'The day before' ...

It was total bliss for the many who slept in this morning. I didn't. My mum called me at 6.30am (sorry for pressing ignore mum) and then our travel agent from Intrepid called soon after. Ah, that was a little let down for my anticipated big sleep in. I met up with my fellow travelers in the main resaturant for breakfast. Everyone seemed to flash me refreshed and relaxed smiles. A full night's sleep had gone down well! It is funny to think that the reality of our climb was still at this point somewhat stashed to the back of our minds. Ingwe became notorious for his mantra of 'It is not a mountain ahead of us. No pain, no gain. We are strong. We are a big happy family'. The reality check would come later that night.

Soon after breakfast we were all instructed to go to our rooms and lay out the contents of the backpacks we intended to take up the mountain. We were then each visited by a quiet but rather stern faced woman by the name of Dolly who along with another young girl would examine the contents of our bags according to her checklist. She would question the appropriateness of various items and would note any additional items needed (e.g. sleeping bag, bed roll, walking sticks). Having passed her inspection and seeing Dolly's face break out into a smile I was quite relieved. It seemed I was ready.

My room-mate, the lovely Deborah Allen, and I decided a quick souvenir shop visit was in order. Much to our delight the onsight shop had competitive prices and a gorgeous range of unique items native to Tanzania. We spent approximately half an hour indulging in a little retail therapy (mum and Gaz, I have you covered) before joining the rest for lunch. We all had ordered our lunches earlier in the day so once we arrived into the restraurant we were promptly served with our lasagne, chicken and chips and macaroni cheese (you know, local cuisine). The lowlight of my day began at approximately five minutes after the completion of our meals. I felt a familiar twinge of pain in my stomach. Could it be? Noooo, surely not! Before long this twinge became a very real stomach cramp and I was hightailing to my room. After several bathroom visits and of course the usual dramatic thought of 'God jusy take me now!' (I blame my time in America) I was feeling much relieved. I am inclined to think that this bought may have been due to a delayed reaction to yesterday's meal although it is hard to tell. One of the participants, Lizzie Goddard had experienced a similar situation so we were sure to swap notes later and devise our own conclusions about the culprit. Once again, toilet talk seems all too natural in this setting. Lovely.

The afternoon was filled with utter relaxation. Philip Cunningham, suggested quite convincingly to many participants that they all go on a nearby nature walk. They did so and were greeted with a short but challenging walk accompanied by a swim in a local water hole. Deborah and I decided to read books and take naps since we may be deprived of such luxuries soon!

At 5.30pm we gathered for a briefing talk by a gentleman by the name of Seamus. Seamus was a lovely man with a gentle disposition who despite sounding and looking quite English, had been born and raised in Tanzania. His mother had been one of the founding partners of the gorgeous Marangu hotel. Seamus took us through what was to come, day by day, detail by detail. He effectively drilled home the realities of the mountain and laboured the point of going slowly. He even demonstrated how slow we should go. He seemed to walk so slowly in this demonstration that I thought he may just topple over sideways! Point taken. We showered Seamus with questions especially regarding altitude sickness, which he stressed will be a major consideration on the mountain (thus the recommendation to go slow) and the intensity of the steep inclines. Seamus was simply brilliant at allaying fears and instilling both wisdom and confidence. We had a reality check regarding what was to come and yet at the same time we were encouraged by his assurance that should be take Kili seriously we may just make the summit. A funny moment came when Julie asked Seamus if it were true what people say about the route we were taking, that is was one of the easier routes. Deborah and I exchanged looks of equal concern when Seamus almost choked on this spit at this question. Okay, so Lonely Planet has a lot to answer for.

Needless to say, our heads were swimming as we tried to sleep that night. Excited trepidation may be an apt description! The next day would come soon enough...

Superficial note continued ... I still have cankles.