Big Beaver Diaries

How To Live Like a Rockstar When You are Not One...

Tagged: Arusha

Arusha to Mbeya: Leap Year Country Crossing

Tanzania 2015/16

Arusha to Mbeya: Leap Year Country Crossing

Arusha to Mbeya: Leap Year Country Crossing. Feb 29 [su_note note_color=”#b0b1b6″ text_color=”#030303″ radius=”6″]I should make a series of my leap year blogs together to see how much I have changed every four years.  It might be an interesting activity…[/su_note] Up at 04:48, showered, checked out of my dungeon hotel room and rushed off to the bus station.  Found a ticket from Arusha to Mbeya for 56,000 ($25.50). Likely paid too much but it was too early to think. Found out...

Nairobi to Arusha: Blagging Immigration

Kenya 2016 / Tanzania 2015/16

Nairobi to Arusha: Blagging Immigration

Nairobi to Arusha: Blagging Immigration. Feb 28 So I realize that it is a leap year and that means tomorrow is a fancy day. I feel like I need an explanation as to why some months have 30 days and some have 31. What is the reason that February normally only has 28 for ¾ of the time?  Who came up with this nonsensical number system…and now that I think about it, why 24 hours?  Why did they not base...

Arusha to Mwanza - A Sore Ass and Overlooking the Obvious

Tanzania 2015/16

Arusha to Mwanza – A Sore Ass and Overlooking the Obvious

Arusha to Mwanza – A Sore Ass and Overlooking the Obvious. Jan 17 Swahili loves to double up on the words language-wise.  Here are some examples.  Almost every word I know in the language is doubled. picki-picki – Motorcycle (because it makes the sound ‘picki-picki-picki-picki’) pole-pole – Slow peeli-peeli – Spicy boda-boda – Road haraka-haraka – Hurry I was up at 04:30 so that I could shower and check in for my Arusha to Mwanza bus.  I had bought a bus...

Karatu to Arusha - First World Complainers

Tanzania 2015/16

Karatu to Arusha – First World Complainers

Karatu to Arusha – First World Complainers. Jan 16 [su_note note_color=”#b0b1b6″ text_color=”#030303″ radius=”1″]If you Canadians are ever wondering what happens to the clothes that do not sell in Value Village, I have found the end of the source! They seem to end up getting shipped to Tanzania. I have seen a lot of clothes in markets here with Value Village tags still attached to them. So, Canada is clearly sending those clothes. It is strange to see someone in a...

Moshi to Mbulu - Local Love Proposals and Chasing Tires with Sticks

Tanzania 2015/16

Moshi to Mbulu – Local Love Proposals and Chasing Tires with Sticks

Moshi to Mbulu – Local Love Proposals and Chasing Tires with Sticks. Jan 4 Time to get out of Moshi.  One day of a return was enough.  I said goodbye to my Danish friends at breakfast and caught a dola-dola to make a trip from Moshi to Mbulu.  The first stop was Arusha.  Arusha is a big city that I did not want to be near, yet have to use it somewhat.  There was a crowd of people waiting for...