A-town

In a ploy to have friends come visit me before I complete my service this coming Fall 2008, please read the following review of the magical place known as A-town, the local's term for Arusha. I recently learned that Arusha is also the Hindi name for "the rising sun":


Arusha is a city of northern Tanzania surrounded by some of Africa's most famous landscapes and national parks. Beautifully situated below Mount Meru (pictured above - a brilliant 3 day climb to the top) on the eastern edge of the eastern branch of the Great Rift Valley, it has a pleasant climate and is close to Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara, Olduvai Gorge, Tarangire National Park, and Mount Kilimanjaro, as well as having its own Arusha National Park on Mount Meru. Arusha is the capital of the Arusha Region and has a population of 270,485 (2002 census).

Despite its closeness to the equator, Arusha's elevation of 1400 m (4600 ft - just like Highlands, NC:) on the southern slopes of Mount Meru, keeps temperatures down and alleviates humidity. Cool dry air is prevalent for much of the year. The temperature ranges between 55 and 86 degrees Fahrenheit with an average around 77. It has distinct wet and dry seasons, and experiences an eastern prevailing wind from the Indian Ocean, a couple of hundred miles east.

Arusha is considered to be one of the best African cities when it comes to great weather and tourism combined. I SAY. Need you hear more?


Arusha's clock tower is supposedly situated at the midpoint between Cairo and Cape Town, therefore representing the halfway point between the two termini of the old British Empire in Africa. The clock tower is currently adorned by the logo of the Coca-Cola Company (Atlanta oyay!). Arusha was also the setting for the 1962 film Hatari! directed by Howard Hawks and starring John Wayne.

Clearly, Arusha is reputed as being one of the most pleasant cities in the world, due its exquisite weather, location, beautiful countryside and lively music scene, notably Tanzanian hip-hop. Mostly performed in Swahili, with various genres influenced by African American music, locally known as Bongo Flava. A good example of this genre is the band X Plastaz, with singers like Bushoke, Mr.Blue, TID, etc.

The wonderous city of Arusha is quite known for its vibrant night life, with outstanding live reggae shows and local night clubs. There's rumor that even Joshua Radin may be coming soon to play at Via Via, a local bohemian cafe set back in the woods...

Kweli.

For those of you more interested friends, please note that Arusha is conveniently served by Kilimanjaro International Airport (KIA) for international travellers, a mere 60 km east, approximately halfway to Moshi. You could walk that! (Okay, maybe only crazy Peace Corps volunteers would...) The airport provides international and domestic flights (if you wanted to fly into Dar es Salaam, say, and then fly up here - also a possibility). The most recommended flight from the US - KLM via Amsterdam. You'll be in Arusha before you can say the word: jamani!

Keep me in mind this New Year, friends - it's your last chance to come visit me in TZ (my PC contract ends around Sept 2008)! Take advantage of your local tour guide, i.e. moi. Whether you be photographer, passionate about orpan care/support, climbing Kili, visiting the plains of the Serengeti, or adventuring in general, karibuni sana.


One of my star students, Neema, kneeling in front of the energy-efficient stove she built outside her bedroom window. I've been hanging out with her a lot this holiday; her place is a mere 10 minute walk from mine. She's a single orphan, living with her mom in quite a tough home environment, as her mom provides the neighborhood with local brew, called mbege, or banana beer, at 25 cents/cup. Essentially, this girl lives in a bar with a kanga (local cloth) serving as the only barrier to her bedroom from the living room full of (drunk) clients. As with so many young girls and women here, I am in awe of her resilience.

"What is the purpose of life, but to make it less difficult for each other?"
-G.Eliot

"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He/she to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his/her eyes are closed." -Einstein

To much wonder in 2008...