This is what I come into in the evening, oh my. I met the new managers of the hotel. They have been running hotels in Africa for years however, origianlly from Montreal! Anyone from Canada is a freind, there are not many of us here. The staff here are very friendly and accomodating. Perhaps it's because I tip a little. Apparently the Europeans and South Africans do not. Consequently, they all know my name and I receive excellent service - bonus Canadian ag...

Arrived in Zanzibar airport no problem. Ride was waiting with my name - always a comfort! Off to Doubletree Hilton in Nungwi - an hour away, it was absolutely fabulous! My room had a full view of the beach, quiet, very clean and a hot shower - wow felt so pampered. Could hardly walk because of 'scree running' down the mountain but who cares? Just going to sit on beach for a few days!

Day 8 - December 18 Up 6am and a 3 hour, relatively easy hike to camp, however, Zak was sick (ha) so shut up for once. The rest of us were slow because my legs, quads were starting to seize up. Once we made it to the bottom (best site ever!), there was an hour bus ride to Springlands Hotel. However, we stopped on the way because the young Army pukes needed money for tip. c Didn't ask if anyone else needed to get their bank card first. Afew hou...

Day 7 - December 17, 2013. Up at 11:30pm and start our ascent at midnight. Unbelievably, the moon is out and bright, no clouds and about -10C. This is doable. The hike up is very Pole Pole. Several folks are suffering from some sort of altitude discomfort. Cat was sick to her stomach and couple of times in the night. Poor kid, I was so worried she wasn't going to make it, but she is one tough cookie. It seems one of the Army guys, Dave, and I were the only...

Day 6 - December 17, 2013 Woke up my regular 2 times to pee. It was almost a full moon and you could see all the starts, there SHE was, in all her glory, close up and personal. it was freezing out, so much so I had to wear my down jacket to sleep in. We hike to last camp, Barafu - 15,300 feet,, before the summit night. The trip up was 5-6 hours and a bit cloudy, snow as we approached. The camp is quite crowded - 25,000+ people a year summit Kilimanjaro so ...