Day Two

Crossing the border -118kms Namanga to Arusha.

A 4km ride to the border and a 30minute wait gets us through to Tanzania. The landscape is smilar to kenya and so are the roads. Intermitant constructin means a few kms of paved then a few kms off road. The roads are long and straight of 10 to 20kms. My legs feel sore but I still keep a good omentum. People lining the roads are friendly and I have to nearly all of them, they have and expression of confusion and bewilderment as you cycle past. There is an invisible climb so it feels like you are riding n flat ground but there is a very subtle climb, making it feel harder than expected. Today lunch seems to take longer, it is at 70kms so about 50 miles. I expect to see lunch after every hill but i have to wait a bit longer. Finally i see the truck and fill up on food. We have a beautiful view of Mt. Meru which we will have to cycle around in the afternoon. Me dave, andra and sunil set out together after lunch. We soon get spread apart by several hundred meters as we tackle some long roads. After lunch i feel knackered and can only manage a few kmph down a very long road that ends in a steep climb through construction. Luckily there are a few beautiful downhill sections which help to get the adrenaline pumping and i am soon racing across dirt roads and pace. Trying to say jambo to some people but having to concentrate on thedirt track before me is tricky. The descent into Arusha is long but very very satisfying, the city is teeming with people and traffic. Me and dave miss the turn to camp but a nice motorcyclist points us in the right direction. We role into Masai camp to the welcome of a free (but warm) kilimanjaro beer. The camp is realy nice, large and shelter by trees with a big bar and restaraunt. Me and some others plan a safari for the first rest day. We book a tour to the Ngorongoro crater for 5 in the morning. I will let the pictures describe how good it was when I upload them. However it was a long day in the safari truck so I am spending the rest of today relaxing and doing some 'chores' as they are known to the riders. I will post some pics momentarily when i get a strong connection. hope you are all well.

Jacob