This morning I woke up at 6:30am in order to finish packing and try and locate my walking boots that neither Margaret, Arnold or myself could find last night. Margaret spoke to the dada and we managed to find the boots! Phew!

Arnold dropped me to the airport this morning. It felt very strange leaving for Kilimanjaro without him as I had always planned to climb it with him, but duty calls, and business is important. My wait at the airport was longer than expected due to a delayed flight... Shock! With my history of travelling over the past few weeks I should have expected that something would have gone wrong. Luckily my flight was only delayed for an hour and a half, nothing too dramatic!

I safely landed in Kilimanjaro airport, as did my luggage and I progressed with my journey to meet Stephen from Victoria Expeditions. I took a shuttle bus to Arusha which set me back 10,000 Tanzanian shillings. I met Stephen at The Safari Hotel in Arusha; he then took me to The Arusha Lodge which is where the other members of the group were staying. The journey wasn't very long, but the speed in which the driver was going, it felt like forever!

I arrived at The Arusha Lodge shortly after 2pm; it was very quiet and I felt lonely. My room was fabulous, a super king bed all to myself and a superb en-suite; with hot water too, I couldn't complain. I spent the afternoon watching films and dozing in and out of sleep. I woke up at 5:30pm in a panic that the guide for Kilimanjaro had already been and gone, but luckily he was still around. I hired some equipment that they classed as vital for the hike. When choosing my equipment I met the group that I would be hiking with.... A lively, loud group of americans, brilliant! They were saying that they would be singing all the way up the mountain and in my head I am thinking 'oh bloody hell, this is going to be a nightmare'. I am more of a silent hiker, I like to use the time to think and take in the experience.

I decided it was best to go back to my room and continue watching television. I managed to speak to Arnold for most of the day which was nice, and made me feel less lonely. There was no noise at this lodge, you could hear a pin drop, it felt empty and being on my own, with a mind set that I would have been in Arnold's company made it felt emptier than ever. Dinner was beef curry; I ate this in my bedroom as there were so many Americans and they were way too loud for my liking! Over dinner I watched Step Up and Step Up 2.

Today has felt like a very long day! But it's allowed me time to think over my past few weeks and I've thought about things I would like to do before I leave Tanzania. I've realised how much I've enjoyed Arnold's company and I've felt like I've really missed him today. I spoke to Mum after dinner as I felt lonely, it was nice to have a conversation with someone, as sat on your own all afternoon and evening can send you slightly crazy!

Tomorrow is the start of the hike, I am ever so excited, but also slightly nervous!

H