After two unforgettable days in Tsavo West National Park and finally sleeping in our Defender again, unfortunately it was already time to say goodbye to our friends Dylan & Flurina. They flew back to Switzerland and Tom and I went on or rather finally started with our road trip. Our next destination was Tanzania, where we wanted to climb (or at least try to climb) Mount Kilimanjaro. Unfortunately, our visa was only valid from February 8th, therefore, we had to wait a couple of days in Kenya. We drove towards the border at Oloitokitok (what a name, huh?) and camped at Kili Springs Camp, which actually isn’t really a campsite but a small lodge with little bungalows and they allowed us to camp there and gave us the key to one of the bulngalows where we could use the bathroom. Befoe we set up our camp, we quickly drove to the town close-by to get some fruit and veggies and when we passed the market and slowed down in order to check where we could park the car, all the vendors of the markets ran up to us and held their products in front of the window, so we ended up getting all our groceries without leaving the car :D It was very comfortable!
When we got back to Kili Springs, we settled-in and some children from around the neighborhood were very interested in what we were doing. They ended up watching us from behind the fence day & night or at least any minute they could spare. We started cooking with a stunning view of Mount Kilimanjaro and I must admit that we started to get a little bit nervous the longer we stared at this massive mountain with its top coated in snow. It seemed a bit surreal that in less than two weeks we (hopefully) would already stand on top of it. Peter, the night guard, made a little bonfire for us after dinner, eventhough we were the only guests and we enjoyed a cozy and quiet night by the fire.
The next day, a couple from the Netherlands arrived at the Kili Spring Camp. They were traveling in a Toyota Landcruiser with a rooftop tent. So for the second night we had some nice company at the bonfire. They told us that they were on vacation in Kenya to visit their daughter and grandchildren who live in Nairobi and now they went on a short trip with their daughter’s car to explore some national parks around Kenya. During the day, we were working on our blog and also on our last short video of our time in Greece (finally) and what are the odds but Bart, our Dutch neighbor actually is a film producer, so we were very lucky to receive professional support with our video :)
The next morning, we got up very early to drive towards our first African border to cross to Tanzania. We took all the advice we’ve received from the more experienced African overlanders and tried to be the first ones at the border. Tom was driving and I was preparing a Muesli so we would also not be hungry, however long it would take - we have heard a lot of crazy stories…
Leaving Kenya was not a problem at all, even without a fixer. We first went to the emmigration officer who stamped our passports, then we had to find the lady for costums to get our Carnet de Passage stamped. This all went smoothly and we were allowed to drive to the Tanzanian border office a couple of hundred meters away. There,m we first had to get a rapid COVID Test. We had to pay 20 dollars because we didn’t bring a negative PCR-test result, which was probably not “official” but ok for us, since we saved the money for two PCR test, which would cost a lot more. After we received the results, we were allowed to go to the immigration officer, we showed our approved E-visas on the phone and received the entry stamps without any further issues. Then, we had to go to customs to get the car released. There were a few customs officer working but it took a while until they finally checked our papers. Then they told us that we would have to pay a fee because our car was not from East Africa and we also would have to pay a road tax. We were a bit surprised and tried to get some more information regarding these fees, we also asked for an official paper where we could see the fees. They showed us some information on their computer regarding the tax and the fees and since the Kenyan sim card was already not working anymore we couldn’t search for more information online, so we decided to pay it all in order to be able to pass. However, they did not accept cash or card, Tom had to go to the next village about 2 kilometers away to find a bank where he could pay the fees and return with a proof of payment slip. All in all, it took us about 4 hours to cross the border, which was not very fast, but according to other stories we have heard, also not the worst. Since we got up very early, it was still before noon and we decided to drive around Mount Kilimanjaro and make a stop in Moshi first to get some final gear we needed for the Kilimanjaro expedition before we would go to the campsite on the other side of the mountain where we wanted to sleep. We both were in love with Tanzania after just a few minutes in this country. We drove through huge banana plantations, everything was so green on the side of the road and the people just seemed to have a very friendly vibe. We stopped for some street food on the road which was delicious!
For the following days, we stayed at Simba Farm Lodge. The owners of the farm have their heritage in the Netherlands but have been living and farming in Tanzania for over three generations. The farm is huge and absolutely beautiful. It includes a lodge with cute little cottages, a restaurant and a campsite. Davin, and his wife were great hosts and very helpful with whatever we needed. We felt very comfortable and enjoyed a few quiet and lazy days before we would go on our crazy hike. We read books, did some yoga and workouts, we chilled in the hammock, went for strolls around the farm (5000 acres give you plenty of options), became best friends with the two dogs and we got super fresh food from the farm every day and cooked ourselves delicious lunches and dinners. We also didn’t drink any alcohol because we were scared it would ruin our chances to make it to the top of Kili so I think this must have been the healthiest week in our lifes but we enjoeyed every minute of it.