Climbing Kili

Peak Uhuru, 5895 metres high, is the highest peak of Africa. It is also the only one of this height that is possible to reach without special physical preparation. Thousands of people conquer the summit every year, and each of them takes it as a special personal achievement.


This Kilimanjaro raven is eating a piece of chocolate which I dropped.
January 11th, 2010
The magestic scenery was worth the effort
And in the meanwhile down there...
That's the assistant guide. To become a chief guide you have to:

- be a porter for 3 years,
- then you need to attend guides' school for 2 years,
- then work as a cook for another 2 years.
- After that you need to work as an assistant guide for 2 yrs.
It is now you'd be allowed to sit on an exam for a chief guide. If you failed, you'd have to work as asst guide for another two years, after which you'd be given a second chance to take the exam. That would be your last chance. If you failed this time you could never be a chief guide.
Maundi crater rim

"Washy-wash!"
This is how they used to announce there was hot water on the door steps for you to wash our hands. There was no running water to bathe, and we brushed our teeth with tea all the 5 days it took us to climb up and down Kilimanjaro.

The general rule for one's entourage is: 2 porters per person, one cook, one assistant cook, one guide. We were three and we had two guides. It is a must to tip your team, and most agencies warn their clients. The tips go like this:
- porter per day - 5-8 USD
- cook per day - 10 USD
- chief guide - 15-20 USD
- assistant guide - 10 USD.
As our chief guide Aloice put it: "It all comes from your heart. You can give as much as you wish, or as much as you can afford".

Read more:
(available only in Bulgarian)

http://www.24chasa.bg/Article.asp?ArticleId=352628