"Kilimanjaro" Top 5 Page for this destination Arusha by iaint

This trip has 3 purposes ("fun" being the underlying theme, naturally).

First is to climb Mt Kilimanjaro. It is just a bit east of here.

Second is to visit 3 charitable projects which my Rotary club has been supporting. They are all in the Arusha/Moshi area.

Last but definitely not least, safari! Ngorongoro and Serengeti are just to the west.

More on all this later!

Serengeti, dawn

Leaving aside the tourism stuff - a dominant local feature - it's only 100 km from the border with Kenya (so in the northeast of the country) and has a population of 270,000 (as of 2002).

It is the 2nd largest city in Tanzania, and is in the lee of Mt Meru, so lush and green as a result of the water flowing down off the hill (it's raining up there as I write this - a thunderstorm, in fact). It is also a fertile area, the soil being volcanic. It's 1,500m up (say 4,800 ft).

Mt Meru seems to be shrouded in cloud much of the time, but I got a few shots early in the morning (7-8am) where it's entirely clear. 4,565m high - about 14,600 ft - it's the 5th highest mountain in Africa.

Ngorongoro

.... I've put safari stuff on this page, and Kilimanjaro material on my Moshi page.

Have a look at both if planning a trip.

I didn't go into the city at all. Several reasons for that. First, I was too busy. Second, my guide book gave me no reason to feel the need. Last, security and not wanting to be hassled non-stop.

• Pros:location
• Cons:security worries
• In a nutshell:mixed thoughts on the place