hours to Arusha. As the sun rose, we left Dar es Salaam while the locals waited for buses and walked to work.After sleeping for a couple of hours, I tried to keep myself awake. I feel like if I’m sleeping I will miss something new. But Albuquerque is deeply engrained in me and I sleep intermittently. Apparently after ten days of driving in dangerous conditions, you don’t fear for your life anymore. Even with constant horn blowing and every reason to fear. (This new habit of mine of being able to sleep anywhere, anytime is kind of glorious.)
The further from the city and coast we drive, the more things change. Palm trees become less populous and cattle more. Mud turns to dust. Sunflowers pop up in fields of corn. Villages transform too – same basic ways of life, but clothes become less traditional (and shelter too, to some extent), more farming and bars, more space. The mountains begin to grow on the horizon and the wind feels cooler. Fewer people and cleaner air appear to lend itself to less commotion and more calm. People bathe and wash clothes in the river. Others lead their c
attle to it. Crops abound. A seemingly unused railway appears. A mining community. Also the familiar village markets with similar products to sell. Children independently walking, working, playing. (The children are precious.) Women carrying loads on their heads. Men cutting grass with machetes and working land. And chickens, everywhere.And now we’ve arrived tired and foggy. Dinner at 7:00pm – in one hour. Overall, uneventful day, except for the beauty.
Arusha is cooler, though Dar was cooler yesterday than it had been. The city sounds are that of a city. While Dar closes down – dark and quiet – Arusha is still buzzing with cars and voices and music (but still in the dark). The rain stayed away today, barely. Hopefully we will have sun for the safari.
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