We had a set lunch at a hotel in Arusha City after which we left for the border of Kenya located about 1 hour or so from the city. The road linking Tanzania to Kenya is a brand new highway built by contractors from mainland China who have come to Central Africa in a big way to expand their businesses here.
Along the way we drove past the Meru Mountain - the second highest mountain in Africa after Mount Kilimanjaro. Mount Kilimanjaro could not be seen as it was covered in a blanket of clouds.
The border town of Kenya and Tanzania was a small shanty-town looking corner. The immigration officers from Tanzania were very friendly and gave us a survey form to report our holiday experience in their country. However the same could not be said of the Kenya border officers. One officer tried to 'trick' pakdokter into paying USD50 for an entry visa when there was actually no such requirement. We were told by our tour company in Kuala Lumpur that we would have to pay a USD 50 visa fee to enter Tanzania but were pleasantly surprised on arrival at the Kilimanjaro Airport a few days before that such a visa was no longer required of Malaysian visitors!
After clearing the immigration - we bade goodbye to our Tanzanian guide, Noel, who had done a really good job for us. We were introduced to our guide in Kenya, Joseph, who had waited for our arrival at the border with his vehicle, a Toyota 4WD van. Our bags were transferred to our new vehicle and the safari of Kenya started from here.
border crossing
Noel and Joseph parked side by side
at the border of Tanzania and Kenya
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