Life's a Stitch

(March 5/6, 2026)

Leaving Tarangire the bus ride to Arusha was two hours in the pelting rain. We eventually turned off the highway and wound our way through questionable areas until we arrived at our gated compound far from downtown. It was called the Summit Lodge, but resembled a budget close-to-the highway hotel on the I-5 around Stockton, California.

It was gated as it was not a good area to walk on your own. The neighbourhood:

Our room:

Notice the tea kettle on the dresser where there were no electrical outlets. To boil water we had to pull out a bed and carefully balance it on the mattress.

Our local agent arrived for orientation time. She was aware of our opinions regarding the location and offered to arrange a ride in the morning for us to go downtown Arusha to the Masai Market… by tuk-tuk. Four of us and the driver all in one tuk-tuk for a 25 minute drive each way for a total of $8US. Rika volunteered to sit shotgun.

We arrived safely, really it wasn’t that bad. 

It was a typical local market with merchants needing business calling out to you. I had some specific gift items in mind, but had to run the gauntlet past those booths that didn’t interest me.

It’s a difficult feeling wanting to impossibly support everyone.

I have a hard time bargaining in developing countries.

In the middle of our expedition we walked into town for lunch and an ATM. That’s when the rain started. A woman ran after us offering us plastic bags to keep our heads dry. What a sight we were.

In the end we all came out not too soaked, with our intended items, and had a long wait for our driver to return. We found a spot to keep dry.

It was exhausting enough, but was compounded by Chuck not feeling well physically and otherwise. We were more than ready to board a plane tomorrow for our 28 hour trip home.

Tomorrow: the journey back.