BootsnAll Travel Network



Final thoughts upon departing Tanzania

Tomorrow I leave Tanzania for Uganda, and as great as the trip has been thus far, I’m eager to leave. So far I’ve been on the ‘vacation’ part of my trip. Granted a very cool and exotic vacation, but nonetheless, everything has been neatly planned and organized by the tour company, and all the places I’ve stayed have been varying degrees of western comfort (review of my hotel in Arusha to come in the future, I need to ponder that review further before I write). Other than deciding what meals to order, walking into arusha on the first day here to get my ticket to Entebbe is the only independent thing I’ve really done.

Once in Uganda, this trip goes more from vacation to adventure. Granted, all is not that wild. I still am flying in, and someone from the hostel is meeting me at the airport. Plus I’ve got a 3-day trip planned thru the hostel in a couple of days, but until mid-August my schedule is completely open to come-what-may plans as they arise.

So, bring on the adventure!

On other more mundane issues (and forgive the typos I’m on a super-crap keyboard at the hotel):

I’ve finished the last two Harry Potter book-on-tapes (or on mp3 I guess) and am now in the middle of Edith Wharton’s Age of Innocence. The sumptuousness and sociatal excess of 19th century america versus modern-day africa definitely provides thought-provoking comparison.

On the fashion front, even though time-wise this hasn’t been yet much more than a long-ish vacation, in fact I have far fewer clothing with me than most people bring on a normal 10-day vacation (the rest of my bag is taken up with mosquito nets, camera parts, hostel sheets, and toiletries). It is extremely weird to have the morning wardobing decision-tree be:

Will the temperature be: Hot/Cold?
Which of the appropriate clothes is the cleanest?
How long can I go without doing hand-laundry again?
Is it hot enough in the room for my clothes to dry before I leave (when it comes to socks, apparently the answer is usually ‘no’)?

By far the best thing I’ve brought has been the collapsable jacket, which has served as jacket, pillow, and back-cushion already.

Also, make-up is a thing of the past and I can’t say I’m sorry. Life is so much more convenient without it.

A shout-out to MK: The cher hair is fabulous to travel with! I go to sleep with it wet, I wake up with it straight and neat. I wear it back all day, getting dirty and grimy, it still comes out straight and neat. There’s so far nothing I can do that seems to bother it. The only negative is, I suppose, the mundane-ness of it. The biggest decision each day is “shall I wear it in a low ponytail, or be bold and try for one a bit higher on the head? Or, shall I be wild and crazy and leave it down??” Ah well, a fate well worth suffering. If one doesn’t have makeup, why does one need hair variety?

Sammy is doing well and has allowed himself to actually be pet once or twice, so that bodes positively. He and the baby had a competition to see who could frighten the beejezus out of the other pne time, but otherwise all sounds grand there.

I have had no emails from people at work asking me about anything, which clearly means my job was not nearly as difficult as everyone was making it out to be.

In fact, the only thing I can thus far complain about is the lack of emails from friends at home telling me what is going on back home (hint hint)!



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One response to “Final thoughts upon departing Tanzania”

  1. Kendall says:

    Wonderful updates on the blog, Snarky. I think the first lion-siting and the neon snake remain in my mind as the most vivid pictures. I’m really eager for you to get to Uganda and really start the adventure. I’m starting my trip this week, and I don’t know how much internet access I’ll have, so I’ll probably have to catch up with you when I get back, in mid-August. Have a glorious time, be surprised, be humbled, be moved to the marrow of your bones by the courage, resourcefulness, and kindness of African people.
    Happy trails,
    Kendall

  2. Nancy says:

    Hey girl, it’s me . . .”N”! Love, love, love your blog. It’s been fun re-living the adventure through your eyes. Your pix are great – especially the one of us in front of the vehicle at the ATM. That marked the beginning of the best vacation I’ve ever had. Thanks in part to my incredible traveling companions. No one believes how well we got on – 3 different backgrounds, 3 different religions, from 3 different parts of the country, now friends for life. I have some video footage to send to you (yoga giraffes, elephant tug-o-war, rangers passing us on the crazy crater road, and of course, boy/girl giraffe spotting. Hilarious!) Hope you are having a fabulous adventure. Can’t wait to read more. . . .Stay in touch . . .Hakuna matata. . . . .”N”

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