Tanzania

Today my mom & dad asked me to type a blog entry about Tanzania. They said that I should type it as if the person had never heard of Tanzania (which is ridiculous because every one in my family has heard about it but oh well). Tanzania is a varied country on the east coast of Africa. It is bordered by Kenya, Rwanda and Burundi in the north, and is bordered by the Democratic Republic Of The Congo in the west, and Mozambique to the south. Tanzania got its name in 1964 when the Republic of Tanganyika and the island nation of Zanzibar joined to make the new Republic of Tanganyika, which was soon renamed the Republic of Tanzania.

This beautiful country has some of the best wildlife concentrations in the world alongside some of the most friendly people. 28% of this country is protected in some form, whether it be a game reserve or national park. Some of the most prominent ones include the Serengeti Plains, Mt. Kilimanjaro and the beaches of Zanzibar which are rumored to be the best in the world (except for Maine). Mt. Kilimanjaro... that's probably the best name ever, and the name is rightfully deserved too. This mountain levels out at about 19,000 feet which is the highest mountain in Africa. It's situated in the northern part of Tanzania and is a a six day trek to the summit and back down that covers dense tropical forests, lush grasslands, rocky terrain and finally glaciers of snow and ice. We will be living near it but won't be able to do the whole climb, so we will climb Mt. Meru instead. The Serengeti Plains, these vast treeless grasslands, cover some 12,950 sq kilometers. The main attraction of this national park is the last of the great migrations, the annual 500 kilometer march of 1.5 million wildebeest across the Serengeti, then north to the Masai Mara in southern Kenya. There are many other national parks in Tanzania that are absolutely stunning. Although Tanzania's national parks are its main tourist attractions the people there are so friendly, and the food is so good, and baboons so greedy that Tanzania is truly an amazing place.

--Jacob