The roads in Tanzania aren't exactly.....paved. Most of them, except for a few major highways, are just dirt roads that ramble across cornfields, pastures, hills, and valleys. We heard that the big reason the highway to the Ngorongoro crater was paved was because the Japanese came and paved it for the Emperor's visit to the crater!
The main road though town was paved, but the roads going to the small villages were red dirt.....
Even when paved, they drive on the WRONG side of the road (for the Americans, anyway!)....
These roads are for the land rovers, the jeeps, and four-wheel drives. And when it rains, they become very muddy. It takes a very experienced driver to swerve around pot-holes, forge through overflowing creeks, and blast through mud.
Each day was a riding experience, to say the least. We were usually 7 or 8 packed into a jeep, headed out to our various projects. Usually the weather cooperated and the roads were bumpy, but dry. There was one day, however, when we had a heavy downpour. We were on our way back to town when the jeep took a sharp curve in thick, muddy clay and started sliding sideways. Our wonderful driver got it stopped before totally tipping over and we all got out and waded through the deep mud. We had visions of having to walk the three miles back to town, but with confidence and expertise, Boniface gunned the gas pedal and managed to get us out!
But our adventure wasn't quite over. The drive back to town was interesting to say the least!
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