This morning we depart after breakfast, we leave the city of Arusha behind and head South.

The road is paved and in perfect condition; there is no traffic, just a few safaris off-road, a couple of trucks and motorbikes, but they do not go far out of town.

There are also the inevitable local minibuses, that here in Tanzania are called Dala Dala; they are all different, each with its own particular style, some are decorated with the names of the English football teams and the pictures of the players, others are dedicated to some movies, such as "Fast and furious", others still, maybe those more curious, have sacred Christian images and verses of the Gospel, or, if the owner is Muslim, they have phrases that praise Allah.

They are one of the most used means by the local population, along with the motorcycles, and they have a slightly too "sporty" driving, sometimes drivers do not even have a license; they usually charge as many people as possible, to make more money, and luggage and goods are placed on the roof, so it is quite common to see minibuses that have gigantic parcels, boxes, chickens, bicycles and other items on their roofs.

On our right is Mount Meru, but, as it often happens, its peak is hidden by clouds.

As soon as we leave the city we meet only a few villages and, after a few dozen kilometers, we enter the lands of the Masai; it is immediately understood by the presence of herds of cows and goats grazing, by the Masai children who guard them and by the roadside donkeys.

Here and there are some traditional Masai villages, with mud huts and thatched roofs; some villages have more modern buildings, our guide, Safe, explains that they belong to those Masai who have agreed to join the governmental development program, that involves building schools for children and a program to help them make better use of local resources, such as their livestock.

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The road is panoramic, around us we see only villages and acacias, here and there cows or goats, that browse or drink in a stream, that was formed with the last rains; the landscape at this time of the year is very green and the vegetation is lush, it is truly spectacular.

When we arrive at the detour for the Tarangire National Park we see so many people on the roadside, there is a Masai market; here it is held once a week, how lucky to have passed through here today!

We park and go down for a ride, they tell us that it is better not to take pictures because some may get annoyed, but if we take photos from afar there are no problems; so we leave our cameras in the car and take only our smartphones with us.

They sell a bit of everything: vegetables, fruit, clothing, Masai sandals, made with the tires of cars and bicycles, necklaces and other accessories with which the Masai women decorate themselves, both everyday and on special occasions, technology objects, that in our eyes are obsolete, and many other things.

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At the end of the market is the area where they cook: they use large metal cans inside which there is wood, on top they place a large grill on which they cook the goat meat; the scent smells good and someone invites us to taste their cuisine, but we prefer to decline the invitation.

The funny thing is that we watch them intrigued and they look at us with the same curiosity; when we meet the looks, most of them say hello or smile, it's fun and pleasant as a sensation.

We return to our car and leave again, following the signs for the Tarangire National Park.

The dirt road ventures between the Masai villages and the acacias and, shortly after, we begin to see some baobabs; these gigantic trees are spectacular, especially in this season, since they have leaves, while during the dry season they are bare.

We meet some Masai boys dressed entirely in black, with their faces painted with white geometric drawings, they are very beautiful to look at; we are told that it is the boys who have recently performed the ritual of circumcision.

We stop to take some photographs for which they want to be paid; we contract a bit and then click, they're very beautiful, we've never seen them before.

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We continue along our path and at some point we arrive at a bar, it is not the entrance to the Tarangire National Park, but a buffer zone where there are some Masai villages and wild animals that leave the park; you pay to enter this area and the proceeds are used to compensate those who are damaged by the presence of wild animals, such as the loss of a head of cattle, as killed and eaten by a predator.

We continue along the dirt road, the only one, and we notice that in several places it is damaged, probably the last rains have been abundant and have ruined it.

Shortly after we arrive at the Roika Tented Camp Lodge, for two nights we will stay here, it will be our base to visit the Tarangire National Park.

The Roika Tented Camp Lodge is a very nice camp, the common areas are wooden and the rooms are tents positioned above a wooden raised structure, inside they are spacious and well furnished; one of the funniest things is the bathtub that has the shape of a huge pelican.

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