Preparation Day Went Well !

Jambo,
we arrived safely and had a good sleep in our first morning in Tanzania. We had a nice relaxing breakfast and then met Michael, the head guide from Chagga Tours. We went for a short hike through the coffee plantation we are staying in the middle of to acclimatize, and then had another huge meal (this trip is really about eating.)
The afternoon was taken up with final packing of our duffels - trying to get our duffels whittled down to 25 lbs (11 kgs) each. Colleen and Sherry won the prizes for lightest packs. An unnamed individual had 8 lbs alone in snacks! We finished up with a good carbo load at the pizzeria in Moshi. We are ready for our trek up the mountain to start.
Unfortunately, Karen's bags have not arrived yet. They have been held up in Amsterdam. The team however, came up with most of the clothing and gear she needed to start and Michael provided the rest. Hopefully her bag will arrive tomorrow and come up the mountain the following day, day 2 of the trek ( a porter will make a special trip.) Karen has been a real trooper and the rest of the team has provided amazing support. Thank goodness for all those extra clothes everyone brought. Bye for now from thew base of Kilimanjaro.