23/8: Moshi

Today I had to go to Moshi to pay half of my Kilimajaro trip and their office is in Moshi. It was an hour and a half in a big dala-dala, not what I had expected but okay. I asked a lot of questions to make sure that everything is alright and it all seems to be in order so that is good, though I have to pay to stay in a hotel the night before we start climbing, because we start on the 8^th of September. The other people I am going with a two men from Italy, I think one of them at least have tried once before but had to come down because of altitude sickness. This probably means that they are even more determined to make it this time. They might only be doing it in six days, but I will be doing it in seven no matter what and I will still have a guide and porters and all that. After I paid we went to see where Patrick is staying. He is staying with Grace’s sister in a nice, but small house, where I might have stayed but there is no room for me so I don’t understand why they thought of that. It is in the neighborhood where Grace and Patrick Sr. grew up, they meet in primary school. So that was really nice to see, I also got to see one of the abandoned train stations. Patrick said that there haven’t been running any trains since the 70s or 80s so it is a very long time and all the tracks are still everywhere. This is really a shame; I mean it could be so much easier to go by train in a country like Tanzania than by bus everywhere. It could be cheaper for everyone, there would be more room and better for the environment. I didn’t see Kilimanjaro all day! Which was a real shame, but I will see it someday. When I got back to town I bought some really expensive lunch in Africafe and then went home before we would meet for the goodbye dinner, so that I could go with Laura. The dinner was really nice Chinese food and it was not that expensive, which was nice. My lunch cost more.