Dar to holilo via MOSHI 26 – 31 march

I didn’t do much in Segerea for a couple of days…only short walks to get money and water. Otherwise, hung out at Emil’s new shop, which also acted as the local pub, with a bunch from the local community. Was planning to join in a party on Fri 27th but circumstances changed very quickly.

On Thurs evening Emil said a friend had phoned and was asking all sorts of questions about me. Who, why, what, where etc etc ??? Similar to what happened in Dec, but the situation was a bit more sensitive now with Covid appearing on the scene. Decided it was best to bring my plans forward and leave a.s.a.p.

Next morning, Fri 27th at 5 a.m. , I went by tuk tuk to a bus terminal and by 6:30 I was on my way on the Kilimanjaro bus to Moshi. A hasty retreat and the right decision as things were getting a bit tense. With the culture of informers leading to arrest and blackmail…..anything could happen.

Good / comfortable bus trip..10 hours. Went to check in at Basecha lodge but it was full, so back down the road to the Kilimanjaro bus terminal which has a hotel ad well. Very comfortable and a bit cheaper as well. Forgot to say that because I couldn’t master the aircon in Dar, I got a bit of cold….was trying hard not to cough or sneeze for fear it might be misinterpreted!!! Not much to do…it was late afternoon anyway….so went to the police mess and Kaka’s. Went to Basecha just to use their WiFi.

Sat 28th I passed the time….Went for a coffee. Went to draw out some money in anticipation of what might happen in Holili, then at about 10:30 caught a dalla dalla to the border. Went to check at the White House if there were rooms available for the night ( just in case ), then went to the border to see if could cross to Taveta. I knew the border had been closed but there was a possibility they would let me cross as I was only going 4 kms the other side.

The answer was, no, but the guy was too junior to make a final decision and there was no-one else about. So I checked into the White House, intending to go back to the border the next day. I was about to go to bed, say 10 or 10:30 When there was a knock at the door. It was Immigration checking the occupants of the rooms and their IDs. Fortunately I knew the immigration officer; he asked some questions and when he turned to leave he gave me a smile and a tap on the shoulder!!

Late morning on Sun I went back to the border, but still no luck. I went to see the chief immigration officer and explained I had a room in Taveta and had applied for a Kenya passport. He said if I could prove it I could go if I wanted. Mercy came from Taveta with the relevant document. The guys at the counter explained that as far as the border control system was concerned I would show up as tourist crossing over when the border was closed and it could cause me a big problem at any point in the future. On that basis I decided I decided to stay put in Holili.

So I checked back into the White House, had my second kiti moto at Mamka’s and my routine began. Over the next couple of days I explored what was to become known as snake hill. A small hill I could isolate on….only 5 mins walk from the hotel. A hill I sometimes share with goats and cows.