At 11:00 AM I headed over to the mall to use the Internet and then planned to walk some of the beachfront trail I had discovered yesterday.  The course is 12K from the mall and it took me 2:15 to walk it – which I considered shameful considering I used to be able to run that far in an hour.  Back at the mall, I bought some food and went to watch a movie – ‘Femme Fatale’ which was awful.  I headed back to the hotel at 4:30 PM and decided to relax for the rest of the day.

Monday, January 27, 2003 – Cape Town, South Africa

I was up early again today and decided to walk/jog the 12KM course by the beach before breakfast.  I added 3KM to the course by starting from the hotel.  I left at 6:00 AM and walked part of the course and jogged about a third of the 15KM arriving back at the hotel at 8:15 AM.

I had breakfast, did some more exercises and then walked down to the mall to work on the Internet.  At 12:45 PM I took a tour of the city on a topless double-decker bus.  The tour concentrated on the downtown area and the few times it ventured out of the city center, it went to places where I had already been.

I had a late lunch back at the mall, watched a live performance by a local band and then went to see a movie at 5:15 PM.  The movie was ‘Trapped’ – another waste of money.

At 8:00 PM I headed back to the hotel and watched the usual assortment of local TV shows until I fell asleep.

Tuesday, January 28, 2003 – Cape Town, South Africa

After exercises this morning I walked the 15KM course along the beachfront.  By 9:00 AM I was back in the hotel for breakfast and a shower.  At 10:00 AM I walked over to the Internet café and then walked to the ‘Clock Tower’ to board a catamaran out to Robben Island.  The half hour ride to the island was smooth and we boarded busses to take a 2-½ hour tour of the island.  We stopped at the cell where Nelson Mandela had lived.  Our tour guide was the inmate who had lived next to Mandela for 18 years.

I had an interesting experience on Robben Island.  Robben Island housed 1500 non-white prisoners.  All were political prisoners – according to our two guides, both ex-prisoners themselves.  Our first guide had been incarcerated for a half dozen crimes including arson.  When I asked him if arson was a political offense – he said yes – provided you belong to a political group and the arson was political in nature.  I also asked if someone belonging to a political group could commit murder as a political action and he also responded affirmatively.  No one else in our group of 50 tourists seemed to think this was unusual.  Our other guide’s ‘only’ crime was that he was a member of the military wing of the political group (ANC) and attended terrorist training camps in Angola, Libya and Cuba.  The South African government jailed him for being a terrorist.  Again, the other tourists sympathized with him.  At the end of the tour the guides asked us where we all were from and I was the only American in the group.

I met a woman named Yvonne O’Rourke from Ireland during the tour and we had lunch together afterward.  She is here for the same amount of time as I so we may get together again.  She lives in Dublin so I’ll at least know someone when I get to Ireland.

Lunch was over at 5:00 PM and I checked my email again on the way back to the hotel.  I plan to climb Table Mountain again tomorrow morning, this time crossing over the top and descending the other side to the botanical gardens – weather permitting.

Wednesday, January 29, 2003 – Cape Town, South Africa

I woke up very early this morning with plans to be at the Platteklip Gorge trailhead at 5:45 when the sun came up.  In the taxi on the way up the mountain, I saw the taxi’s clock read 4:40 AM and I discovered that my watch was an hour fast!  I again waited in the dark for the sun to come up.  Since I was somewhat familiar with the trail now, I started up at 5:10 AM.  At 6:00 AM I was passed by someone hiking twice as fast as I, but by 6:20 AM I was at the summit.  From here, I hiked 45 minutes along the top of Table Mountain to MaClear’s Beacon, and then turned south to find Skeleton Gorge.  The map indicated that the time from MaClear’s Beacon to the bottom of Skeleton’s Gorge was 3:30, but I completed it in only 2 hours so the map must be wrong.  My legs felt much better than they did Sunday.  At the bottom of the gorge I visited Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens and had breakfast in their restaurant.

At 10:00 AM I took a taxi back to the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, where the mall is located, and spent some time sending email.  I also purchased a couple of thousand page novels to keep be busy when I am not hiking.  I took the books back to the hotel and read for most of the rest of the day.

Thursday, January 30, 2003 – Cape Town, South Africa

I ran/walked my beachfront course again this morning completing it in 2 hours.  After breakfast, I headed over to the mall to arrange a couple of tours for the next week.  I wanted to go to the Cape of Good Hope and the taxi fare alone was R300.  I found that for R350 I could get a full day tour of the Cape and they would be willing to leave me in Simon’s Town where I wanted to spend the next few nights.

I also booked a 4-day/3-night tour of The Garden Route, which will be on a medium size bus, stopping to see the major tourist attractions.  The tour is 2/4-2/7 and hopefully they can pick me up in Simon’s Town so I don’t have to come all the way back to Cape Town.

I had a leisurely lunch, spent some time typing my journal and at 5:00 PM headed back to the hotel for the night.

Friday, January 31, 2003 – Simon’s Town, South Africa

I re-checked my 15KM beachfront course this morning and decided it was closer to 17 KM.  I ran half and walked the other half completing it in 1:50.  I packed my gear, leaving one duffel bag at the hotel and just taking the things I would need for the next week.  I ate breakfast, checked-out of the hotel and went to wait outside for the tour people to pick me up to go to the Cape of Good Hope.

Our picnic was interrupted, however, by a troop of very aggressive baboons, which would dart out of the underbrush and steal sandwiches right out of our hands.  They moved so fast that I was unable to get a picture of it happening, but after a few minutes we decided to pack up what remained of our lunch and finish it in the van.  The baboons followed us, jumping on the vehicle and attempting to open the windows and doors.  We finally made our escape from the baboons and headed out to the southwestern most point on The Cape where we hiked up to the lighthouse and then along the beach for a while.  Baboons were present here also and although they left us alone because we had no food, we saw them attack several other tourists.  Most people just lost their food, but one couple had their camera case stolen by a large baboon, which disappeared over the side of the mountain with the case in tow.

Our final stop for the day was in Simon’s Town at Boulder Beach.  This beach has a large penguin population, which mix freely with the swimmers and sunbathers.  This is also where I had arranged to be dropped off and my hotel, The Boulder Beach Guest House, was right there on the beach.  I said goodbye to the girls as they left to return to Cape Town and checked into my room.  The guesthouse turns out to be very nice and the only negative is that I can hear the penguins on the beach.

I ate dinner in the restaurant and had the local special – crayfish, which were miniature lobsters and very overrated.  I returned to my room and spent the rest of the evening reading and listening to penguins.

Saturday, February 1, 2003 – Simon’s Town, South Africa

I didn’t awake until 7:00 AM and then spent a couple hours reading and doing yesterday’s exercises.  Breakfast was on the porch overlooking the beach with the Atlantic and Indian Oceans one hundred meters away.  After a leisurely breakfast, I walked 2KM into Simon’s Town to look around.  The town is the home of the South African Navy and the naval base takes up most of the waterfront.  Additionally, there is a 10’ brick wall around the base, which obstructs the view of the waterfront from much of the town.

I found an Internet point and spent almost 2 hours on-line.  I had lunch at a small café and then walked back up the hill to my hotel, stopping to buy some food for dinner along the way.  I had a massage at 4:30 PM, which was not terrific, but for $30/hour I could not complain too much.  I ate some fruit for dinner and spent the evening reading.

Sunday, February 2, 2003 – Simon’s Town, South Africa

I did half of my exercises before going down to breakfast and finished the other half when I returned.  My room has no TV and I was shocked to see the headlines in the paper about the loss of the Columbia Space Shuttle.  I initially thought the headlines were a retelling of the Challenger explosion, which occurred about this same time of year, but when I bought the paper and read the article I learned the sad truth.

I walked over to the center of town again and then continued on to the Simon’s Town train station to investigate the schedules back to Cape Town.  There seems to be a train leaving every hour for Cape Town so I’ll plan to leave sometime tomorrow.  I had lunch in town, spent some time on-line, and then walked back to my hotel where I finished my book and went to bed early.

Monday, February 3, 2003 – Cape Town, South Africa

After exercises this morning, I ate breakfast and then checked-out of the hotel.  I walked into town and spent an hour on-line before continuing to the train station to catch the train back to Cape Town.  The cost of a second-class ticket for the hour ride back to Cape Town was sixty cents, and since first class was only $1.25, I decided to splurge and go first class.

The train stopped at almost two-dozen towns on the way back to Cape Town and I took special note of Fish Hoek where I may visit next weekend.  The train arrived back in Cape Town at 1:30 PM and I took a taxi back to the Dale Court Guest House where I had stayed before.  I walked over to the mall where I watched a movie, bought some food at the grocery store and then headed back to the hotel to start a new book.

Tuesday, February 4, 2003 – Oudtshoorn, South Africa

Wednesday, February 5, 2003 – Knysna, South Africa

Thursday, February 6, 2003 – George, South Africa

Our tour guide, Chris, met us with the bus and drove us the 10 minutes to our hotel, The Far Hills Country Hotel.  The hotel is great and some of us went swimming before dinner.  Tonight we all enjoyed the excellent buffet.

Friday, February 7, 2003 – Fish Hoek, South Africa

We stopped along the coast to visit the Diaz (the Portuguese discoverer of this area) Maritime Museum, and then went on to Swellingdam where we ate lunch.  In the afternoon we stopped at the town of Hermanus on Walker Bay and then continued on to Cape Town.

As we approached Cape Town, we started passing mile after mile of huts (tens of thousands) made of all manner of materials, which comprise the shantytowns of South Africa.  Most of the huts are no more than 10’ X 20’ with a tarp roof held down by some stones.  There is no electricity, no sewers, no running water and no trash collection.  Most of the shantytowns have sprung up since apartheid was abolished only 12 years ago.  The population of Cape Town has tripled in the last decade.

I said goodbye to the other tourists at the outskirts of Cape Town in Mowbray where Chris was good enough to drop me at the train station.  Forty minutes later, I boarded a train for Fish Hoek where I found a three star hotel with a five star price and checked-in for the night.

Saturday, February 8, 2003 – Fish Hoek, South Africa

I was not happy with The Avenue Hotel so after exercising and eating breakfast, I went to find another place to stay.  I found an Internet Café where I spent an hour sending emails and trying to find a trip in Africa that I can take after I finish with Kilimanjaro.  At the Information Kiosk next to the café, I located a Backpackers Lodge a couple blocks away, which had just opened.  I was able to rent a room there for only $10/day so I checked-out of The Avenue Hotel and moved over to the Backpackers Lodge.

I spent the rest of the day wandering around Fish Hoek.  It is very windy here.  At 4:00 PM I headed back to the lodge where I spent the rest of the evening reading.  The International Cricket Championships start today in South Africa and the opening ceremonies are tonight in Cape Town.  The entire community is mad about cricket and there is nothing but cricket on every TV channel and the first 5 pages of every newspaper.

Sunday, February 9, 2003 – Fish Hoek, South Africa

I ran over to Simon’s Town this morning and then walked back.  I had breakfast at the Backpackers Lodge and then went over to the Internet Café to further explore some of the trips I had investigated yesterday.  There is a sailing trip that goes to Madasgar which looks interesting and I needed to email them to find out more.

I spent most of the day walking the streets of Fish Hoek and window-shopping.  Many of the shops were closed and it was very windy so after a few hours I decided to go back to the hotel and read for the rest of the afternoon and evening.  I’ve read two of Bryce Courtney’s books; The Power of One and Tandida – both novels set in South Africa with close ties to actual history.  Now I'm reading Mitchner’s ‘The Covenant’ another 1200 page saga covering the first 10,000 years of South African history in novel form.

Monday, February 10, 2003 – Fish Hoek, South Africa

I ran over to Simon’s Town again this morning and walked back.  After exercising, I went for a swim at the beautiful beach in Fish Hoek.  The water was initially cold but I got used to it fast.  There were several hundred people at the beach and about a third of them were in the water.  I walked back to my hotel to shower and then returned to the beach where I ate lunch at a restaurant on the beach.

I picked up some photos I had developed and then decided to get a haircut – which cost $5.00.  At 3:00 PM I spent some time on-line and then returned to my hotel for a few hours rest.  I went out again at dinnertime and stopped by the Internet Café to type my journal before going to the deli to pick up some food for dinner.

Tuesday, February 11, 2003 – Fish Hoek, South Africa

After exercises, I ran to Simon’s Town and walked back.  I ate breakfast at the Backpacker’s Lodge and then went to finish inserting my photos into my journal at the Internet Café.

I ate lunch at the café on the beach and spent several hours there reading my book.  At 4:00 PM I headed back to the hotel for the night.

Wednesday, February 12, 2002 – Cape Town, South Africa

I ran to Simon’s Town again this morning and walked back.  After finishing my exercises, I went for another swim at the beach.  I was disappointed that the waves were not as big as they were the other day.  I went back to the Backpacker’s Lodge, packed and checked-out.  I caught an 11:00 AM train back to Cape Town and by 1:00 PM had checked back into the Dale Court Guest House.

In the afternoon I watched a film on tigers in India at the IMAX Theater.  I also did some more research on my travel activities after I finish in Kenya.  There are some interesting venues in the Seychelles so that might be a possibility.    I went back to the hotel early and spent the rest of the evening reading.

Thursday, February 13, 2003 – Cape Town, South Africa

This morning I took my first weekly malaria pill, which I will have to continue for a month after I leave Kenya.  After breakfast, I took a taxi to the Century City Canal Walk shopping mall west of Cape Town.  I spent most of the day window-shopping in this huge 400 store enclosed mall.  The mall is so large; I counted six stores that had two locations…one at either end of the mall.

I did not return to the hotel until 5:00 PM and although I had intentions of running my beachfront course this afternoon, I decided it was too hot.  Instead, I will plan to climb Table Mountain again tomorrow- possibly Lion’s Head and Devil’s Peak on the same day.

I had some fruit left over from yesterday, which I ate for dinner and spent the rest of the evening reading about the Seychelles.  The Seychelles is 1000 miles east of Kenya and comprised of about 100 small islands.  It is a great diving destination and some places offer trips to dive with whale sharks.

Friday, February 14, 2003 – Cape Town, South Africa

Happy Valentine’s Day.  This morning my plans to climb Table Mountain were washed out.  I think this is the first time I’ve seen real rain since arriving in Africa three weeks ago.

After exercises & breakfast, I took a taxi out to the Grand West Casino and spent six hours gambling.  The complex is very nice and has many exotic restaurants.  It is owned by the same company that developed the Sun City Complex.

I left the casino about 4:00 PM and went to the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront where I had a late lunch and spent some time on-line.  Although it had cleared up in the afternoon, by the time I walked back to the hotel, it had started raining again.  Sunday’s forecast is for rain also so it looks like tomorrow will be my last opportunity to climb the mountain again before I leave on Monday,

Saturday, February 15, 2003 – Cape Town, South Africa

Today the weather is perfect so after exercising and eating breakfast, I headed out towards the mountain.  I was planning to walk through town, but the guy who owns the hotel suggested a different route that sounded more interesting.

I had a late lunch and shopped for a couple things I still needed for Kilimanjaro.  I spent some time on-line and then purchased some food to take back to the hotel for dinner.

Sunday, February 16, 2003 – Cape Town, South Africa

I was glad I did my climbing yesterday because although it is not raining today, Table Mountain is covered with its ‘tablecloth’ making it impossible to venture up the mountain today.

Since tomorrow is a travel day I tried to double up on my exercises so I would not fall behind.  At 11:00 AM I headed over to the mall where I did some shopping, updated my journal and watched a movie.  I was back by 6:00 PM and spent the rest of the evening organizing my gear.

Monday, February 17, 2003 – Nairobi, Kenya

I checked out of the Dale Court Guest House at 7:00 AM and took a taxi to the airport.  My flight to Kenya was via Johannesburg and it left the Cape Town airport at 10:00 AM.  In Johannesburg I had a two-hour layover and tried to make reservations to go the Seychelles, but apparently British Air only flies there on Mondays and Wednesdays.  I will not get back to Nairobi until after the flight leaves on Monday so I’ll have to make other arrangements.

The flight from Johannesburg to Nairobi was about four hours and we gained an hour flying east.  Towards the end of the flight we could see Mt. Kilimanjaro about 40 miles to the east.  It looked pretty small from 33,000 feet, but I’m sure I’ll have a different perspective soon.

The plane landed at 7:30 PM and I quickly found my baggage.  There was a guy waiting for me who took me to the hotel where I checked-in at 8:30 PM.  My roommate is Eric Cowan from Toronto, Canada.

Tuesday, February 18, 2003 – Arusha, Tanzania

We were up at 6:00 AM, took showers and went down for breakfast buffet.  I met some of the other people on the trip during breakfast and met the rest as we were checking out of the hotel and boarding the bus for our six-hour ride to Arusha, Tanzania.

At about noon, we passed the boarder into Tanzania where we stopped to buy visas.  Later we stopped again for a box lunch at the side of the road where we saw Mt. Kilimanjaro for the first time-mostly hidden by clouds. By 2:00 PM we had arrived in Arusha and were checking into the Serena Mountain Village Lodge, a wonderful lodge style hotel set amidst a coffee plantation overlooking a lake.  We met our guide, Allen Carbert, whom I knew from Alaska.  Allen was the first person I met at Alpine Ascents when I arrived in Alaska last June and helped me get settled and organized for my seven-day winter mountaineering course in the Alaska Range. In the afternoon, we went over our expectations for the trip and Allen took us each through a gear check.  We ate dinner in the lodge at 7:30 PM.

Wednesday, February 19, 2003 – Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park, Tanzania

We woke up at 6:00 AM, showered quickly and went for breakfast.  By 7:00 AM, we were packing and checking-out of the Serena Mountain Village Lodge and by 8:30 AM, we had loaded our three 4 X 4’s and were on the road to the Machame Route Trailhead at Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park.  There are many routes up the mountain and the Machame Route (also known as the Whiskey Route) is one of the more difficult.

Our group consists of eleven climbers (three couples and five individuals), one western guide (Allen Carbert), one African guide (Thobias Stuini Mtui), his assistant and thirty-seven porters, some of whom double as cooks and kitchen help.  The people in our group are Steve & Kelly Oliver from Washington, Al Aldrich & Linda Comeau from New Hampshire, Vicki Ameri & Andy Schildiner from New Jersey, Eric Cowan from Toronto, Gayle Whatley from Florida, David DeHelms from Missouri, Rich Vincent from California and myself.

We stopped for lunch, which had been prepared and set out for us at 1:30 PM.  The half-hour break rejuvenated us and we continued up the trail at 2:00 PM.  The climb today ascends 3800 feet over the course of somewhere between three and six miles, depending upon whom you asked.

At 5:45 PM we arrived at the Machame Camp, where the porters who had arrived hours ahead of us had already pitched tents.  Porters do not wear gaiters so they can hike much faster.  Eric and I moved into one of the tents, organized our stuff, and went to the dining tent for dinner with the others.

We are having a hard time agreeing on a name for our group.  We’ve considered Kili Klan, Machame Marauders, and several other names, but have yet to reach a consensus.  Allen made his first web cast and will continue to update the site every day or two as we climb.

The stars were magnificent tonight.  There is no city for hundreds of miles and the small towns which dot the landscape use little electricity so do not have many lights.

Thursday, February 20, 2003 – Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park, Tanzania

I did not sleep too well last night and discovered that my thermo rest was partially deflated when I awoke.  Although I have a spare valve stem, the problem does not seem to be with the valve, so I’ll investigate further tonight.

The sky is blue and it looks like we will have fantastic day hiking up to 12,300 feet today.  We ate breakfast together in the dining tent and then packed to leave.

For dinner, we had pancakes, pasta and potatoes – an excellent carbo meal.  Dinner was over at 7:30 PM when Allen made his second web cast and we went to bed.

Friday, February 21, 2003 – Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park, Tanzania

After lunch, we started on the first of three steep descents.  The trail was dry so the small stones made it very slippery on the way down.  Several of us lost our footing, and Dave, our senior member at 72, fell hard a few times, so Allen and another guide flanked him on the way down to Barranco Camp. During the final approach to the camp, we passed through an unusual eco system with 30-foot senecios plants towering over the trail.  We arrived at camp at 4:00 PM.  The Barranco Camp is directly below Kili’s summit, but this evening it is covered with clouds.  We ate dinner at 6:00 PM, and then Allen did his web cast.  I stayed up for awhile with Al & Linda discussing the Tour of Mt. Blanc which I did last fall and they are planning to do this summer.

Saturday, February 22, 2003 – Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park, Tanzania

Breakfast was a little later this morning because we did not want to be amongst the crowd of people heading up the Barranco Wall.  We packed and by 9:15 AM were heading over to the point where the trail appears to head straight up.  The climbing was very steep and all had apparently shared our strategy of waiting for the other people to go first because the trail was very crowded.  Porters, who carried their loads on their heads, continue to pass us on the wall.

Sunday, February 23, 2003 – Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park, Tanzania

We ate another good breakfast of oatmeal, eggs, sausage, toast and banana fritters.  By 9:00 AM we had broke camp and were heading up the valley wall en route to Barrafu Camp.  We walked for three hours and then stopped for lunch by the side of the trail.  By 2:00 PM we had reached Barrafu Camp, but Allen had made special arrangements with the Park Ranger to camp another 200 feet higher, which would make our ascent tomorrow a little easier, so we continued for another half-hour.

We unpacked our gear and met in the dining tent at 4:30 PM for dinner and last minute instructions about our summit attempt tomorrow.  Dave has decided not to attempt to go any higher and will start his descent to Mweka Camp at 8:00 AM tomorrow morning with one of the African guides.  The rest of us will wake up at 11:00 PM tonight and start our summit attempt at midnight.  The summit is about 7 hours away, but we will need another 7 hours to descend to Mweka Camp so it will be a long day.  It is windy tonight, but no precipitation yet.

Monday, February 24, 2003 – Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park, Tanzania

11:00 PM Sunday.  The wind is so strong beating against the tents that no one has slept, except for Dave, but for different reasons.  Eric asks me if I think the summit attempt may be postponed.  The cooks brought us tea at 11:00 PM and then also served us oatmeal because the dining tent had blown over again.  We slowly got ready to go and by 12:15 AM were starting up the final ascent.  The wind howled and it was very cold on the mountain.  The noise of the tent flapping in the wind was replaced with the noise of my ears flapping, so I tucked them in under my hat.  We snaked our way up towards Stella Point, hiking with headlamps.  We had no porters with us, but there were four African Guides plus Allen, none of whom needed headlamps because they hiked by the light of the moon.  There was practically no moon, but they used the stars.

Dinner was at 6:00 PM and after discussing gratuities for the porters, we all went to sleep.  Our 37 porters will receive $40 each from us in addition to the $40 they are paid by Alpine Ascents for the week.  This $80 represents about ¼ of the average annual income in Tanzania.

Tuesday, February 25, 2003 – Arusha, Tanzania

We rode 90 minutes back to Arusha, where we checked back into the Serena Mountain Village Lodge.  I took my first shower in a week and did some laundry in my room.  No more than one-half hour after we had reached the rooms, it started to pour rain – the first precipitation of the entire trip!  We meet in the bar for drinks at 4:30 PM, followed by dinner in the restaurant at 6:30 PM.

Wednesday, February 26, 2003 – Ngorongoro Crater National Park, Tanzania

I woke early for breakfast with the intention of packing for our safari afterward.  Eric also got up and met me in the restaurant.  Eric is not going with us on safari because he needs to be back in Toronto early Monday morning, so we will say good-bye to him after breakfast.  We checked-out of our rooms and boarded two safari vehicles - 4WD vehicles with two spare tires and adjustable roofs that allow passengers to stand-up.  Andy, Vicki, Kelley, Steve, Allen and I are in one vehicle while Dave, Gayle, Rich, Al and Linda are in the other.  Our driver is Paul who is from the Chagga Tribe.

We stopped by the Bushbuck office in Arusha to meet the owner.  Bushbuck is the safari tour operator and has a thriving business.  They have conducted safaris for many important people, besides us, including President Clinton.  I was able to buy an airline ticket to the Seychelles from the travel agent next door and changed my return flight to London to March 23, 2003.

Our first stop on our safari trip was Lake Manyara National Park.  The drive took almost two hours.  Along the way, we saw many Maasi boys and men tending cattle.  We also saw a few Maasi boys who were going through the progression to become a man and then warrior.  This ritual begins when a boy is 14-16 years old with circumcision.  After the circumcision, the boys paint their faces white, dress in black (instead of the traditional red), and retreat into the bush for 4-6 weeks until the pain of circumcision goes away.  We saw one boy who had decorated himself with ostrich feathers.  After the 4-6 week period of being alone in the bush (it seems to be OK to be with other boys going through the same ritual), they are welcomed back into the tribe with a large ceremony and they become men.  We saw one group of two boys and another group of three dressed for this ritual on the fringe of the bush as we approached the park.

By 11:00 AM we had arrived at Lake Manyara National Park where we stopped to complete the entrance paperwork.  Paul told us that there have been many problems with poachers and the park is heavily guarded.  He said that park guards shoot to kill poachers inside the parks, most of who are from Somalia entering through Kenya.  He said that on average, one poacher is shot and killed each week!  Personally, I had a hard time believing such a high number.

We ate a late lunch at the Lake Manyara Serena Lodge overlooking the park and the Rift Valley.  I was able to spend a few minutes on-line for the first time in ten days.  After lunch, we got back into our vehicles and drove to Ngorongoro Crater National Park, where we will spend the night at The Sopa Lodge on the crater rim.

At 5:30 PM we checked-in to the Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge.  The lobby of the lodge is spectacularly set on the rim of the crater and overlooks the entire expanse.  The sun setting in the west shines directly into our eyes as we try to pick out individual animals we know are there but cannot see.

Thursday, February 27, 2003 – Tarangire National Park, Tanzania

We got up and ate at 6:30 AM.  By 7:30 AM we were in the vehicles headed for a local Maasi Village where Allen had arranged that we meet some local people to hear about their customs.

The chief of the village was about 40 and knew Allen from previous visits.  He and another villager of 25 spoke good English so we split into two groups of six for a short tour.  We were allowed to enter one of the small huts where the people live and talk about their customs for about 15-20 minutes.  The hut was round, about 20 feet in diameter, containing three rooms and a central hearth.  The hut is build by women and is constructed with acacia branches covered with cow dung.  The hut we were in was about 23 years old.  The Maasi in this area had been relocated from the Serengeti about 45 years ago when the Serengeti was made a national park.