Beautiful scenery, and laptop problems!

Ruth turned on her laptop yesterday morning, and the screen was doing funny things. So she shut it down again and restarted it. Except this time, nothing happened. On closer inspection, you can hear the fan come on and off... but nothing happens on the screen. This laptop doesn't have an easily removable battery, other wise I would try taking out the battery and resetting things.

We have tried everything that we know how to do, but nothing changes. I'm afraid we won't be able to get it repaired until we make it to Europe. I'm sure there is somewhere in the big city of Dar es Salaam, but we weren't planning on being there until the end of our Tanzania trip anyhow.

We only bought this laptop in July 2019 in Australia. And it wasn't exactly cheap at the time. So to only get just over a year and a half out of it is frustrating to say the least.

With each of us having a laptop, it seems that every two years we are replacing one of them! I bought mine in July 2017...  just over 3 1/2 years old now, so I'm getting nervous about how much longer it's going to last!

Late morning, we set out to do some more exploring. This time, we headed towards a popular local spot overlooking the plains called Irente Viewpoint.

We finally got a bird to pose for us!

Scenery along the way.

We passed through the Irente Biodiversity Reserve.

The name "Irente" is applied to a lot of things in this area. There is also an Irente Farmhouse where they supposedly do a nice lunch so we decided to go check it out.

These dirt roads and paths are everywhere.

Beekeeping.

The Irente Farm was originally a coffee plantation started by the Germans prior to World War l. It went through several different owners and managers and has been owned by the Luthern Evangelical Church of Tanzania since the 1960's. They have a school for the blind, a children's home, and of course a church. The Farm also includes a backpackers style lodge, a shop, and tourist restaurant.

We asked about lunch, but it was fairly pricey at between 12,000-15,000 shillings per person and it didn't include much in the way of gluten free items so we decided to pass.

Welcome board at Irente Farm.

We did go into the shop though, and decided to buy some cheese. The locals don't eat cheese, so there is very little of it available. We bought 500 grams (just over a pound) for 12,000 shillings ($6.50 CAD, $5.20 USD).

Then we made our way to the viewpoint. When we got there, they have a little booth set up and are charging a 2,000 shilling ($1.10 CAD, $0.87 USD) fee per person to go towards the local village. Okay.

There are some beautiful views, but it was a bit hazy.

Someone had built another lodge of some kind up there.

Zoomed in.

Me, at the viewpoint.

Behind me, it is straight down!

Taking a break.

There is another lodge of some kind on the next hill.

Behind the viewpoint is the Irente Cliff View Lodge.

We walked through the lodge to exit.

And then we took a different route back to the town of Lushoto.

There are a lot of people and organizations offering guided hikes in this area, but so far we don't see the point of hiring a guide. Plus, they want too much money, and of course in $USD. All of the routes are free, and most of them show up on my maps.me app on the phone anyhow so it's easy to follow them.

Local houses.

Like in Mexico, everybody grows some corn.

Another local property.

These weaver birds make their nests with an opening in the bottom.

Even these paths are marked on my maps.me app.

Scenery along the way.

This is a local school.

It was that time of day, and most school children were just being dismissed. A lot of them say "hello" or "hi" to us in English, while others use the local term "jambo". 

Despite the fact that this area is normally fairly busy with off the beaten path tourists, we stand out like a sore thumb. And to be honest, since we have been in this area, we have seen maybe 8 or 10 other white people. But, everybody is very friendly and welcoming.

We finally made our way back to the town of Lushoto and we headed directly to that same restaurant near the bus station where we got a cheap filling meal.

This is what you get when you go to a non-tourist restaurant.

2,000 shillings (($1.10 CAD, $0.87 USD) per plate.

Back at our house, I figured out that we had walked 12.5 kms (7.8 miles). It was still a beautiful day, so we got a beer and a glass of wine and sat outside in the garden.

Enjoying a late afternoon beer and wine.

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