25 October 2017 Wednesday - ~ Day 16 - Drive to Kilimanjaro Airport
Today was mostly just a lot of driving. We drove from Karatu all the way back to Arusha, to Kilimanjaro airport, where we fly back home.
Since we forgot the mat yesterday, we had to stop and drop it off at the lady’s home. She was all smiles and thanked us, but only the person who bought the rug actually got off the land rover to give her a hug.
So
we drove. Before we got far, we saw a local market, so we decided to
stop. We saw a lumber yard.
The
market was crowded with people, so we didn’t wander far. Just
enough to get a taste. We saw people selling fresh vegetables: bell
peppers, eggplants, onions, and tomatoes.
A
man was sharpening knives and machetes.
Another
person was selling cookware, apparently used.
Of
course, Kathy was attracted to the fabrics, but we didn’t take the
time to buy any.
There
were also fruits, onions and sweet potatoes or yams.
Another
guy was selling buckets of potatoes.
Food
vendors were selling food, like these fried bananas.
When
we got back to the land rover we realized: We had not seen it clean
for several days. It was always so dusty and dirty in the wildlife
parks.
For
lunch, they took us to a luxurious lodge that was just beautiful. The
food was very good.
When
we finished eating, we had some free time to explore. Next to the
lodge was a place where disabled people made and sold crafts. I
didn’t buy anything, but I was most interested in the glass
blowing. These guys were very good at what they did. I watched them
make a large glass pitcher. What amazed me was that they were using
their bare hands and rags to shape the glass.
Kathy
was more interested in the beads, of course.
And
a wide variety of pretty flowers, although not many of my photos were
good.
We
got back in the land rover and drove on. As we drove through Karatu,
we kept looking for the “Bill and Hillary Clinton Shop” that we
saw yesterday. We looked and looked, but never found it again. Our
guides said maybe it was a mobile shop and had changed locations. I
think it just disappeared “under mysterious circumstances!”
We drove on for hours. We were amused to see a “shoe shine.” It seemed out of place because it was surrounded by dirt, so we wondered how long before someone’s clean shoes got all dirty again.
We
saw a furniture shop with some of their wares sitting out in the
dirt. It’s just so different from what we’re used to seeing.
And,
of course, women with piles of things on their heads.
After
a long time, we saw it: the proverbial “Snows of Mount
Kilimanjaro.” We knew we were close to the airport.
We
got to the airport at about sunset, bade Eki and our driver goodbye.
The only thing left was a long, miserable flight home. Our plane had
a problem in Amsterdam, which meant we were late for our flight to
Minneapolis. That meant we missed our flight to Brainerd. Since there
are only two flights a day to Brainerd, we had to wait until the late
flight. By then we were incredibly tired and cranky. But all in all,
it was a great trip.