Field Notes Journal Entry
Arrival in Tanzania
After an overnight journey via Doha, arrival in Northern Tanzania brought first impressions of farms, roadsides, Mount Meru, and weaverbirds in the hotel gardens.
Arrival In Tanzania
Our journey to Tanzania had begun the previous day, Sunday the 19th of June 2022, when the Qatar Airways A380 took off from London Heathrow as flight QR4, bound for Doha. The journey was in 2 halves, the first leg arriving in Doha at 23:45 and the second leg leaving for Kilimanjaro airport at O2:10 the next day, this time on an A330.
For the aviation geek (and I am most definitely one of those!) the flights and aircraft details are:
| Date | Time | From | To | Arrival | Flight | Aircraft | Age | Serial | Registration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19/06/2022 | 15:05 | LHR | DOH | 23:45 | QR4 | A380-861 | 5 | 254 | A7-APJ |
| 20/06/2022 | 02:10 | DOH | JRO | 07:35 | QR1499 | A330-302 | 17 | 0680 | A7-AED |
Despite the business class treatment, which was 2nd to none, after a long journey like that we were understandably a little jaded when we arrived, not to mention looking forward to a hot shower, so I was grateful we’ve taken the steps of buying our tourist visits ahead of time.
It didn’t completely eliminate the form-filling on arrival and it had no impact at all on the lack of humour from the stony-faced immigration official who dealt with my passport, but it did mean we were the first ones through immigration, much to the amazement of Ama, the representative from “Go Vacation East Africa”, our local tour operator, who was waiting for us outside.
Transfer to Arusha
The transfer, by Jeep, from the airport to the Mount Meru Hotel, on the outskirts of Arusha, was through arable land. Close to the airport, the maze crops had failed but as we drove Westwards towards Arusha, they were more successful, thanks in large measure to the irrigation systems used in the area, and were joined by rice paddies and coffee plantations, where groups of women were working the paddy fields and picking the coffee.
The roads were lined with a mix of brick-built houses and shanty-style shops and properties, dotted around, with no apparent plan to the layout, and with chickens and cattle free to roam between them. It is, after all, a rural location, not a town!
As we came closer to Arusha, in the lush foothills of Mount Maru, banana plantations joined the crops we’d seen further to the East and the roads became busier, with school children hurrying late to their morning lessons. The school day starts early, running from 07:00 to 14:00, with a break at 10:00, and as school meals aren’t provided the children make their way home for lunch.
They were joined on the roads by motorbikes laid down with bags of charcoal, that provides a cheaper alternative to gas as a fuel in areas where it’s permitted, though in some areas, it’s banned because of the detrimental environmental impact of the tree felling needed to produce it.
Large groups of motorbikes also congregated at the roadside in the hope of attracting fares, as they act as cheap taxis for those willing to take their lives in their hands!
Mount Meru Hotel
Our first night was to be spent at the Mount Meru Hotel, located on the outskirts of Arusha in landscaped Gardens at the foot of Mount Meru. our room was at the front of the hotel and was very comfortable, equipped with the things we’d need to make our short stay comfortable, including a kettle and sachets of instant coffee that we treated with skepticism but that were surprisingly good when we tasted them. Perhaps that’s to be expected in a coffee growing region like Arusha!
Of course, it also had that thing that’s held to be most precious by all long haul travellers on their arrival at their destination: A shower with lots of hot water!
Refreshed and rested, we looked out of the room window to help formulate a plan for the afternoon. The view was stunning! Across the road, or so it seemed, the foothills rose to the 4,500 metre peak of Mount Meru, a conical “stratovolcano” built by layer upon layer of hardened lava and the fifth-highest peak in Africa.
The view also showed that Arusha was bustling and on reflection we decided we’d likely be mithered to distraction by hawkers and the like if we ventured out alone.
Instead, we explored the grounds of the hotel, relaxing by the pool and making the acquaintance of the baglaflecht weaverbirds (reichenasi) flirting around the gardens and the bushes while we set our cold “Kilimanjaro” beers (known affectionately as “Kilis”).
Field Notes
- Village Weaver (Ploceus cucullatus) — active in hotel gardens; small groups moving through ornamental trees and shrubs, frequent calling and display behaviour