Arrival in Arusha

Ayushi and I finally arrived in Arusha on Friday evening after 27+ hours of traveling! We flew from Newark to Kilimanjaro via Amsterdam, and it was exciting to see the familiar faces of Dr. Rajabu and Masoud on our flight from Amsterdam to Kilimanjaro. We were picked up at Kilimanjaro Airport and pretty much collapsed once we arrived at Arusha Backpacker's Hostel. We are extremely lucky to have arrived safely with all of our luggage (even the cook stove prototype made it through security!). Misha flew separately from Newark to Dar Es Salaam, with a layover in Zurich to visit family. We are looking forward to meeting up with him tomorrow. 

Today Ayushi and I got our bearings in Arusha. The Arusha Backpacker's Hostel is centrally located on the main road, so it was a great home base for walking around and exploring the city. We quickly learned that crossing the road is quite the challenge - dala dalas, taxis, trucks, and motorbikes crisscrossed the roads in every direction! Although Arusha is a base for tourists traveling on the Northern safari circuit, quite a few locals greeted us with "Mzungu,""Hello, how are you?" and "Obama, Obama!" when we said we were from the United States. 

 Arusha Backpacker's Hostel

A highlight of our day was wondering through the central market. We were overwhelmed by the sheer number of produce, clothing, and home goods vendors hawking their wares. Hundreds of them had gathered together in the colorful central market area. Afterwards we checked out the Shop Rite  shopping center for the expat community, chock full of (overpriced) Western amenities. Calling it a successful day of window shopping, we grabbed some dinner at a great Indian restaurant across the street from our hostel. Now we're upstairs in the restaurant trying to take advantage of some spotty, but free wifi. 

View of Sokoine Road and Mt. Meru

We're excited for another day of exploring tomorrow and to finally see Misha!