week 37 - 39 - making new friends and great memories in a place that feels like home

In Kigali, we shared an apartment at the New Impala Hotel for three nights with Thomas from Belgium, until he had to leave again - his Africa adventure of 6 months was already coming to an end :( But we made the best out of the few days we had left together and went shopping for souvenirs, sightseeing in the city and enjoyed lots of amazing food, drinks, and of course the company. For the last night, we gathered some of the people we met along our travels who were also staying in Kigali, and we had an entertaining party night out with a big group - it was a lot of fun (minus the hangover the next day).

After Thomas had left, we moved into another hotel in a different part of the city to enjoy some more days of Kigali. Aimable, a Defender Lover we met in Kibuye at the lake because he saw us camping in the Defender, was also in Kigali and invited us to meet his friends. He introduced us to Patrick, a professional basketball player, Matthias, the owner of our favorite coffee place in Kigali, and some other friends. We had many fun nights out together. They showed us their favorite spots in the city, which was a great way to explore Kigali and get to know the Rwandese culture. When we told them about our continuous plans to drive to Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania, Aimable and Patrick decided to join us for a week. However, they had some work to finish first, so Tom and I decided to make another small tour through Rwanda in the meantime.

We drove north to the Twin Lakes and spent two nights on a nice campsite directly at the lake with a fantastic view. Then we headed again towards Lake Kivu, where Aimable runs a nice hotel, the Kivu Lodge. He had some groups of tourists there for the weekend, so he invited us to come and join him. We were allowed to camp in the parking and invited to a birthday party on Aimable’s houseboat on the lake. That’s how we met Syssie and Maurice, a couple from Kigali, some of their friends and Pitchou from DR Congo, and Manu, a Swiss guy from Zurich (small world once more!) who is in Rwanda often for business. We had such a great time on the boat; it was a big party! We were invited to join another group of guests at Kivu Lodge for dinner. They were also celebrating a birthday, five couples from Rwanda, and they welcomed us as if we were one of their longtime friends. Tom had to catch up on some sleep and went to bed early. At the same time, I stayed and learned about these lovely people's lives, many of whom lived abroad during the terrible time of the genocide, but now they all have come back to Rwanda and built up a life here - I was once more impressed by the people and how they have overcome and dealt with their past. When I told Tom the next day about the night, we promised to take an example of these people’s open minds and hearts; it’s sometimes overwhelming how welcoming they are!

After this fun weekend at Kivu Lodge, we drove back to Kibuye, where Aimable is renovating some bungalows directly at the lake. He invited us to stay there for free, and he took us out for dinners and even on a trip to an island with his houseboat, where he plans to build up a glamping campsite in the future. On the way back, we passed Napoleon Island, home to thousands of bats. One of the crew members went on the island to wake them up, and we had a spectacular view of all these bats circling the island and our boat! We enjoyed the days back at our lovely Lake Kivu, where we already fell in love the first time we were there. Aimable also showed us some beautiful places and a plot for sale, in case we would want to buy something here. But first, we’ll have to finish our trip and drive to South Africa, but building something in Rwanda could be an option for when our journey is over. In no other country we have met so many lovely people and places, and it truly felt like a home away from home. Tom and I have had many talks about the future, what to do when this trip is over, or even things we could do during the journey, like working somewhere and staying for a bit longer. But for now, we will continue with the trip so we can meet my parents in Namibia in September and spend Christmas and New Year’s in South Africa with some friends.

Together with Aimable, we drove back to Kigali after a few days at the lake to prepare for the upcoming trip to Tanzania. Unfortunately, Aimable had identified a problem with his Defender, so he had to call the mechanic to fix it before we could leave. Luckily, Aimable knows the best guy in town to work on Defenders; he also asked him to check our car and tighten all the screws that had become loose while driving all the bumpy offroad tracks. Luckily, our Defender is still in great shape; we only had to refill some engine oil and were good to go again.

Our days back in Kigali were a lot of fun. We met again for drinks with the “Lake Kivu Birthday gang” and spent another night at Rimera with Patrick and his friends; there is a car-free pub street, a nice place to spend an evening. Matthias, the coffee shop owner, invited us to stay at his house for free while he was on a business trip in Europe. Once more, we experienced generous hospitality in Rwanda. Patrick invited us to his place for brunch and mimosas and to meet his wife and kids, and another night, we all went out to the party mile in Kigali and hopped from bar to bar (and Tom hopped to a hairdresser in between to get a shave :D). Our last night in Kigali we spent at our favorite Indian restaurant with Patrick and his wife Rosie as well as Aimable and his wife and some other friends of theirs; we really could have stayed in Rwanda for much, much longer; it almost felt like we live there after making so many friends and having plans and invitations all the time. But for Tom and myself, it was time to move on, and unfortunately, Patrick and Aimable had work coming up, which they couldn’t postpone, so they could not join us on a trip to Tanzania. But we enjoyed the time we had together so much, and I’m sure our paths will cross again - we have left a small piece of our heart in Rwanda, and knowing that we have so many lovely people there we can visit, I am sure we will be back again.

Before leaving Rwanda, we stocked up our fridge with the amazing fresh bread, homemade cheese, and incredible meat Kigali has to offer. Ahead of us were a couple of days of driving - we needed to gain some land after spending more time in Rwanda than we planned, but it was soo worth it - thank you for having us Rwanda, and thank you for all the beautiful people we have met.

week 25 - mountain climbing, family business and a huge lake

After two nights on the incredible Plantation Lodge it was time to drive on. We headed towards Lake Babati and decided to take the more direct way which wasn’t a paved road but a dirt road through beautiful sceneries. It took almost 6 hours for roughly 120 km to get to the Royal Beach Hotel in Babati, which wasn’t actually a running hotel anymore but we were told that it was possible to camp there directly at the lake. We arrived just in time before it got dark, and two locals welcomed us as soon as we parked the car and showed us where we could camp fo the night. The spot directly at the water was beautiful, but unfortunately, the mosquitos liked it, too. We quickly cooked something simple and easy, watched the beautiful sunset and ate dinner inside the car, hiding from all the insects that were flying around. The next day, our two hosts came early in the morning to greet us and offering us some tours. We told them that we didn’t want a tour but were looking for a car wash and they were able to help us too :) They brought us to the car wash place of their friends and our Defender received a well deserved shower after the offroad action. After hanging out with half of the village while waiting we still decided to go with the two guys on a short little tour on the lake in their canoe to maybe see some hippos - the tour was only a few dollars and we were lucky, we spotted a hippo-mom with her baby in the water.

Our next destination was Katesh, from where we intended to climb Mount Hanang. After Kilimanjaro, we were keen on some more hiking, but unfortunately, most hikes in Tanzania cost a fortune due to the national park fees that usually come with them. Luckily, there was another nice mountain on our route which did not lay in a national park. After some research, we found Thomas, a local tour guide who was also able to rent us a tent and sleeping bag, so we could do the hike including spending a night on top of the mountain. Thomas lives in Katesh at the foot of Mount Hanang, and he invited us to camp at his house the night before and after the climb.

He met us at the Summit Hotel, the place where tourists usually stay before they climb the mountain. We had a drink and then drove to Thomas’ house, which was an adventurous route which definitely required a 4x4. As soon as we arrived at the house, we were warmly welcomed by Lucy, Thomas’ wife as well as their 3 children and even the neighbor’s kids came to say hi. While everyone was amazed by our Defender (the kids couldn’t get enough climbing in and out and in and out) Tom and I were stunned by the hospitality we were experiencing, seeing how little they had. We couldn’t believe how well behaved the kids were, they never argued or fighted with each other nor with their parents, they were never complaining, even though they didn’t have a sinlge toy - nothing! The house was built of mud, it had three small rooms, one was for cooking/eating/chilling and one bedroom for the parents and one for the three kids (they shared one bed!). There was no running water and no electricity, for washing, they took a bucket and went to the backyard, the same for using the toilet (for number two, they shared a pit toilet together with the neighbours). Our Defender with a 130 litre water tank was pure luxury, we emptied our whole tank into bukets for them and offered to drive down to fill it and up again but Thomas and Lucy refused, they said they had enough water. Lucy cooked an amazing dinner for everyone and we were playing with the kids while the dog and the little cat and the chickens were running in and out of the house. An older man stopped by, asking for some food, and Thomas invited him to stay for dinner. He explained to us that he knew him back from school and that his wife had left him and now he didn’t have a real home, so he would come by every now and then and they would invite him to eat with them. Also the neighbor’s daughter (she was maybe 3 or 4 years old) stayed for most meals. Her parents had a little baby to take care of, so Lucy and Thomas took care of the older one who was about the same age as their kids -simple as that. It was so nice of Thomas and Lucy to open their home to us, so we would actually get a chance and see into their life, something we definitely wouldn’t experience at any camping site or nice fancy tourist lodge. From the Plantation Lodge to Thomas’ house, the difference couldn’t have been any bigger but it was probably exactly what made it so powerfull and impressive.

We started the hike up Mount Hanang the next day after Lucy made sure we had a big breakfast and enough energy to climb the mountain. Besides the two of us and our guide Thomas, there was also a porter joining, who helped us carrying the tent and sleeping bags. The hike only took around 8 hours in total but it was a very steep climb, we started from 2,000 meters up to 3,423 meters in only 7 kilometers. After three hours, we reached the camp at 3,100 meters where we set up the tents. After a small lunch, we continued to the summit, which took another hour and a half but it was do-able after the break. We walked back down again to the camp, the last bit we had to use our head torches because it was already getting dark. The night was quite windy, we ate our pre-cooked dinner in the tent and went to bed, tired but happy. We woke up the next morning just in time to watch the sunrise above the clouds. The hike back down was an easy one after the previous day but we were still happy when we finally reached the gate again.

Lucy was already waiting for us with a nice lunch. After we ate, we washed our clothes and gears and Lucy was already starting to prepare dinner again. I asked her to show me how to cook the nice spinach she always prepared and in return we told her we would show her how to prepare some meat balls. Tom therefore went to town together with Thomas to get some minced beef, which was a mission on itself. They went to a butcher, explaining him what kind of meat they needed. However, the butcher did not have a meat grinder, so Thomas called at the summit hotel to ask if they could use theirs. They agreed, but only for beef meat and not pork. In the end we had our minced meat and we were able to prepare some meat balls for everyone and they really loved it :)

After 3 days at Thomas’ and Lucy’s house it was time for us to say goodbye and continue with our trip. We were heading towards Lake Victoria, the biggest lake in Africa and the second largest fresh water lake in the world, its size is 1.5 times the size of Switzerland! Unfortunately, you cannot swim in Lake Victoria, due to the risk of catching bilharzia, an acute and chronic disease caused by parasitic flatworms.

To Mwanza it was still 533 km, so we decided to stop in Shinyanga on the way for one night. Since this is not a very touristy area, we couldn’t find a camping site and therefore got ourselves a room in a hotel for 15 dollars for the two of us including breakfast. The road was a tarmac road, however, it had tons of wholes in it, which made driving quite exhausting. Our first stop at Lake Victoria was at Rocky Bay Resort & Camping, which was a beautiful spot at the lake, unfortunately, the “camping site” was only the parking lot of the resort and they wanted to charge 40 dollars for that, the same price they charged for a bungalow. We were a bit disappointed but decided to sleep in the bungalow anyway, since it also started to rain and there was no other camping site close-by.

The next day, we left and drove into the town of Mwanza, the second largest city in Tanzania. We both didn’t know what to expect from this city but it was a nice surprise. On iOverlander we read that it was possible to camp at the Yacht Club directly at the lake, so we headed there and were warmly welcomed. We were the only campers (like so often) so we could choose our spot wherever we wanted. There were many restaurants close-by, the peninsula, where the Yacht Club was situated, looked like a very nice neighberhood. We went for a walk through the city and it was very refreshing how it was not touristy at all. No one asked us for money or wanted to sell us a tour, we could jsut stroll around the city and check out the shops. We had an early dinner at the Rooftop Restaurant & Café, which was a great choice. They served amazing Indian food and fancy cocktails without alcohol and the view over the city was nice as well. On the way back to the Yacht Club we decided ot go check out the sunset at the Bismarck Rock, which turned out to be a very beautiful spot as well. We then headed back to the Yacht Club and went for a “Absacker” (last drink) at the Hotel Tilapia right next to the Yacht Club, which was a very nice place, so we decided to come back the next day to hang out and write our blog and edit pictures.

On the second day, we also got company, Christine, a Solo-Overlander from Malta joined us after we told her in the Overlanding Groupchat where we were staying. Christine is enjoying her early retirement by traveling through Africa for six months each year. She therefore bought herself a car with rooftent in South Africa and has already done various trips through Africa from there. However, since Covid, there are not many Overlanders around anymore. I think Chrstine was quite happy to have some company, and we loved hearing all her travel stories and receiving recommendations for where to go. We enjoyed dinner at the restaurant of the Yacht Club all together and had a lovely evening.

The next day, we had to drive a bit further up north, since our visa was running out and we had to cross the border into Kenya soon. We decided to make one last stop at Lake Victoria for two nights, before we would leave Tanzania again. Christine was heading into a different direction, so we had to say bye again. We drove to Tembea Mara at Balili Village, another place we found on i Overlander that looked nice. We were greeted by a friendly lady and after some bargaining about the price, we decided to stay and set up our camp. We enjoyed a day of doing not much and cooked ourselves a nice dinner, before we drove towards the border very early the next morning. The border crossing went very smooth, the border was not busy at all and it only took us 1,5 hours to cross. We already held our E-visas and also the health check procedure was very easy since we were vaccinated and therefore didn’t need to show a PCR test result. Driving on Kenyan roads again did feel a little bit like coming home :) It was a lot more buzy than Tanzania, but also it was not a problem to speak in English to anyone on the street. We headed straight towards Mara West, the camp we chose to spend our first nights back in Kenya again, another great decision of ours :)

week 21 - 24 white sandy beaches, family & friends and Tanzanian hospitality

After our 7-days adventure on Mount Kilimanjaro, we returned to Simba Farm, where our Defender was patiently waiting for us. After some rather tough nights in a tent up on the mountain we were desperate for a good night’s sleep and even more important, a shower! Since it was my birthday the next day, Tom decided to surprise me and instead of sleeping in the car, he booked a cozy cottage at Simba Farm and we really enjoyed the luxury together with a delicious dinner and a bottle of wine. The next day, we were served a nice brunch and a birthday cake. The next morning we had a very early flight from Kilimanjaro airport straight to Zanzibar, where we spent 2 weeks together with Tom’s parents and our friends Martin and Tamara. They came to visit us and Zanzibar was the perfect spot to enjoy a few nice days together on the beach as well as to recover from Kilimanjaro. If you are looking for white sandy beaches, an ocean in every shade of blue with the temperature of a bathtub, sunshine, delicious restaurants, nice bars and good vibes, Zanzibar is definitely the place to go. We enjoyed the time with family and friends and exploring the island together, which included a trip to Stone Town, the spice market, the Rock (a delicious famous restaurant), Changuu Island (with a tortoise sanctuary) and many days at the beach or in and on the water when scuba diving or stand-up paddling.

After two weeks it was time to say goodbye again. Our visitors had to fly back home to Switzerland and Tom and I flew back to Kilimanjaro airport, where we picked up our Defender, which we could store safely at the Airbnb place we booked for the night before and after our Zanzibar trip. We started back into the overlanding-life with a car wash the next morning and then drove to Arusha, where we stocked up on food and other supplies, like filling up our gas bottle for cooking. We then headed a little bit outside of town - we received a tip to go check out the Blue Heron, a restaurant run by Beate, who’s grandparents originally moved to Tanzania from Switzerland in the late 1920ies. The Blue Heron does not have an official camping site, but there is plenty of space to set up a tent (or tent on a car) and the hospitality we experienced from Beate and her family was beyond words. We got to stay there for free and for as long as we wanted, and since we really liked it a lot, we ended up camping there for a whole week. Beate’s parents invited us to their home, her mom baked a delicious cake for us with raspberries from her backyard, and they even brought us some freshly baked bread in the morning. The pizza’s at the restaurant were the best we had eaten so far in Africa and the happy hours were tempting to taste all the great cocktails on the menu. Since Beate didn’t have a website yet for her restaurant, we ended up building one for her. We therefore took some nice shots with the camera and drone, you can find the result here :) In return for our work, Beate waived half of our bills from the restaurant and on top, she tailored two dresses for Tom, since she also runs a store and an atelier where she produces beautiful African-inspired fashion as well as decoration.

We also met with our two Kilimanjaro-Guides Gasper and Edward, who both live in Arusha too. They came to pick us up in their Tuk-Tuk and after taking us to the market in town to help us find the best fruits and veggies we spent a fun night out at various local bars, restaurants and clubs. On the way home, we got some Chips Mayai (Fries with eggs, which is a local meal and an amazing “I’m-drunk-and-need-some-food-before-bed”-dish, we can highly recommend).

We must admit, there were a few mornings during that week when we woke up and swore not to drink again but we had a lot of fun with “old” and “new” friends and it was quite hard to pack up and leave this lovely place behind. But there was more of Tanzania waiting for us to be explored.

We headed towards Lake Manyara further west. We were told by various people we have met on the way that we should go and check out Migombani Campsite, since it was supposed to be very nice. So we did, and weren’t disappointed, the showers and toilets were modern and sparkling clean including great water pressure (which is a rare find) and furthermore, they had a nice bar with infinity pool, definitely a place worth staying for a couple of nights. We met some nice fellow overlanders from Germany and enjoyed exchanging experiences over a cold beer at the pool.

Tom and I didn’t have an actual plan where to go next, the only thing we knew was our direction towards Lake Victoria, so we started discussing different options (which usually ends in having even more options and sometimes, this can get a bit overwhelming). We talked to a tourguide regarding a hotair balloon safari over the Serengeti (the wild migration was just passing in the southern part) and we also considered to hike up an active vulcano, Mount Ol Doinyo Lengai, but all these activities cost a fortune due to the horrendous national park entry fees for non-residents in Tanzania. We decided to move on and check out the Plantation Lodge, a place Beate and her friends recommended us to vist, since it was supposed to be a beautiful place and they had a nice wine cellar, this would for sure help to make up our mind. What a great idea this was!

The Plantation Lodge was only a short drive away, located in Karatu. When we arrived at the gate, the security guard however informed us, that they were closed that day since they had no hotel guests. He told us to make a reservation for the next day, when they would be open again. So we looked for a camping site close-by and cooked ourselves a nice dinner instead. The next morning, we called at the Lodge again and made plans to come by for dinner that day (an overnight stay exceeded our budget unfortunately). In order to make use of the wine cellar, we arranged for a “taxi” to drive us there and pick us up later. Our driver arrived in an old, lowered Toyota and knowing the bumpy dirtroad to the lodge from the previous day I was already a bit concerned if we would get there after the rain from last night. But we did, eventhough it was a slippery drive, and got to enjoy an amazing afternoon and evening at the lodge. Jackson, the receptionist, showed us around on the 17 acres property including their fish pond and their fields where they grow their own fruits and veggies. During dinner (and the second wine bottle) it started raining like cats and dogs, I have never seen that much water coming down from the sky at once. We were just discussing, how on earth we would get back again, when Renate, the owner of the lodge, appeared at our table. “Ach, die Schweizer”, she said, explaining that Beate already informed her that we would possibly stop by. She joined us for some wine and quickly told us that there was no way for us to get back to town and that she would prepare a room for us to stay. So unexpected, we ended up spending the night there anyway. Renate added, that she would have to go to Arusha early the next day to run some erands but she would have one of her staff drive us to the campsite to get our car and we would be invited to stay for another night and to have dinner with her again. We couldn’t believe our luck, the Plantation Lodge was definitley a “small” piece of paradise on earth!

week 1 - austrian cuisine, family visits and rainy autumn days

“When life throws you a rainy day, play in the puddles！”
— unknown
Facts & Figures
● 908 kilometers in the Defender
● 85505 steps by foot
Highlights
● Salzburger Nockerl in Salzburg
● Apfelstrudel by Oma
● wine tasting in Südsteiermark
Lowlights
● rainy days...

And there it was, October 3rd, 2021 - the date we planned to leave Switzerland and drive off in our Defender. And we did, with the usual delay of a few hours, but hey, what are two hours compared to the time we have planned for this trip. From now on, we won’t have deadlines and strict schedules to stick to.
We got our last coffees in our favourite coffee shop down the road from our apartment, Liv smoked her very last cigarette (new life, healthier habits - or at least that’s the idea) and then we started the engine. Unnecessary to tell you how unreal it felt to drive off, knowing we won’t come back for such a long time. Destination: Africa, next stop: Germany.

We spent our first night at a beautiful camping spot in Berchtesgaden (Germany). Since it was already the end of the season, we didn’t have trouble finding space on a campsite. Unfortunately, the warm summer nights have also passed... We parked the car and opened a bottle of a costly champagne Tom once received as a gift, but we figured the first night of our trip would be the perfect moment to drink it :) The next day we drove onto the “Rossfeld Panoramastrasse” and parked at “Ofnerboden,” from where we hiked up to the “Purtschellerhaus.” The mountain hut is built on the Austrian and German border, and you can reach it from both sides. We chose the Austrian way up, enjoyed a “Brettljausen,” “Kaspressknödel,” and a “Radler” in the sun, and walked the German way back down. There was a distillery next to the car parking spot, and we got the opportunity to taste some “Schnaps” and learn about different methods and ingredients of distilling. We then headed towards Salzburg, and when we arrived at Camping Schloss Aigen, which we chose for our sleeping spot, we found that they were just about to close; however, we got to stay the night for free. We cooked dinner and enjoyed the (foggy) view over Salzburg, where we were headed the next day.

Going to bed early when camping due to the lack of light comes with the benefit of being up early in the morning. We packed our stuff and went straight into the city for our first coffee. Ordering a coffee in Austria is not that simple as you might think. My first Cappuccino came with whipped cream and I learned, that if I would like to receive a Cappuccino with milkfoam I must order a “Melange”. We went from coffee place to coffee place and tasted different coffees (“kleiner Brauner” = similar to an espresso, “grosser Brauner” = doppio, “Verlängerter” = Cafe Creme or filter coffee, “Einspänner” = espresso with whipped cream on top). The list doesn’t end here, but our capability of drinking more caffeine and tasting more sweets (definitely recommend the Mozartkugeln and Punschkrapferl). We went to see the Salzburg Fortress, strolled through the Old Town and passed the birth place of Mozart, walked around Mirabell Palace and the beautiful gardens and went to the Bärenwirt for lunch, where we ate the famous “Backhendl” and of course “Salzburger Nockerl” for dessert. Salzburg definitely seduced us with culinary highlights!

For the night we drove to Wolfgangsee, a beautiful area a couple of hours outside of Salzburg. Unfortunately, the weather was very cloudy and cold but we still enjoyed the night directly at the lake at Camping Wolfgangsee Berau. For dinner, we walked along the lake to Strobl and we just got back in time before the rain. The next morning, we made use of the gym at the Camping Site and then drove to Judenburg, where Tom’s Oma (grandmother) lives. We got to stay in Tom’s parents apartment close-by, which was perfect, since it didn’t stop raining for 2 days straight.
The weather didn’t spoil us, but Oma Hilde did. She cooked and baked and we ate until we almost bursted: Wiener Schnitzel, Leberknödelsuppe, Apfelstrudel, Schupfnudeln, Frittatensuppe, Kürbiskernroulade - we got it all and it was delicious! We enjoyed the time together very much.

Our last stop in Austria led us to the Südsteiermark, e region famous for its wine. On our way from Judenburg to Gamlitz we stopped to see the Hundertwasserkriche, a colorful church designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser. We stayed two nights at Obstgut Ledinegg, a beautiful fruit farm with only five camping spots. The weather was not great but nevertheless we were not the only campers. While setting-up our little camp, we talked to our neighbours, another couple who headed to South Africa on a different route, two retired couples who enjoyed camping in a bit more luxurious campers but were very interested in the Defender - it was very interesting exchanging our camping experiences. Walter and Gabi who run the farm were very welcoming and even lent us their motorbike so we could quickly drive to Gamlitz to get some groceries. The next day, the sun came out again and we took the chance to go for an extended hike through the vinyards, tasting differents wines on the way, eating Jausen and enjoying the beautiful scenery.

The next morning it was raining again, so we quickly packed our things and took off to the next destination - Slovenia.