I was not sorry to be leaving Arusha behind. It’s not a very pretty city and it did not feel safe at night. Moshi, on the other hand, is a lovely laid back town, several nice cafes and more touristy than Arusha. It caters to those people planning on climbing Kilimanjaro and the mountain itself looms over the town. I was lucky, in this cloudy season, to see the peak as it peeped out above the clouds at the end of the day.
Trying to save money, I caught a local bus to a place called Mataruni (sp) which is up in the mountains and has coffee plantations and a waterfall. Only, the bus I caught went up the next spur to the one I wanted and then I was a very long way from where I needed to be. There was nothing for it but to get a boda boda back down the hill to Moshi and back up the next spur.
I had wasted a lot of time so when I was offered a tour, not on foot, but mostly on a motorbike, it was a no-brainer. I paid the park entrance fee of 30,000 and then another 30,000 for a guide with a motorbike. We made our way to the waterfall on foot though and it was well worth the small effort.
Not wanting to get my Onitsuka Tigers wet, I opted to take off shoes and socks to cross the river near the waterfall and then set off on foot through the coffee plantations. It was glorious and once we were reunited with the motorbike, Sam and I made it to the top and had uninterrupted views across Tanzania. I kept wondering whether, if I had better eyes or a pair of binoculars, I could see an elephant.
It was a long boda boda safari and by the time we arrived in Moshi again I was pleased, not only to get off the bike, but to arrive alive. I get less fond if the risks of being on the back of a stranger’s motorbike, every time I am forced to do it.
Sometimes there really is no option but I think if you’re short on time, or if you’ve messed up your travel plans and need to get yourself back on track, boda boda can be the solution – if you insist that they go slowly. “If you go fast, I will not pay you.”