Small and serene, Arusha is a jewel tucked away in Tanzania

“But is it safe?” Between my husband and I, we have a truly extended family. Nearly everyone in that rather large and well-meaning Bengali family of ours expressed their dismay when we declared our decision to move to Africa for good. We were bombarded by tales of people they knew of or heard of or read about, who lost a leg, an eye and assorted parts of their bodies in mugging incidents. South Africa was safe, but the east? Despite the naysayers, my husband and I remained unfazed. We invented a game to guess at what point of conversations, the safety question would pop up. Partly, our families are to be blamed for our interest in Africa. They got us the book—the greatest adventure tale ever written in Bengali—that all teenagers, especially the boys, read. The book by novelist Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay called Chander Pahaar (loosely translated as The Mountain of the Moon). It is not just a book. It is a rite of passage that my husband and I went through. Between that and the Enid Blytons, I was frankly torn between what would be more glorious or glamorous—discovering an island cove or a cave filled with diamonds. Thus when the Arusha offer came in, a bit of that child who remained was too thrilled to even care. There were no second guesses. It was a “I do” to Arusha’s call. I knew that the world had changed and that in Arusha there were probably no caves filled with diamonds. But what greeted us, was a rather exotic mix of old world charm and new development, present in a chaos reminiscent of home. There are few direct flights to Arusha, usually it is better to land in the capital of Tanzania, Dar-e-salaam, and then take a car or bus to the city. Arusha does have its own airport, which is rather small and tidy. The city is the fourth-largest in Tanzania, a lovely little spot tucked away within a valley, with more-orless mild weather all year round. Because it is situated in a higher altitude, the region is also drier. Arusha is the capital of northern region of Tanzania also called the Arusha Region. And it is the place to go for those who dream about safaris—the city is close to some of Africa's most famous national parks, including the Serengiti. It is also famous for its touts trying to sell safaris, and vendors trying to sell souvenirs. Though well-meaning, it is better to book the safaris well before you land to ensure safer travel. The town rests on a rather picturesque spot below the Mount Meru on the eastern edge of the Great Rift Valley. Make it a pit stop in Africa, even if you do not plan on staying for long, as it is close to Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara, Olduvai Gorge, Tarangire National Park, and Mount Kilimanjaro. The visit that got us excited was the Arusha National Park which, till 1967, was known as the Ngurdoto Crater National Park. The Arusha National Park is located halfway between Arusha and Moshi towns. It is surrounded by a sweeping band of forests. The breathtaking bit within it, is the Momella Lakes with its flamingoes and hippos. The lakes, because of their varied mineral content, each supports a different type of algae growth which lends it a distinct colour. From the highlands, the lakes divide the park almost equally. In the rainy season (November to December and March to May) it swells into a mighty waterway that floods the entire area. The sweeping plains around Momella lakes are natural grasslands fed by underground streams. Because the water is salty, animals do not use them for drinking. For ornithologists, the lakes are a mustvisit because some 400 species of birds use the wetlands close to the lakes. While there you can also spot the bushbucks, water-bucks and bohor reedbuck. Also within the park is the Ngurdoto crater all of 3km wide and 1,474 metres deep. The crater has rocky cliffs, forest and swamp interspersed by open plain. Though tourists are not allowed on the crater floor, there are plenty of spots from where one can watch the animals. Once, it is belived, the Mount Meru was higher than Kilimanjaro. Meru collapsed sideways, destroying its eastern slope of the volcanic cone. The mountainscape is scenic and spectacular. Use Meru as an high-attitude warm-up before you tackle Mount Kilimanjaro, which is 5,895m high. The Arusha park promotes walking safaris with armed escorts as transitory lions are spotted, but we got to see none. And there is plenty more to see in the towns. Before we became one of the people, my husband and I decided to be tourists for a bit and take in the scenary on a daladala (mini-van taxi) into town to the Central Market (intersection of Market Street and Somali Road) which sells herbs, spices, sandals made from old tyres, colourful kangas, traditional medicines and local produce such as baobab seeds and fresh tamarind, both of which can be sucked like sweets. The markets are open daily between 7am and 6pm. For those who are interested in local crafts there are enough crafts shops at Goliondo Road where Tingatinga paintings, Masai jewellery and batik, are sold. Beautiful, exotic and filled by asili (‘genuine’ in Swahili) people, Arusha is a must-see, especially during the months between January and March, when the wheather is just perfect for a stroll.