7/4/68
P.O. Box 1068, Arusha
Dear Mom and Dad,
Thanks for both your letters - I'm so glad you're on a diet, Dad, I know how tough it is but it is so much healthier not to be overweight. All my life I've envied people who eat as much as they like and not get fat, and I have always wished I could take after you Mom! But I take after Dad and I have to watch my weight constantly. I only keep slim (NOT thin) when I cut out all the bread and potatoes and sometimes I just drool at the thought of a fat meat sandwich...salad's good for you, but there is something so terribly unsubstantial about it! Poor Dad - but think of me, your soul mate, 6000 miles away. I'm trying hard to get To to lose some weight, he weighs 210 lbs at the moment and I know that John and Nola are going to disapprove of his excess - but he loves food as much as you do, Dad and I'm just not getting anywhere with my anti-fat campaign.
To is having the expected trouble - they're messing him around and he's finding it all rather disappointing. But things will sort themselves out in due course, no doubt - at least we are working towards that end.
Before I tell you of all the happenings in Arusha, I must just go back to Nairobi for a while and tell you about that party at the Swiss Ambassadors' - Frey was terribly complimentary about To, and told me what a gifted journalist he thought To was - added to that the, the US ambassador sent To a letter wishing him the best of luck and saying how much he had enjoyed To's articles. Everyone has really been very nice, and I think it gave To that added bit of confidence to get him over rough bits.
Anyway, back to Arusha - it's been like a comedy! We fetched our Kenyan servant, Ododa, from the bus station on Wednesday and we thought it would all be plain sailing from then on. Still no fridge, but the weather has been cool and we've always like sour milk anyway - in fact To made some lovely cream cheese a few days ago. But Thursday evening things went crazy again, and during a hell of a rainstorm the lights went out, and stayed out for 6 hours! We had to burn candles all night, because the boys are frightened of the dark, and I fully expected us to be burned in our beds.
Friday morning, still no electricity, but luckily we still had the camping gas burner, and we managed to make some scrambled eggs and coffee on that - I had a cold bath, which was awful . And then, just to keep things lively, the lavatory blocked and overflowed! Anyway, by lunchtime the lights were on and the plumber had unblocked the lav, so we were back to normal. And just to give our spirits a lift, there was snow on Mount Meru - it looked absolutely beautiful,
I wish you could see the mountain. Its exact height is 14,978, which is higher than almost all the mountains in Switzerland* except Mount Blanc (which is 700 feet higher). The snow seems to melt during the day but come back during the night - not much, but just enough to cover the little cone right at the top.
Kilimanjaro is, of course, perpetually snow covered - I wish we could get a glimpse of the damn peak, but not once yet has it been clear enough .
So far we have found Arusha quite a bit warmer than Nairobi, even the nights are hotter. They say that July and August are cold, but again, I'm sure not as cold as Nairobi. The weather is pleasant, but quite sticky; still, I'm comfortable in a thin pullover and slacks most of the day except over lunch when it's a bit hot for long sleeves.
We went for a walk on Thursday evening, around Tengeru. Quite a few of the houses are still empty - the coffee bushes (the entrance to Tengeru runs through a coffee estate) are beginning to get berries on them, the grass is thick and lush and green, and the insects keep up a constant screeching, piping and jibbering. There's one bird around here that sounds just like the squeal of a car's breaks, it's very disturbing!
This afternoon we went for another little outing, to the Ngurdoto Crater game reserve which is 26 miles away from Arusha - that was another comedy. The crater is one of several (the most famous is Ngorongoro) and it's about 8000 feet high. There's a circular drive right around it., and at various points you get out of the car and go to an observation post overlooking the carter plain. It's an incredible sight, soft green grass and trees, like a park, with buffaloes, rhinos, elephants, buck and warthog dotted all over.
The crater is vaguely circular, and surrounded completely by hills that dip sharply down. Anyway, we paid our money at the gate, got back into the car (which we found suddenly teeming with horse flies that bite!) and drove of to the first post. There was a big elephant poo on the road, which made me nervous to begin with, and a couple of miles further on we came to Rhino Point. We got out, climbed up a steep and slippery little pathway, and there at our feet was this huge crater.
A huge herd of buffalo was just a little to the right and we saw a Rhino lumbering over to a little pond, warthog running around, a huge stork, it was idyllic - until Phil tried to climb over the barrier and To gave him a hard slap which made him bang his nose and he set up a really loud howl. The whole herd of Buffalo, which had been lying down , all got to their feet. Then, just as Phil was quiet again, and all was back to normal, Andy got bitten on the foot by a safari ant (terribly painful) and he set up a real screech - and the buffalo, as one animal, went galloping off across the floor of the crater and the rhino just disappeared!
To show you how loud the kids were - the animals must have been a mile away! So we staggered back to the car, and a couple of hundred yards down the trail, Phil put his hand out of the window. I was just saying "Don't do that." when he screamed again - his hand brushed against a huge stinging nettle and it was terribly painful, covered with white spots and red and swollen - for an awful moment, I thought a snake had got him.
So we went back to the gate post and got some cream and put it on him from the game warden. We drove off only to find I had left my handbag behind, so back we went again. We drove off for the third time determined still to see more of the park, when we came to a fork in the road with no sign post. The road wasn't marked on the map, so back to the gate a fourth time! This time we decided we had had enough - but luckily the game warden wanted us to give a friend of his a lift to Arusha so he agreed to let us in tomorrow for the day on the same ticket! Let's hope we don't have such an exciting time!
Now we're having a typical evening at home - Ododa is cooking some roast beef, Andy and Phil are having a game of football and have just come in fighting and screaming at each other, each one explaining why he is right, To is trying to read his paper, Chris is mad because To got cross with him for kicking his football inside the house..and I am trying to write a letter and calming my nerves with Vermouth!
To, in a long suffering way has just agreed to have a game of roulette with the kids, his usual patient self...and dinner is ready!
I'll be writing again soon, and in the meantime, have a nice Easter week-end, darlings. I hope your gout doesn't give you any trouble Dad and that you have a pleasant and enjoyable time.
All my love, hugs and kisses, your
Eve
*[But Meru looks more dramatic, because it rises directly from the plain - Ed.]
P.O. Box 1068, Arusha
Dear Mom and Dad,
Thanks for both your letters - I'm so glad you're on a diet, Dad, I know how tough it is but it is so much healthier not to be overweight. All my life I've envied people who eat as much as they like and not get fat, and I have always wished I could take after you Mom! But I take after Dad and I have to watch my weight constantly. I only keep slim (NOT thin) when I cut out all the bread and potatoes and sometimes I just drool at the thought of a fat meat sandwich...salad's good for you, but there is something so terribly unsubstantial about it! Poor Dad - but think of me, your soul mate, 6000 miles away. I'm trying hard to get To to lose some weight, he weighs 210 lbs at the moment and I know that John and Nola are going to disapprove of his excess - but he loves food as much as you do, Dad and I'm just not getting anywhere with my anti-fat campaign.
To is having the expected trouble - they're messing him around and he's finding it all rather disappointing. But things will sort themselves out in due course, no doubt - at least we are working towards that end.
Before I tell you of all the happenings in Arusha, I must just go back to Nairobi for a while and tell you about that party at the Swiss Ambassadors' - Frey was terribly complimentary about To, and told me what a gifted journalist he thought To was - added to that the, the US ambassador sent To a letter wishing him the best of luck and saying how much he had enjoyed To's articles. Everyone has really been very nice, and I think it gave To that added bit of confidence to get him over rough bits.
Anyway, back to Arusha - it's been like a comedy! We fetched our Kenyan servant, Ododa, from the bus station on Wednesday and we thought it would all be plain sailing from then on. Still no fridge, but the weather has been cool and we've always like sour milk anyway - in fact To made some lovely cream cheese a few days ago. But Thursday evening things went crazy again, and during a hell of a rainstorm the lights went out, and stayed out for 6 hours! We had to burn candles all night, because the boys are frightened of the dark, and I fully expected us to be burned in our beds.
Friday morning, still no electricity, but luckily we still had the camping gas burner, and we managed to make some scrambled eggs and coffee on that - I had a cold bath, which was awful . And then, just to keep things lively, the lavatory blocked and overflowed! Anyway, by lunchtime the lights were on and the plumber had unblocked the lav, so we were back to normal. And just to give our spirits a lift, there was snow on Mount Meru - it looked absolutely beautiful,
I wish you could see the mountain. Its exact height is 14,978, which is higher than almost all the mountains in Switzerland* except Mount Blanc (which is 700 feet higher). The snow seems to melt during the day but come back during the night - not much, but just enough to cover the little cone right at the top.
Kilimanjaro is, of course, perpetually snow covered - I wish we could get a glimpse of the damn peak, but not once yet has it been clear enough .
So far we have found Arusha quite a bit warmer than Nairobi, even the nights are hotter. They say that July and August are cold, but again, I'm sure not as cold as Nairobi. The weather is pleasant, but quite sticky; still, I'm comfortable in a thin pullover and slacks most of the day except over lunch when it's a bit hot for long sleeves.
We went for a walk on Thursday evening, around Tengeru. Quite a few of the houses are still empty - the coffee bushes (the entrance to Tengeru runs through a coffee estate) are beginning to get berries on them, the grass is thick and lush and green, and the insects keep up a constant screeching, piping and jibbering. There's one bird around here that sounds just like the squeal of a car's breaks, it's very disturbing!
This afternoon we went for another little outing, to the Ngurdoto Crater game reserve which is 26 miles away from Arusha - that was another comedy. The crater is one of several (the most famous is Ngorongoro) and it's about 8000 feet high. There's a circular drive right around it., and at various points you get out of the car and go to an observation post overlooking the carter plain. It's an incredible sight, soft green grass and trees, like a park, with buffaloes, rhinos, elephants, buck and warthog dotted all over.
The crater is vaguely circular, and surrounded completely by hills that dip sharply down. Anyway, we paid our money at the gate, got back into the car (which we found suddenly teeming with horse flies that bite!) and drove of to the first post. There was a big elephant poo on the road, which made me nervous to begin with, and a couple of miles further on we came to Rhino Point. We got out, climbed up a steep and slippery little pathway, and there at our feet was this huge crater.
A huge herd of buffalo was just a little to the right and we saw a Rhino lumbering over to a little pond, warthog running around, a huge stork, it was idyllic - until Phil tried to climb over the barrier and To gave him a hard slap which made him bang his nose and he set up a really loud howl. The whole herd of Buffalo, which had been lying down , all got to their feet. Then, just as Phil was quiet again, and all was back to normal, Andy got bitten on the foot by a safari ant (terribly painful) and he set up a real screech - and the buffalo, as one animal, went galloping off across the floor of the crater and the rhino just disappeared!
To show you how loud the kids were - the animals must have been a mile away! So we staggered back to the car, and a couple of hundred yards down the trail, Phil put his hand out of the window. I was just saying "Don't do that." when he screamed again - his hand brushed against a huge stinging nettle and it was terribly painful, covered with white spots and red and swollen - for an awful moment, I thought a snake had got him.
So we went back to the gate post and got some cream and put it on him from the game warden. We drove off only to find I had left my handbag behind, so back we went again. We drove off for the third time determined still to see more of the park, when we came to a fork in the road with no sign post. The road wasn't marked on the map, so back to the gate a fourth time! This time we decided we had had enough - but luckily the game warden wanted us to give a friend of his a lift to Arusha so he agreed to let us in tomorrow for the day on the same ticket! Let's hope we don't have such an exciting time!
Now we're having a typical evening at home - Ododa is cooking some roast beef, Andy and Phil are having a game of football and have just come in fighting and screaming at each other, each one explaining why he is right, To is trying to read his paper, Chris is mad because To got cross with him for kicking his football inside the house..and I am trying to write a letter and calming my nerves with Vermouth!
To, in a long suffering way has just agreed to have a game of roulette with the kids, his usual patient self...and dinner is ready!
I'll be writing again soon, and in the meantime, have a nice Easter week-end, darlings. I hope your gout doesn't give you any trouble Dad and that you have a pleasant and enjoyable time.
All my love, hugs and kisses, your
Eve
*[But Meru looks more dramatic, because it rises directly from the plain - Ed.]
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