky so we'll see how those come out. Like I said the restaurant here is actually pretty good although a bit over priced which I guess is fair enough given the lack of competition - and the extreme wages they would have to pay me to work as a waitress out here!!

Back at this camp site I opted to watch the bbc iplayer (previously downloaded shows) in the car before bed... We had a big day ahead the next day so we agreed to get up and make an early start, though I think Dad was a bit surprised when I got up at 4.30 and got back in the car.

We managed to hit the road by 6.30 and crossed 900km yesterday! I did the first stint and made it to 500km before noon which I was very pleased with - so I bought myself a potato pie as a treat!! Dad took over and drove for Eseperence which is a little seaside town in which I now sit in a lovely little cafe (reminds me a bit of Bewley's!)

The WA half of the Nullabor isn't as pretty as it doesn't have the coast line but the first 200km across the Eucla pass has all the wildlife. We didn't see much but sadly there were a number of Roos that had been hit through the night by the trucks. This brought out the eagles which were honestly almost as big as the ones in lord of the rings! Huge quite terrifying looking creatures. Then we hit the 90mile straight which is again what it says on the tin... The road has peaks and troughs but there are no corners (or even slight curves) for 90 miles. On this stretch we stopped at Cocklebiddy (this is not a typo) and Norseman for re-fuelling and pushed on. Everywhere on the Nullabor the prices are really jacked up.... It was about $2.05 for unleaded 91 which (for those of you in the UK) is steep!

We saw quite a few guys on the road who were cycling across with their one man tents on the back...... dad is feeling very jealous of them! I on the other hand was feeling very jealous of the guys with the giant powered tents!!!

We made it to civilisation just in time for the State of Origin! Stayed in a motel as the rain was bouncing off the road and not even dad wanted to camp. Dad went out to try and get dinner but forgot that everything in a small town closes at 6pm so had to resort to fast food again - Not Happy!!

So today we are off to Albany... I'm sure before I came over people told me it doesn't rain in WA, well let me tell you it does. Hoping that the weather improves a little as we get closer to Perth.

Plan at the moment is to spend the weekend in Margaret River and arrive in Perth on Sunday afternoon. This doesn't give me much time before starting the new endeavour (gives me about 19 hours) but hey ho!

The Crossroads of Australia

katkelley — Mon, 26 May 2014 17:40:00 GMT

Days 5 and 6

We booked into the hotel in Adelaide for two whole nights!

On Saturday morning we took a walk around Adelaide then jumped in the car to head up to the Barossa Valley. It's only about an hours drive outside the city and well worth the trip. Obviously the main reason to visit is to do some wine tasting but the area is also beautiful and the small towns have great places to stop and eat.

Tununda is a good starting place and the local tourist office were great. My favourite wine is from the Barossa so was very disappointed to discover that it is not open on weekends for tastings - at least this is a good reason to come back again.

We hit Penfolds first where Dad bought a fortified wine called Father Grand. I'll be honest it tasted a bit like burned wood to me but Dad assured me this is how it is meant to taste.

There is a little place called Taste of Eden where you can taste a range of wines from the Eden Valley. This was my favourite ..... The wines were great and place/service lovely. More wine was procured here though I'm not sure it was for the right reason...... Dad insisted on purchasing a wine from a vineyard called Irvine (for those not from Scotland this is a town near WK).

We went to two more vineyards and then headed back to Adelaide. The last vineyard was called Charles Milton which had some great wines (all reds) and a beautiful surround so if you're in the area I would recommend you pop into this one too.

Back in Adelaide we headed out for dinner and watched some of the AFL - the only sport that matters in SA (except netball!). Early to bed as we wanted to catch some of the Champions League which started at 4.15am!

Rather than head straight for Ceduna we decided to do an extra stop in Port Augusta - the Crossroads of Australia it says on google. It's less than a 4 hour drive so we had a nice relaxing start to the morning and left at 10.30. The road is so straight that I had the cruise control on most of the way which I think may be a recurring theme over the next few days. And when we arrived there we saw our first sign for Perth. Google appears to be correct as there is one junction which says left to Perth and straight on for Darwin. We also met quite a few people at the camp site who were heading straight up the middle - beware Mum I think Dad now has his sights set on this!

Since we were camping again I went to Woolies and bought camping chairs!! Only $35 each - probably the best value I've ever had from Woolies!!..... Although in Mosman the same product would probably have cost $100.

So today we are off to Ceduna which is officially the start of the Nullabor. I'm starating to get in to the swing of being on the road and have booked our camp site for tonight already. Then tomorrow we are driving to the WA border and staying in Eucla... There are pretty serious quarantine inspections on the WA border so not sure how long that will take. There is also a spot on the way where apparently you can see whales that have come in to give birth at this time of year. It's very early in the season but I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

Hope everyone is well.
bye for now x

South Australia

katkelley — Fri, 23 May 2014 23:13:00 GMT

Day 4

Distance from Origin 2,180km

Distance to Destination 3,050km

We made it to Adelaide!! We were actually only planning to make it as far as Mt Gambier today but when we arrived there didn't seem like there was a lot happening so Dad drove the extra 5 hours in to Adelaide.

From Wilson's Promontory we drove past Melbourne and onto the Great Ocean Road. There are some beautiful spots along the way. We took 2 days, stopping at a motel in a nice little place called Apollo Bay last night. happily there was a little life after 7pm and we sat in the pub for a couple of hours - although I did find myself counting the women we were so outnumbered.

This morning we drove to Cape Otway where there is a lighthouse built by a Scotsman called Stevenson (those of you more learned than me will know this man to be famous for building many lighthouses and for being the father of Robert Louis). Highlight of the trip so far though was on the way down to the lighthouse we saw a Koala just strolling across the road.... i tried to get a pic but didn't do very well. Next stop was the 12 apostles..... Stunning view from the cliffs - you can see from the pics how windy it was!

So this evening Dad is off exploring and I ordered pizza in - not like us at all :)

Tomorrow we are going to spend a little time in Adelaide and then drive up to the Barossa to visit a few of the vineyards.

night x

Wilson's Prom

katkelley — Thu, 22 May 2014 10:39:00 GMT

Day 2
Distance from Origin 999km
Distance to Destination 3,841km

The drive from Lakes Entrance to Wilson's Prom is about 287km. We planned to be here by lunch time so we could take in a walk around the National Park before sunset.

We stopped to pick up some shopping as the guide book says to bring your own food into the park. I was trying to keep it relatively healthy, fruit snacks etc.... Dad on the other hand kept bringing over pastries and asking about biscuits! We were still to have breakfast and couldn't find anywhere to eat so we resorted to an old favourite and I made rolls and banana (with lurpak!) in the front seat while dad drove.

Dad likes to stop and take A LOT of photos so the drive took slightly longer than planned but we arrived here around 2.30 and pitched the tent. We did pass one nice town called Foster on the way which seemed to have a little bit of life about it. I may try to persuade Dad to go back there for breakfast this morning.

We set off at 3.30 to walk around the park and it doesn't disappoint. The park sits on a peninsula so is surrounded by coastline which is quite stunning in parts. There's lots of wildlife and we managed to catch a few wallabies and a couple of wombats on camera. They are obviously used to people being around as they seemed quite unperturbed by our presence.

The sun goes down by around 6pm and there are no stores or cafés around :( so there is little to do in the evenings. If we had come prepared it wouldn't have been a big deal.... There are bbqs for cooking dinner and nice picnic areas. As it was I did some long overdue reading for Uni and Dad sorted through his thousands of pictures (across 3 different cameras).

So..... After a very long and windy night in the tent we are up and about to set off again. Today we are going to head round past Melbourne to make a start on the great ocean road.

Sorry I'll have to wait until we get to some decent wifi to load more pics cause it's killing my 3G.

Bye for now x

It does what it says on the tin.........

katkelley — Wed, 21 May 2014 08:03:00 GMT

The first big day of driving....

Well the day got off to a blinder with the beautiful sunrise. We both went for a swim in the ocean, which considering the time of year was actually not too cold, and went to a great little place on the beach called Diggies for breakfast. We both resisted the full breakfast and went for a fruit/yoghurt/granola/banana bread/honeyed fig ensemble which was AMAZING...... I would highly recommend if you ever find yourself in the Gong.

We hit the road about 10.15 and made it to Batemans bay by about 12.30.... We had planned to stop here but after driving around and wasting 40 minutes decided against it. No cute little cafés to be found :(

So back on our trails we now head for Lakes Entrance and agree to pull over if we see something that takes our fancy.... And we did, there is this great little cafe called milk and cheese in a town I don't know the name of but it's about 50km before Bega.

After a late lunch we still had about 4 hours to go, most of which was through National Park. The scenery was beautiful but for anyone who has done the drive to West Kilbride it was very like going from Dalry to West Kilbride over and over again for 4 hours with the added risk that a wombat or kangaroo will jump out at any minute. (Although there were no random cows that had escaped onto the road for me to navigate :) ) The sun went down around 5.30 and there was a stretch of about 150km where we were the only car heading south...... And then the rains came! It wouldn't have been too bad except that it took a while for the wipers to clean away all the blood and guts from the road kill for us to actually be able to see.

And then.... Lights, civilisation!... well in the form of a best western motel and a KFC (only dad had the KFC mum!). If you know my Dad though you will know there was literally no other options (well except for McDonalds).

Lakes entrance is a pretty little down but it basically does what it says on the tin.... i'll let you all figure out what that is ;)

So at 8pm I duly crawled into bed and slept till this morning. Dad is on for the driving this morning and we are heading to Wilson's Prom which I have very high hopes for. It's less than a 3 hour drive and we plan to stay there and do a little walking in the National Park. This will be our first night of camping - I can't tell you how excited I am!!

Good morning......... Wollongong

katkelley — Tue, 20 May 2014 06:44:00 GMT

Morning!

a very quick off cycle update.... The room with an ocean view was an extra $40 but by God it was worth it this morning :)

am off for a wee run (or maybe just a fast walk)

bye

Photos: Road trip

katkelley — Mon, 19 May 2014 20:04:00 GMT

Lift off

katkelley — Mon, 19 May 2014 19:59:00 GMT

Day 0

So the day has finally come to leave Sydney after 6 fun filled years. It feels a little anti climactic having been away all summer (or winter depending on which hemisphere your reading this from).

we waved goodbye to all my belongings this morning and had a beautiful lunch at blathers one last time....... I had been hoping for some potato rosti but the breakfast menu was finished :( thanks to all the girls, especially Jaimee, for popping out to see me off.

We managed to get away early (WHAT??!!! I hear you all cry!). I'm now lazing on the balcony in Wollongong listening to the sound of the pacific ocean. We thought we would treat ourselves to a hotel with a few amenities before setting off on the camping expedition (needless to say this was my idea - but Dad is secretly happy about it).

we only had a few hiccups today.... The removal guys were 2 hours late and I had quite a lot of 'extra' stuff but the driver was super nice so that made up for it. The electricity company was way more efficient than I was planning and the electricity went off in the middle of the cleaning but all in it hasn't been the worst move - though my stuff still has to make it to Perth! They actually put it on a train and send it by rail - I thought everything went by road.

ok we are off for dinner.....bye for now x

P.s. Did I mention yesterday dad brought a Scottish flag with him? I'm not entirely sure how this is going to come in useful but I'm open to ideas??

T minus 1

katkelley — Sun, 18 May 2014 14:21:00 GMT

With one day to go we are strangely organised!! Packing is (pretty much) done, removalists come in the morning, cleaner in the afternoon, then we're off. We are aiming for Jervis Bay tomorrow night which is only 3 hours south but at least we will be on our way.

Nothing to report so far. Dad has been here for a total of 3 days and we've had zero fights!

Off to the rugby.

Kat x

The last day

katkelley — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 16:22:00 GMT

Well I don't really know where to start. In the end the 3 weeks has gone incredibly fast but I will admit I am ready to come home......

The bad bits…… it is really tiring just trying to do simple things (getting money out, travel, staying clean), being harassed on the streets by people selling things, and electricity is unreliable at best.

The good bits…… the food can be fantastic, there is a large indian influence so I have eaten many a good curry (this has not helped with weight loss plan at all!), the people have been very friendly (particularly the people in the Childreach office), the view of Kilimanjaro from the town when it pops out from behind the clouds is quite spectacular.

The great bits….. going to the chagga village and the safari. They really made the whole trip worthwhile.

I can’t wait for the wedding and then hopefully my parents will pamper me for a few days in the village xxx

The safari

katkelley — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 15:19:00 GMT

Well it’s been a very busy few days. It’s now Sunday and I only have 4 days left. It’s been a fantastic experience but I have to admit I am looking forward to getting home, and particularly looking forward to a hot shower, flat sausage and reliable electricity. I will never complain about my electricity bill again as long as the light just keeps switching on.

Wednesday night we went to a restaurant in Shanty Town, contrary to what you might think this is the wealthy area where all the western doctors live. The houses are unbelievable and it’s hard to believe this all sits just on the outskirts of Moshi. The environment is quite different. The restaurant was Indian and fantastic. But all these places are priced completely out of the reach of locals and are almost entirely frequented by either tourists or local white people. There is also a huge international school in Shanty town where all the expats send their kids and again it is like a little bit of the UK dropped into the middle of Africa.

I was picked up at 6am on Thursday morning for my 2 day safari. It was incredible. We went to Tarangire National Park which is about 200km from Moshi and then to Ngorongoro crater. Tarangire was much better than I had anticipated. Most people who have the time head for the Serengeti so I was trying to keep my expectations low but there was no need. The park itself was amazing although it was very hot and at times there were a lot of flies, but there were hundreds of animals. The highlight was the elephants which we managed to get really close too, and then a lioness and her cubs (although the cubs were a little far away to get a good picture). We also saw hundreds of zebra, giraffes, wildebeest, impala and plenty of monkeys. The other thing I found incredible here was the trees. As you all know I am not particularly a nature lover but I can appreciate beauty when I see it and the trees in the parks are magnificent.

That evening I stayed in a lodge in a place called Karatu. We had a bit of a false start as there was no water in my room but it all turned out for the best as I was quickly upgraded. It was lovely and they served a very hearty british meal of lentil soup to start and roast pork and roast potatoes for mains. Between the meal and the hot shower I was in heaven.

We started out the next morning at 7am for the crater. Everyone locally talks a lot about the crater and how amazing it is but you really have to see it to believe it. It was formed 2 and a half million years ago when, in short, a volcano imploded in on itself. In the morning it was very foggy as the crater sits at a reasonably high altitude. I realised later in the day that this fog saved me a lot of anxiety in the morning because in the clear of the afternoon the steep and windy roads become a little scary. I had imagined it to be a crater in the ground not unlike something an asteroid would leave behind but as it was formed from a volcano you actually have to climb the outside of the crater and drive along the rim (and I mean rim) before descending in. The roads are just mud tracks but like I say we were on the journey home before I realised all this thankfully. As we climbed the inside of the crater I was repeating in my head “the tour guides do this all the time… the tour guides do this all the time”.

But it is all worth it. Inside the crater is a little microcosm of life. It is completely flat and has little vegetation but has a huge concentration of animals. The absolute highlight was a beautiful female cheetah just lying by the side of the road; completely uninterested in the people staring and taking pictures from their car. We also saw, to my amazement, 2 black rhino. There are now only 25 left in the crater and about 100 in Tanzania as they were badly affected by poaching. I couldn’t get great pictures of these (mental note – if every coming back buy one of those huge wide lens SLR things that people walk around with) so you’ll just have to believe me that it was an amazing sight. We saw a large hippo out of the water and she really did look like a cartoon character, saw lots of hyenas (including cubs), a bull elephant, gazelles, lots of baboons and again hundreds of zebras and wildebeest.

We then had a very long 5 hour drive back to Moshi.

Having missed a couple of days in the office I went in on Saturday morning. We have hired a new Finance Manager for them so at least the interviews we did turned out to be a success. The new person came in for me to train her on the reports we have been preparing over the last couple of weeks. She is a really nice woman from Soweto so I’m really pleased how this worked out. I then had lunch with the CEO and Director of Operations from the UK to go through the numbers and talk about what we’ve been doing. There is a GREAT coffee shop we have discovered – I swear the chips taste just like the ones gran use to make on the stove!

Went out on the town in Moshi last night. Figured I had to do it at least once before I left. The guys from the UK came into town and we went to a place called Alberto’s. It has a mixed crowd although is predominantly locals. I came home around midnight and left the guys to it – they were off to a place called LaLigas which is basically the only club in town.

So, it’s now Sunday. I’m having a lazy day. I’ve learnt my lesson about going out on Sundays – the street sellers outnumber me to a great extent on a Sunday so it’s best to steer clear.

Looking forward to seeing everyone next week x

Perseverance wins the day

katkelley — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 00:48:00 GMT

So at last I have paid and I'm going on my Safari.... can't wait!

I leave on Thursday for 2 days to Tarangire National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater. Not much to report from this week and the weekend. Things are going well in the office and I'm starting to feel a little more useful. We have found someone for the finance manager job so at least I feel I contributed a little to that (fingers crossed she turns out as good as we hope). Looks like I'll be coming in on Saturday to train her so things really aren't too unlike home!

I also discovered there is a gym here somewhere, and somewhere to get a pedicure, so I'll need to seek these places out at the weekend when I'm back. I cannot rock up to Kensington Palace looking like I've taken a mud bath.

Hoep everyone is well. I'm sure I'll have plenty to say once I'm back x

Well...... the school

katkelley — Fri, 8 Jul 2011 22:08:00 GMT

This morning was the visit to one of the school projects. I went with a group from UCL and Brenda who is the finance officer for Childreach. I have uploaded a couple of pictures onto facebook for people to see.

The kids are obviously use to people coming to visit. Even in the villages leading up to the school all the children come out their homes to wave at the buses. There are 650 kids at this school and 5 classrooms. Childreach paid for the classrooms to be refurbished, have built a well for clean water, toilets, and are in the process of building a kitchen and dining room.

The children sang, among other things, their national anthem to welcome us and the students brought toys for them to play with. The football was definitely the most popular.

A couple of girls got hold of my hands and nothing was going to tear them away. A number of small fights broke out when other children tried to come and break in. They speak a little english but not enough to converse easily. The whole thing was a little overwhelming, they fight for your attention and pull at your hair (they were especially taken with the girls with blonde hair). One of them did try to teach me how to count to 10 in swahili but I think I have forgotten already.

Hopefully I'll get a chance to go out to other projects next week.

The holy grail.....

katkelley — Fri, 8 Jul 2011 22:00:00 GMT

So something exciting happened tonight night….. I found out there is a cinema here – and it shows movies in English!! It was like finding out the elixir of life was within my grasp so I made my way straight there to find out what was on. The answer – NOTHING! They are closed for the whole of July while they renovate… of course they are. So I’m back to my DVDs on the laptop and the books. I have found a few decent looking little bars but I’ll admit that I’m not keen to be there after dark when there are no other tourists. Most tourists get home before the sun goes down.

I think I had my first bad food experience tonight as well. The food in the house has been by and large excellent but I was a little nauseous while eating so duly stopped and put myself to bed – with Lord of the Rings of course. I hope I didn’t cause any offence. Did I mention I found a place in town that does excellent pizza? I’ve already been there twice. I also had maize corn today for the first time. Its not unlike corn on the cob but its raw and tougher; they barbeque it on the side of the road and sell it for 200TZS which is less than 10p or 15c.

I’m heading out to one of the school projects tomorrow morning. Really looking forward to it. The schools are out in the rural communities so quite different from being in town. I’ll update you on that afterwards.

I think I’ve almost got this safari thing sussed. I have now found a good tour operator who is trying to pair me up with other people just for 2 or 3 days. It is still a little expensive but I think if I get to go with other people it will be really worth it. It would be a shame to be so close to all these parks and not get a glimpse of them. I almost went on a 2 day safari this weekend with a group of 13 other volunteers which would have been fun if all had gone well but I was concerned I was being taken for a ride. They tell you to watch out for people promising you the last seat in a group for an excellent price so it all felt a little too good to be true. One of the women in the office called the guy and spoke to him in Swahili to see what she thought of him and we decided we weren’t too sure about it so I decided not to go.

I think I mentioned it was a public holiday today. This actually worked out quite well because I was able to get into the office and actually get quite a lot done while no one was there. Tomorrow the power will be off again hence the trip out to the school. Four people from the office in London arrive on Saturday morning so I should be able to get involved in some meetings and project visits next week so looking forward to that. They are looking at starting up a scheme to link with schools in the UK (I mentioned Dad that you already do this so they may be interested in how it was organised). The group from Glasgow Uni started their trek yesterday. They seemed to really enjoy their visit to the school and said they couldn’t believe how grateful people were for the facilities they have. At the moment in most schools there is about 75 kids to a class. It is free for all children in Tanzania to attend school but this means that facilities are overrun and there is little money to spend on infrastructure. Childreach pay for (among other things) additional school buildings and facilities such as kitchens, water wells and toilets. People from the UK (usually students) can get involved by coming out to help with the labouring work. Most come for 10 days and camp at the school sites.

I have managed to get through the first week with no mosi bites (which I think is incredible) and very few ailments. The dust and pollution takes its toll on the sinuses but eating a lot of curry seems to help this! I have at this point given up washing my feet because they are permanently black no matter what I do. I will definitely need a good pedicure before the wedding. It’s a weird experience washing your hair with a bucket of cold water but using Charles Worthington shampoo and conditioner (my hair is looking shiny mum you’ll be pleased to know but the rest of me is not).

Looking forward to getting home to a nice warm bath!!

Photos

katkelley — Thu, 7 Jul 2011 16:52:00 GMT

So I've managed to upload photos onto facebook if anyone wants to take a look.... that proved a little easier.

End of week 1....... well almost

katkelley — Tue, 5 Jul 2011 20:57:00 GMT

Hello,

Well this is my 3rd attempt at uploading this story so here goes....... again.

Its now Tuesday so I'm nearing the end of my first week. I tried again to upload photos but I don't think the internet connection can take it so you may have to all wait until I get back.

So, another day at the office has been cut short because of no electricity. We interviewed someone this morning and I can use my laptop to an extent but everyone has now left (its 2pm). Electricity seems by far the biggest problem they have at the moment. The power is off every Tuesday and Friday in the office and over the weekend we had little electricity in the house. My torch and books are swiftly becoming my best friends.

Given there are no photos I'll attempt to add a little colour to the weekends events. When we were in Marangu we went to visit a Chagga village. Many of the locals choose to continue to live in traditional homes. These are cone shaped structures made of wood and leaves and are no bigger than the back living room in Seamill. In these houses they sleep, eat, cook and work; alongside their goats and cattle. The fire is inside the structure so the smoke caused my eyes to water after only a couple of minutes. I have no idea how people sleep in these. I asked how many people lived there and was told 5 people plus 3 goats and a cow. The weirdest thing was they do have electricity, just a single light bulb in the centre of the room.

We also went to 2 waterfalls, both of which arise from the rivers flowing from Kilimanjaro..... you really need the photos to appreciate these.

Some students arrived from Glasgow yesterday to climb Kilimanjaro to raise funds so I'm going to meet them for lunch...... rather them than me!

Thanks for all the messages - I really enjoy reading them so please keep posting.

Rod/Anne, are you free on the evening of 24th and on 25th? Would be good to see you before I head back to Scotland.

My first weekend in Moshi

katkelley — Sun, 3 Jul 2011 21:52:00 GMT

Well we got off to a bad start. I had booked a lodge around 10k outside of Moshi which the lonely planet says is a great place to base yourself to go for walks around the villages near Kilimanjao..... it also says its a top end lodge. Anyway, I got there and there was no one there - I think I was the only guest - no guides and no water in the room. So, I quickly did an about turn and decided not to spend two quiet days in a room reading a book. So the ever reliable lonely planet has let me down for the first time.

Anyway, got back to Moshi and went for lunch. Bumping into one of the employees from Childreach and the English students who had arrived to climb Kilimanjaro. This is how the charity raises money. It a strange feeling bumping into people you know .... even the guys who sell things in the street remember you from day to day. I bought a couple of paintings from one of them and felt terrible haggling but this I am told is a must. There is a coffee shop on one of the main streets where it is clear all the tourists congregate. It is one of only 2 places where tourists outnumber the locals. When I got back to the apartment the electricity was off. The sun goes down pretty early so candles and torches are a must. Every piece of electronic equipment I had needed charged so I felt quite cut-off. In the darkness I was trying to spray some of my insect repellant onto my ankles and realised after a few seconds I had picked up the wrong tin and was spraying an insect killer that is definitely not for the skin. Luckily the spray was not working too well so no damage done.

Today was a much greater success. The driver who picked me up from the airport offered to take me to marangu which is the village at one (of the 7) entrances to the Kilimanjaro National Park where the trekkers start their walk. He picked up a guide along the way and we went to see the waterfalls and local villages in the area. Having walked around here I find I am definitely not cut-out to do the full climb, a morning was enough for me......... (for the moment anyway). However, it was really beautiful and totally worth the walk. Its also nice being driven around in a car rather than cramped on one of the tourist buses.

The people I am staying with are trying to arrange a safari for me so we'll see if that works out. It is proving very difficult and expensive to get something for one person and for only 4 days. Most safaris go for a minimum of 7 days and I just don't have the time to fit that in. I had booked a safari but it was cancelled as not enough people signed up so we'll see what I can manage to sort out.

I am finding the best thing to do is just rely on the locals as much as possible. They are very helpful and can almost always put you in touch with someone who can help with anything you are looking for.

Back to the charity office tomorrow. Did I say we were interviewing people on Friday for a Finance Manager role? Its very different interviewing people here rather than in Aus or the UK. So we need to finalise this before the other people from the UK office get here in a weeks time. We're also looking at reporting tools they can use and working with the auditors to get the stats signed off (yes it really is a home away from home!). Hopefully I will be able to go out and visit some of the projects this week.

I'm struggling to get photos loaded on the computers in the internet cafes but I'll keep working on this and hopefully get something up soon.

Hope you are all well, K x

I made it

katkelley — Fri, 1 Jul 2011 21:47:00 GMT

…so I finally made it… 2 days late, after driving from Glasgow to Heathrow and getting delayed in Amsterdam I am here! Arrived in Tanzania last night and was greeted with a warm welcome and a comfy bed so I am almost fully recovered.

Not much to update you on today. I was so harassed this morning trying to remember all the different pills and creams and sprays to put on that I forgot to change out of my flip flops into my newly purchased walking shows (yes I now own sensible shoes!). I quickly realised it’s not a good idea to go out in these not so much because of the terrain as the dust, I was not a pretty sight by the time I made it to the office. Went out for lunch to a local restaurant and had cooked banana with beef – interesting is the only word I will use to describe this at the moment, maybe I will warm to it over the next few weeks. The office where Childreach is based is open 9 til 5 and (unlike some places we all know well) this really is the hours that people work.

Not sure what the plans are for the next few weeks but am planning to head out exploring this weekend so I’ll keep you posted. For now, my biggest concern is where I am going to watch the tennis tomorrow – C’MON ANDY!

Day 2

So the electricity is off today. Apparently this happens every Tuesday and Friday at the moment.... Only the businesses with their own generators can keep working on these days.

I found my way to the office this morning. The streets are filled with people selling things so its a bit like running the gauntlet. I hadn't seen many tourists about but went to a place for lunch called indoitaliano and it appears this is where they all hang out. I should have known really because it was recommended in the lonely planet.

I've booked a night in a lodge outside the town for Saturday night from where you can go walks around the lower kilimanjaro area so hopefully I should get some pretty good pictures to post. I haven't got many of Moshi yet because walking around with a camera makes me feel like such a tourist (although the girls in the office assure me that my skin gives me away anyway!).

Looks like I won't be watching the tennis since there is no electricity so I expect you all to be cheering extra loud for me :)

Miss you all - any gossip you feel like sending my way is much appreciated!