Day 1: Warmest welcome back to Tanzania

There was instant commotion as I stepped off the bus, following a 6 hour journey from Nairobi to Arusha. As my eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight I saw 2 familiar smiles as Saidi and Ramaa waved excitedly. “Jambo, jambo!” they greeted me in Swahili simultaneously rushing over frantically to hug me and before I could even attempt to lift my bags they were already loaded onto their backs. “Ay up duck” Saidi said through uncontrollable laughter, remembering the Nottingham greeting I’d taught him. “Welcome back boss”, “The UK ambassador herself returns, the Nottingham girl”, “Wow what a moment”, "Let’s go, all the kili bros are waiting for you!" They bombarded me with questions, barely coming up for air in between “How was Mount Kenya?” “Are you happy to be back in Africa? “Are you hungry or thirsty, do you need to pick a flower (his way of asking if I need the toilet)?” “Surely you need a tea or maybe you are too hot, some juice?”

It has been 18 months since I was last in Tanzania, when I climbed Kilimanjaro with this team and now I was back with the aim of climbing Mount Meru. You bond with people quickly on a mountain, you are forced to and there’s no hiding. On Kili, this team witnessed me vomit on the side of a mountain, have tears induced by everything from laughter, hypoxia and sleep deprivation. They’ve seen my exhilaration, happiness, strength and determination. My apprehension, self-doubt, exhaustion and vulnerability. A mountain will never fail to deliver the whole spectrum of human emotion. But through this you gain trust and dependency which I was happy I had already established with this team, they feel like my protective brothers, and I knew I could rely on them to take care of me again.

After I'd addressed their many questions we arrived at a cafe where the rest of the team were waiting. Saidi ushered me inside saying, "You go first, surprise them - what a moment it will be!" I saw Anthony who was my assistant guide on Kili and tapped him on the shoulder from behind, "AMY" he exclaimed, "Wow welcome back, we've been waiting!" Saidi took me over to Nasibu, who was my chef on Kili, saying "You remember your stomach engineer!" It was so lovely to see my team again and I instantly felt at ease and excited to climb another mountain with them. They ordered me a plate of chicken and chips with fresh mango juice and we chatted and laughed together before I opted for an early night to be prepared for an early start.

The next morning I met Saidi, Anthony, Ramaa and Nasibu. Ramaa ran over as I carried my bags to the car, gently telling me off for carrying them myself! Saidi shouted over "There she is, the mountain girl is ready! Olala looking strong! Shall we get you another African summit?" It was around an hour drive to the gate where the first day's hike begins. Saidi and Anthony pointed out wildlife to me as we drove, we saw buffalo, ostrich and zebras. Once we arrived at the gate, we had to wait for a ranger to accompany us to the first camp. Here the risk of buffalo's charging is high so its unsafe to walk without a ranger with a gun. It would be a little wait so we sat in the shade as Nasibu gave me a large paper bag full of food saying "Get your energy please Amy!" The bag contained fresh chicken sandwiches, an apple, 2 bananas, 2 hard boiled eggs, a small cake, 2 chicken legs, 2 samosas and a carton of juice. I laughed at the sheer volume of food as Nasibu said, "You know the rule Amy, we won't let you lose any weight!" Saidi and Anthony processed the permits and paperwork while I shared my food with Ramaa as we discussed his progress towards becoming a Kilimanjaro guide.

As we waited for the ranger, Saidi began his introduction briefing which was always delivered with such passion, pride and drama, “Welcome back to Tanzania Amy, we are very happy to warmly welcome you again and make you more memories and finish your objective on the East African mountains". I looked over to Ramaa who always laughs at Saidi’s dramatic nature, and I smirked back as we let him continue. Saidi has spent the recent months working as a safari guide following the wildebeest migration across the Serengeti so hadn’t worked with his Kilimanjaro/Meru team recently and was beside himself to be with his closest friends again. He continued, “Just like on Kili - we are your family, your rafikis, your brothers – you tell any of us if you need anything anytime anywhere hakuna matata” as the others nodded and smiled. “You follow our guidance while we follow your passions - your passion is our hobby”, I tried not to look at Ramaa as he was no longer able to contain his laughter and knew he would set me off. After a few more dramatic words Saidi concluded his speech by saying “Welcome to chapter 2 boss, are you ready to touch the sky again?” I laughed and said “Yes please” as Ramaa put his head in his hands as if he’d heard one too many of these motivational speeches, asking me “Are you sure you want 4 days of this?”

At a height of 4566m, Mount Meru is a dormant stratovolcano located in Arusha National Park, 70km west of Mount Kilimanjaro. Typically Mount Meru Climb takes four days to climb and its the 5th highest mountain in Africa. I remember being captivated by Meru as it emerged from the clouds when I was hiking the slopes of Kilimanjaro. Once I found out that there's no crowds, it's a little more technical and you'd be in the company of wild animals - it's pull became stronger. There is only one way up, the Momella Route. It starts on the eastern side of the mountain and ascends along the northern side of the crater to the summit, the Socialist Peak.

Eventually a ranger appeared and we began the hike. The route followed a gentle incline through forested slopes where black and white Colobus monkeys darted between the branches. The trees provided much needed shade from the strong sun. We walked under a giant fig tree, it's trunk forming an arch large enough for a car to pass through. A couple of hours into the hike, our ranger spotted a large buffalo grazing near the trail. "It's old and it's a male" Saidi explained, continuing to tell me as there are less predators like lions in the region buffalo's often die naturally from old age but are isolated from their family groups. The ranger suggested we take an alternative route as lone, older males can be very dangerous. We re-routed following a steeper more densely forested path and within a couple of hours we'd arrived into camp.

Camping on Mount Meru is not allowed due to the dangerous animals so I'd be staying in huts with bunk beds. Ramaa took me to my room and we laughed as I had 4 beds to myself. After I'd made myself at home I joined the others in the kitchen. Clients normally eat in the dining room but my team had explained, "You're not a client, you are our rafiki so you eat with your bros in the kitchen!" The kitchen was loud and hectic, 4 teams of guides with their chefs and porters all gathered around cooking pots as the smell of delicious food mixed with the scent of camping stove gas. Sounds of laughter and conversations in Swahili echoed through the room. "Welcome Amy" Ramaa said, inviting me to sit on an upside down bucket as he passed me a cup of tea. A chef from another team handed me a bowl of cashew nuts, smiling and welcoming me. Nasibu cooked fish with roast potatoes, a fresh salad and vegetables. Ramaa served the food proudly, piling each element high on my plate and laughing to himself at how much food he'd given me. We ate together until I physically couldn't fit any more food in my body. A couple of porters from another team sat next to me and Saidi told me to put any food I didn't want in their bowls. I cheekily transferred roast potatoes and fish from my plate to their bowls as they laughed and nodded gratefully. "No food will ever be wasted around these boys" Saidi laughed.

I was escorted to my room as it was the other side of camp and buffalo's come close to the buildings at night for warmth. Saidi laughed saying "It's time for flower picking instructions!" He explained if I need the toilet in the night to simply go right outside of my door on the grass, "Look everywhere with your headtorch first, then don't take more than one step away from your door, pick your flower and then go safely back inside." We said goodnight and I climbed into my sleeping bag, feeling a little tired from the 14km stretch and the excitement of being back with my Tanzanian team.