TANZANIA is an East African country of vast wilderness areas, including the Serengeti and the Kilimanjaro National Parks. Offshore lie the tropical islands of Zanzibar and Mafia Island, famous for its Marine Park, where whale sharks swim through the reefs.

I spent several weeks in Tanzania in 1988 on my first world trip, and returned with my daughter, Martha, in November and December of 2008 to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest mountain, go on safari, and learn more about the indigenous people and their way of life. Check out my January 15, 2009 blog post HERE more details.

Click on a photo to start the slideshow.

Our first night in Nairobi
My favorite billboard. Cell phones are everywhere!
They LOVE Obama! These posters were everywhere….
Super highway to Tanzania….
Markets along the way
Ladies Room at a rest stop
Ostrich egg being sold by the highway.
That is one big illegal ostrich egg
Masaii along the way….
First view of Kilimanjaro
Our first night in Tanzania at the Ashanti Lodge
We roamed around natural habitat and visited local families
Local artisans. A great place to buy arrows and knives.
Lush countryside
A real storyteller!
But Martha was sure he was exaggerating….
Traditional Chagga home in Marangu
Meeting people as we went along….
Mtui, our Kilimanjaro guide
Kilimanjaro National Park entrance
Driving to the Lemoshu trail
Anyone for mud?
Off we go into the first phase…the rain forest.
Tea at our first campsite
Relaxing at breakfast
The moor abounds with flowering bushes
Stay away…billions of stinging ants!
Lots of critters, too
One of many varieties of protea on the mountain.
Bless Mtui…he picks up trash along the way!
First views of the summit of Kilimanjaro as we approach our campsite.
Our distant goal.
The food sure tasted good!
Coming out of the scrub.
Believe me, it’s cold. Our solitary little tent, third night….
Martha is definitely not well.
Putting on a brave smile as she heads down….
Dismantling camp at Shira 2 after Martha left.
Onward and upward.
I finally got to wear my rain gear!
Amazing rock formations
You find the trail!
Campsite just ahead….
A bird grabbed my egg!
All alone….That’s one big rock!
At Lava Tower the next morning
Heading down….
Back in Dar es Salaam. A local market.
A few days of relaxation at our guest house in Dar
Guard at our guest house, showing us how to kill a lion!
We visited schools and hospitals started by the Lutheran church
One of the teachers
Young Masaii girls getting an education and saved from early marriages. The hair is always kept very short.
Classrooms are equipped with energy-saving lights.
Students at the Tamiha orphanage for families affected by AIDS
These trees say Tanzania to me