Kilimanjaro Equipment - My Take

One of the hardest parts about hiking Kili was getting properly equipped!
Here's what I brought, and some commentary about it:
(RED are thing I bought specifically for this trip)

Tops:

• 3 dry-fit t-shirts (Nike and Under Armour) - already had these, probably could have done with just 2, but it was nice to have one that I used only for hanging at camp!
• 2 dry-fit long sleeve shirts (Nike) - might have been better to bring 3 of these instead of the short sleeved ones, but two was enough.
• 1 mid-weight wool shirt (Smartwool NTS 250) - only used on summit night and it was great!
• 1 thin half-zip (Under Armour) - got this from coaching a team, it was perfect.
• 1 fleece half-zip (Nike) - had this from running at USU
• 1 waterproof shell (Salomon Minim?) - bought this in Dubai a year ago, not sure the model.
• 1 ski jacket (Powderhorn ) - synthetic ski jacket, waterproof; decided not to buy down and just layer up - was toasty warm.
• 4 sports bras (2 single layer, 2 double layer) - nothing fancy just a few I had lying around.

Bottoms:

• 1 pair long silk underwear - used once for the hike to base camp.
• 1 pair running tights (Nike) - very nice for hanging around camp most days, and one of 4 layers for summit night.
• 1 pair mid-weight wool tights (Smartwool NTS 250) - used only for summit night, nice and cozy.
• 2 pairs convertible hiking pants (thin - North Face, thick - Mountain Hardwear) - I only used the thin on the first and last days, the thicker pair I used all the other days.
• 1 pair waterproof rain pants (Marmot Precip) - only used for summit night, but kept on me in case of showers.
• 5 pairs thin underwear (Calvin Klein) - who needs fancy hiking panties?!

Feet:

• Hiking shoes (La Sportiva Primer Low GTX) - I don't like hiking boots, these were amazing except for summit night when my feet got too cold... but where I live cooler shoes will be better to have!
• 3 pair wool socks (Smartwool Hike Medium) - AMAZING. 
• 1 pair thick wool socks (Smartwool Trekking) - great, but needed another layer for summit night. Toes got cold quickly.
• 2 pairs sock liners (Fox River) - should have brought 3, they got pretty nasty by the end.

Head/Neck

• Knit neck buff (Buff) - one of my favorites, used this for many things, and loved it.
• Wool neck buff (Smartwool) - used only for summit night, worth it.
• Wool headband (Smartwool) - used a few nights, but mostly just used the knit buff!
• Fleece lined beanie - didn't use.
• Bulky-weight wool knit hat (I made it myself!) - used for summit night.
• Thin cap with removable cape (Outdoor Research Radar Sun Runner) - used without the cape most days to keep the sun off and keep the hair out of sight!

Hands:

• Thin gloves (Pearl Izumi Shine Wind Mitt Glove - mine are an earlier model) - perfect for all of the cooler days.
• Heavy mitts (Pow Tallac) - did a good job on summit night, used the thinner gloves inside and was warm nearly to the top, and used warmers at the end.

Hiking Stuff:

• Gaiters (Outdoor Research Verglas) - great for dust and occasional mud.
• Poles (Cascade Mountain Tech Carbon - Costo $30) - used for summit night and some descending.

Nighttime Stuff:

• Synthetic sleeping bag (Marmot Trestles 0) - Toasty, but bulky.
• Fleece bag liner (Bigfoot Outdoor) - Used only as a pillow.
• Headlamp (Black Diamond Spot) - Too bright! Will be good for other things, but Kili it was overkill.
• Pee bottle (Compressible) - The top was nice for peeing into, but emptying it was gross as not all would come out of the ridges; I threw it away after.

Assorted:

• 5 sets hand warmers (Grabbers - 10 total) - too many (2 pair was enough)
• 7 energy bars (Hammer bars)  - too many (3 was enough)
• 21 energy gels (Hammer gels) - too many (5 was enough)
• 1 tub energy drink mix (Gatorade powder) - too much (1/2 the tub maybe?)
• 14 tabs electrolyte drink mix (Hammer Fizz) - too much (7 was enough)
• 7 servings recovery drink powder (Hammer Recoverite) - AMAZING.
• 3 small towels (Heavy Duty Handi Wipes) - super cheap, light, absorbent and quick drying. Best camp towels, hands down.
• 50 water purification tabs - didn't use.
• Candy (m&ms, mentos, gummies) - didn't use.

General toiletries:

• Hand Sanitizer - very yes.
• Face wipes - nice for getting a bit deeper clean on the face and neck, but don't bring many. The porters will bring you warm water twice a day for washing!
• Nail clippers/file - bring these! It was so nice to be able to clean under my nails and trim back the chipped bits in the afternoons. 
• Q-tips - very nice for dusty ears!
• Floss/toothpicks - just a few came in handy after popcorn during tea every day.
• Sunscreen - I used about two thirds of my 2oz bottle of SPF 50 - it also came in handy as lotion for dry elbows and heels!
• Bug spray/anti-itch cream - didn't use either of them; you only spend a few hours in warm weather, the bugs aren't there where it is colder!
• Toothbrush/paste - of course.
• Eye drops - I wear contacts and these were great for the dry cold days at higher altitudes!
• Extra contacts - didn't use, but good to have just in case! I'd rather see.

Bags:

• Porter duffel (North Face Base Camp L) - nearly too big, but my sleeping bag was bulky so it was fine.
• Day pack (Source Race Pack 3L/15L) - nearly too small, but my cook carried lunches on the days we packed them with us, so it wasn't a problem. It's my mountain biking bag and I didn't really want to buy another pack. Many people had larger, but I was happy with the relatively small size I had.
• Day pack cover (North Face X-Small) - didn't use as it didn't rain at all on me, lucky!
• Separating bags (Ziploc Slider Gallon) - fantastic for separating things!

Overall I was really happy with what I brought, and didn't find that anything was problematic. If anything, what I brought was overkill. I lucked out that it didn't rain at all while hiking (and only once total - the last night), so I am unsure how good/bad the waterproof-ness of some items would have been.

Favorite things I brought:

• Hammer Recoverite - I wasn't very sore until the night after summit day! I'd chug one after each day's hiking (it tastes terrible, imo), and in the morning my legs would be good as new. Huge fan of these!
• Pearl Izumi Shine Gloves - I used these on all the cool days, even on summit day! Nice to have the convertible wind mitt, and the thickness was perfect for all of the 3500+ meter days.
• Neck Buff - I used this for everything! It was good for neck/ear sun protection, neck warmth, wind protection, hair coverage, a headband, a thin hat, liner for the wool one, a dust mask, it's magic. I almost wish I'd brought two, as it was pretty stinky by the end.
• Thin half-zip - I wore this every day once we were above 3000 meters. It was just the right amount of warmth on top of a t-shirt or long sleeve as we were hiking. The hike to base camp I used the shell on top sometimes, but this was a great item that I threw in the bag last-minute!
• Marmot Trestles 0 - It was big, bulky and toasty warm. I wore nothing but underwear every night except the 3-5 hours at base camp where I wore tights, long sleeves and the half-zip. If you want a bag to fit in a smaller pack, this isn't for you at 5 pounds and a fairly large stuff size, but it did the job for me!
• Handi Wipes - Lightweight, and great to have 3 for less $ and less lbs than a fancy backpacking towel. I will use these for camping from now on!
• Baggies! - The sliding zip bags I used to sort everything in my bag were fantastic. Dry bags could have worked but the box of gallon bags was MUCH cheaper and perfectly transparent! Super easy to see what's inside, easy to sort, and easy to keep things separate. Again, no rain, so I don't know how great they are against a lot of wet, but they were a great plan.

Things I didn't need to bring:

• Water purification tabs - just make sure you book with a good company and you'll be set with clean water every day.
• SheWee - I used this once and it was not really helpful! Most of the time you're squatting over a hole, and if not that, it was just as easy to pull down quickly and take care of business squatting behind a rock or bush.
• Fleece liner (kinda) - I used this as a pillow and it was great! But it wasn't necessary as what it was, I was warm enough in my 0 degree sleeping bag, and I could have used clothes as a pillow just as well.
• Too many snacks/energy gels - I brought 1 energy bar per day, and 3 gels per day. Overkill! I used 4 gels total, and 2 bars. The company provides a lot of food and the guide strongly encourages you to eat more than you want to!
• Too many hand warmers - I used 2 sets on summit night and that was it.
• Extra hat - I originally layered them for summit night, but it was too much on my head.
• Candy - People recommend to bring things you like to eat for the nauseous days. I didn't want to eat candy when I was sick!

Things I wish I'd brought:

• Zovirax (cold sore pills) - I get cold sores maybe once a year, when my body is under a lot of stress. If you're like me, then bring some meds for summit night and beyond, when your body can't cope and a cold sore starts coming through!
• More books! - I finished 2 full books on the mountain, partially because I was the only one in my group. So if you're going alone, bring lots of books.

Kilimanjaro Travelog

7 Aug: Transit Dubai to Moshi, Tanzania

My flight to from Dubai to Nairobi got upgraded to business class, so I got lots of mimosas and extra space! Didn't get as much sleep as I thought I would, I was busy taking advantage of all the extra fancy stuff.

Survived 5.5 hours layover in the Nairobi airport and was finally on the way to the Kilimanjaro Airport. Napped through 25-ish minutes, and woke up to my first view of the mountain out the window! "Currently at a cruising altitude of 17,000 feet" said the pilot. About 2000 less feet than I'll be in a week's time!

Drove to Moshi and checked into my hotel, then met some of my crew as we did a briefing with my guide. It turns out it'll just be me with the guide, porters and cook. The couple that was going to be with me decided to start their trek a day earlier. Potentially a bit lonely without any other trekkers, but cool to have an entourage waiting entirely on me! My guide, Baraka, sounded a bit unsure about the 7 day Lemosho during the briefing (he usually does 8), so I'm feeling a bit nervous, but hopefully he'll be in his groove tomorrow. He assured me that we'll make it to Uhuru Peak!

DAY 1

8 Aug: Lemosho Gate to Mti Mkubwa (3 km, +550m)

After an intermittent night's sleep, I got showered, prepped and had some beans and potatoes for breakfast. Feeling sleepy, a little sick (a head cold is trying to get me down), but very excited!

A long and smelly car ride to the starting gate was interrupted by the crossing of a huge herd of zebra and one giraffe! Who needs a safari when you see that stuff just driving to Kilimanjaro?!

Got permits, met a few other trekkers and did a lot of waiting for kit to be arranged and weighed. Finally drove up to our trail head, ate an interesting (old fries and a soggy burger with coleslaw?) packed lunch, complete with a green orange, and got this thing started!

After a short time hiking, we were already finished for the day! Maybe 1 hour of hiking (3 km) and already to Big Tree Camp for the night (2650 m). I was the first of the “tourists” to arrive! I have an entourage of 8 people - my guide who hikes with me, then also 6 porters and a cook carrying food, tents, my big pack, and all the equipment. We arrived just before 3, and I had a good chat to Baraka the whole way. He has been a guide for 5 years and does this trek about once per month. He says many guides do 3 or 4 per month! It felt odd to sit back and relax at camp whole my crew set up and did all the work. They also brought me tea, coffee and popcorn to eat as I relaxed. I guess that's why I pay the big bucks for it - this is the fanciest camping!

As the sun set, I got quite chilly, which made me a bit apprehensive for tomorrow's camp at 3850 m. Baraka and I had dinner served to us on a makeshift bench/table (we'll have our real one tomorrow, it accidentally got taken by yesterday's group to the next camp). Dinner was cucumber soup with bread, then fried potatoes and fish with some vegetables stewed and some pickled. We finished with an avocado and another green orange, before finishing with tea again. Three course meal on a mountain!

I fell asleep early (7:30, jet lag) and woke up at 11, 2:30, and 4. Once I was in sleep mode (11 and beyond), I slept in only a t-shirt and unders in my sleeping bag. The fleece liner made a good pillow and I became a huge fan of my pee bottle.

DAY 2

9 Aug: Mti Mkubwa to Shira I to Shira II (17 km, +1250 m)

Woke up at 5:45 with sounds of cooks and porters getting started on breakfast. Elia, my “waiter,” brought me coffee in bed at 6:15. Amazing! At 6:30, he brought a bowl of warm water to wash - such service! Breakfast was millet porridge, omelet-ish eggs, vegetables with sausage spears, little fried doughnut type things and more fruits.

It was a slightly chilly morning to start, heading into a long day. Baraka kept telling me that I am strong because I was a bit faster than most tourists, but after Shira I (7 km up to 3610 m), I was already getting tired! The hike to Shira I had many long steep sections, but the first real vistas and many wildflowers so I enjoyed it. About 2 km from Shira I, we got our first view of Uhuru Peak from the trail!

After FINALLY arriving at Shira II (3850 m), I now appreciate even more my crew who did all the work while I sat in a bit of a daze after 7.5-8 hours of hiking. Should have used gaiters as my legs were fairly covered in dust, but a wet rag did the trick. After how long the time on the trail today felt, I am feeling nervous for summit day. Feet, back, calves and hamstrings are sore, face feels a bit windburned and I am exhausted tonight. Stomach is starting to get a little uncomfortable, hopefully doesn't get any worse. Please please please let me acclimatize much more than today before the 13th! In any case, I should sleep like a log.

Well, the stomach did get worse after tea and popcorn break. I felt shaky, cold, and very upset stomach at about 5pm, and hated the altitude in all its rudeness to my body. For a while, I tried to read, but I took a nap for 30 minutes instead and felt a bit better. I ate mainly soup for dinner, used one of the infamous shit shacks, and got ready for bed. It's feeling freezing outside! (Bedclothes are t-shirt, half-zip, running tights, socks and beanie. Liner pillow again.)

Too warm! I ended up in a t-shirt, socks and my buff on my head. Also, I was grumpy about my pee bottle, because I missed a bit and had to clean some off my sleeping bag. Gross.

DAY 3

10 Aug: Shira II to Lava Tower to Barranco (10 km, +700 m and -700 m)

Rise and shine! All night I felt like I had a super sore throat, partially because the air was so dry. Today, we're going to Lava Tower (4600 m) for acclimatization purposes first, then back down to about the same elevation as last night - Barranco Camp. I'm feeling a bit stiff/sore from yesterday so I think today will be a challenge. The stomach is still a little iffy and the eyes are feeling super dry, but hopefully the night up here helped and I will feel better on today's hike.

All set in Barranco Camp by 2:30 today! From my tent is a spectacular view of Kibo Peak and it's quite warm in my tent this afternoon… I've got a pretty rough life.

On the hike today, the wind was again very cold, but thankfully the sunny weather continued. I was much more careful about the sun today after realizing how sunburned I got yesterday (forgot about sunscreen until nearly 11). Dweeb mode was in full effect, with my buff over the back of my head/ears and down my neck, with a cap and cape over that. Combined with my thin half zip, all that was exposed was nose to chin with liberal amounts of sunscreen applied. Boot gaiters helped with the dust, which caked my legs up to my knees yesterday (even with long pants). Today with gaiters, I only had a tiny bit of dust on my upper heel.

The trail to Lava Tower today was up and down and up and up, and was shorter than I expected after yesterday's ordeal! However, it was still hard work even with slow slow hiking because of the 4000+ m elevation. There we had lunch, and soon began the descent into Barranco valley. Fairly steep down and with the help of one hiking pole I only slipped once! This downhill section took approximately twelve years and reminded me why mountain biking is superior to hiking. Also I got a preview of the first portion of tomorrow's hike: an intimidating climb out of the valley, which includes the infamous Barranco wall. (Not good for those with fear of heights, they say. Kiss the rock, hug the rock.)

Also met a friendly South African who is doing the same route in 8 days, sounds like he's doing well. After yesterday's nausea and a persistent headache I've had since I got to Lava Tower today, I'm wishing I'd done the same!

At about 5:30, I started to feel like I did yesterday afternoon. Awful! For dinner, I had the soup and some rice, but I felt terrible and went to bed right after. Felt like I was going to puke for a while, but focused on deep breathing and finally fell asleep.

DAY 4

11 Aug: Barranco to Karanga (6 km, +95 m)

A lot of good sleep last night, but still feeling a bit sick with a small headache and slight nausea this morning. Elia brought ginger tea for me instead of the usual coffee/tea to help with the stomach. I am annoyed at my body, but also at myself that I didn't get any Diamox or anti-nausea pills before I left. I have a feeling I may need it for the last day. Might need to make friends with other groups or something.

I didn't eat much breakfast, so I dumped a lot of Gatorade mix in my water bottle to get some extra calories that way. Here goes!

We made it to Karanga camp (3995 m) before noon today after a fairly grueling 6 kilometers. Up the wall was good fun, with a couple sections of scrambling up the rock face. Also enjoyed many little breathers while waiting for the groups ahead on bottleneck areas. Stopped for a snack at the top (4600 m) before continuing the hike to camp. We then went down a while, then back up to a lower level than before, which I thought was the last climb of the day before descending into camp. Psych! Down down down we went, into a steep valley, with a view of the real final climb to camp. After that steep descent and steeper ascent, I made it to camp feeling tired, but pretty good. I am very glad that I'm not continuing to Barafu camp today, as the 6 day group does.

Much of today's hiking was in the clouds, which made for a slightly damp and chilly day, especially in the windy sections. Karanga camp is also among the clouds, so no luxury of a warm afternoon in the tent. After I'd changed out of today's hiking clothes, I bundled up in my sleeping bag and had a tiny nap before lunch. My stomach felt better during lunch, so I had a heaping helping of popcorn, potatoes and some soup. Gotta eat up while the belly is cooperating!

It's odd to me, that I’ve been feeling good while hiking, but I've felt worst during the afternoon rest time. Fingers crossed that today will be different, especially as I'm now less than 36 hours from the start of my summit attempt! We'll hike to Barafu camp (4700 m) tomorrow morning, and relax and nap and eat and sleep until about midnight when we'll begin our journey up to Stella Point (5756 m), then across to Uhuru Peak (5895 m). Eeeeek! I'm excited and slightly terrified.

I decided to stop drinking coffee and tea, to help with the stomach. I usually only drink it on workdays, and then only one cup of coffee and rarely one of tea. Hopefully, taking out the excess caffeine will help.

Spent a lot of time reading this afternoon and evening, then ate a full dinner, and went to bed later than usual - about 9:30. Feeling better than yesterday, though muscles are getting a little stiff. Recoverite is a magical drink though, and I'm sure the muscles will be fine tomorrow.

DAY 5

12 Aug: Karanga to Barafu (4 km, +700 m)

Slept well until 2:30, but had a bit of restless night after that. Even so, I'm happy to not be feeling awful like before, even though I am not quite 100% with a small headache and decreased appetite. We had a late start today, with breakfast at 8, we're in no hurry as we only have a short hike to Barafu (base camp).

It was another somewhat steep day, and surely there will be another to follow. It definitely felt like a very long 4km, especially with another steep climb up to camp. My head is a bit achy, but I am hoping to feel better with some deep breathing and perhaps a nap.

After popcorn snack and lunch, I began feeling a bit sick again, as I have come to expect due to the altitude - now up to 15,200 feet! I took a nap and felt a bit better, then read more and (unfortunately) finished my book. With quick shifts from cold and breezy to very warm in my tent, it has not quite been how I expected this camp to be - at least it has been more comfortable!

As it will be dark when I begin my summit attempt, I went out to take a few pictures of the first climb toward the summit. It looks tough, and it is less than one of the 5 km it will be to the summit. The estimated time to reach it from here is 7 hours, so I hope to be at Uhuru Peak by 7 AM if we leave as planned. With the camp being intermittently engulfed in clouds, I waited for a while to get a decent shot. As I waited, I observed a few hikers finishing their summit attempt (most likely they began in the morning, not at night). One gave me a tired thumbs up, another was heavily supported by his guide on one side and his summit porter on the other. Tomorrow, I plan to be more like the first than the second. 6 hours until go time, I'm trying to exude confidence!

DAY 6

13 Aug: Barafu to Uhuru Peak to Mweka Camp (17.5 km, +1200 m, -2800 m)

What a rollercoaster of emotions I've had today! Hiking the from Barafu camp to Uhuru Peak was incredible, miserable, beautiful, exhausting, exhilarating and mind-numbing.

Last minute, I decided to use both trekking poles for the summit attempt. It was the best decision! They were heavily leaned on and made my 6 hour 15 minute ascent possible. We began the ascent with a fairly steep and rocky climb up to the higher portion of camp, then continued across a small plateau to begin climbing again. Never before have I underestimated a situation more than I did that second section of climbing. It lasted forever, and as the air got thinner, the trail got steeper. By the end, I was taking one step per breath, and after about 5 steps would pause for a few seconds to catch my breath more fully. After 5-10 minutes, I'd stop and lean/sit on a rock to try and calm my breath and pulse. My heart was racing the whole way, and no number of stops really helped. I knew I should drink water but my stomach said otherwise.

As we began the climb, I was a bit too warm. I had 5 layers on top and 4 on bottom, with doubled up gloves and head-wear; it felt like overkill. Within the first kilometer, my toes started to go numb. I'd gotten thick socks but I should have used more than 2 layers there! We stopped soon after, and as my hands were in very cozy (read no-dexterity) mittens, Jiwe (my personal porter) and Baraka proceeded to take off my gaiters, shoes and stuff my hand warmers unto my socks, then redid the whole getup. By the time it was about 4 AM, I was a bit chilly and those cozy gloves were failing me. Stopped again for Baraka and Jiwe to put hand warmers between layers in there too. With my level of exhaustion, I'm beyond grateful they were willing, because otherwise I probably wouldn't have bothered, and been much more miserable. Baraka took my pack at some point, not sure when, but thank goodness I had him and Jiwe to carry everything. By the time we reached summit, right before dawn, I was glad for every single layer!

The feeling at the moment I reached Stella Point (5756 m,the end of the heaviest climbing) can only be described as pure joy! As it was still dark, I really couldn't tell how close it was for the previous two hours, and upon seeing the sign, I may have done some (wheezy) whooping and hollering. Unfortunately, I still had the final 139 m of climbing to do over the next 700 m to finally reach Africa's highest point. Pole pole, slowly slowly, we finally made it to the famous sign for Uhuru Peak at 6:15 AM! Took photos, of course, and made a quick retreat down to safer levels of oxygen. With jello legs and still minimal oxygen, the descent was less fun than it could have been - it had lots of scree sliding down that steepest section. I couldn't help but grin throughout the hike down, though: I made it to the top of Kilimanjaro! With all my whining about not having Diamox, now that I've had my successful summit, it definitely tastes sweeter having done it without medication!

Random amazing moment: A group of day summit guys came past as I was finishing my descent. They were blasting the Lord of the Rings soundtrack, and it was so epic!

Now we're back at camp for a couple hours (made it down at about 8:40) before we hike the 7.5 km down to Mweka camp. My legs are not excited about this.

The first half of the hike down wasn't as bad as I was expecting, but once we were past High Camp, it was rocky going with big steps down. Not great for the tired legs! We made it to camp at 2:30 and I managed to stay awake until after dinner, when I promptly fell asleep.

DAY 7

14 Aug: Mweka Camp to Mweka Gate (10 km, -1430 m)

I woke up very rested, thank goodness I slept very soundly all night! My legs are sore, but that is to be expected after the long and hard hiking of yesterday. I'm anxious for the tip-giving "ceremony" as I don't have as much as I could for a single traveler, as I was supposed to have a group of 3 tourists. My crew will be disappointed.

We ate breakfast, then the crew together sang me the Kilimanjaro song. They have been very good and I told them about why I didn't have more for them, then announced the tip amounts. They didn't seem that disappointed, so I don't think I did that bad! Baraka translated and explained the situation and they were all very understanding. I thanked them for how well they did for me, and then Baraka and I hit the trail for the last time. Bittersweet, as it has been an amazing week on the mountain with luxurious camping and beautiful scenery, but I am ready for a shower and a real bed!

The final hike down was full of beautiful forest scenery and many photos of flowers. I felt quite good, so we made good time to the gate. After some confusion about the van, and a bit of a wait, it was time for another smelly van ride - hopefully shorter than last time!

Back at the hotel, I showered, caught up with the online world, and had lunch. How random that the South African and his group are staying at this hotel too! We caught up a bit about how our treks finished, he did his summit from 11 until 5:40 AM so they were the first to reach the summit! Also, I met a couple of German gals who I spent much of the afternoon and evening with. We chatted, relaxed, and enjoyed the champagne that my tour operator brought with my Kilimanjaro summit certificate. We went into town for dinner and experienced the local “best restaurant,” an all right Indian restaurant with very yummy dessert naan.

We made it back to the hotel by 8:30 and joined in the revelry of the South African and his friends. They were all drunker than I was, but it was all good fun with made-up card games and friendly banter. At about 10:30 we got politely asked to leave the common area so people could sleep, oops! It was raining so the group of us continued the celebration until about 1 in my room. Fun guys, fun gals, and a great celebration day.

Thinking of hiking Kilimanjaro?! Check out my equipment overview!

I got this!

Those white baggies are camel diapers.

After a tumultuous couple months, I am finally feeling like I can handle this!

I'm getting used to the new (and often strange) protocols at work. I am getting a feel for the area and where to go for different things. I'm starting to make more than just work friends! I am far from an expert expat, but I'm realizing why people end up staying here longer than they had planned. :)

Movember

Thank goodness for family and the internet! For the last few weeks, I got hit hard with homesickness for fall, spontaneous hangouts with my siblings, my Joey Doofus Pants, the mountains and for a network of friends up for anything. Skating and running helps. Video chats with family and friends are amazing! Comfort food helps. I still miss lots of the easy Utah things, but I am finding the positives of this place and looking forward to ALL THE VISITORS!

This weekend was one of the first times I felt like I used to back in the US. I had a few fun plans with friends, but was still able to get errands and chores done - the perfect balance! Fun things of this week/weekend included:

• Beach volleyball with crazy French friends
• Meeting some camels on that beach
• Getting the gripes out with Claire at the Belgian Beer Cafe
• Eating some good Mexican food (finally found some!)
• Meeting fun friends of friends 
• Experiencing an Arab nightclub for the first time (Wow, just wow.)
• Running the most ridiculous and awful 5k ever (the Electric Run)
• More Mexican food! And beverages. 
• Hosting one of the CaiRollers (Rahma!)
• Feeling like I could actually tell her good places to go for touristy things
• Discovering German Döner can be found in Dubai



The worst 5k ever

• Temperatures are getting freaking fantastic!

Less fun things of this weekend: 

• Grading "marking" tests
• Unit planning 
• Laundry and housework
• Writing 80 different "narratives" about students
• Pathetic soreness from a 5k

In other news, I'm realizing that I need to plan my Winter Break! Where to visit?! I'm thinking Sri Lanka, Thailand or South Africa. I don't think I can go wrong. :)

Autodrome!

Short post!

Tonight was TrainDubai night at the Dubai Autodrome, where cyclists and runners and (a very few) skaters are able to ride/run/skate on the race track! I skated lots and lots. It killed me dead, but I liked it! I might have to make this my Wednesday night thing. :D

Also, sorry about my face. I skated like 10 miles, then I took the picture. Bad planning.

Dubai Mall

I've checked another thing off my list of places to go/things to see in Dubai - the biggest mall in the world - Dubai Mall!

Legitimately, I went there because of the bookstore. Some math peeps I've met mentioned that it had quite a fantastic section of mathematical reading and I have been planning to go since.

There were HUNDREDS of math books. YAAAAAS

The name of this place is Book World by Kinokuniya and it has over 2 million books in at least 6 different languages. I had way too much fun looking through math-y and physics-y books, and ended up purchasing about $175 worth of books and colored pens/pencils. So excited!!!!

After spending my budget for the whole mall trip in one go, I just spent the rest of the time wandering about and seeing the grandiose nature of the place! With an aquarium, ice-skating rink, cinema, waterfalls and three floors of stores, half of which I've never seen before (even here in Dubai!), this place was waaaay over the top!!

I didn't even go down to the main level, and I didn't do much shopping besides the bookstore (because it couldn't get better than that place!). Here are some pictures of the ridiculously extravagant Dubai Mall! (Also, the number of insanely expensive designer stores here is crazy. CRAZY!)

Yay for being a resident tourist!! :D

The Low Life and the High Life!

Just like PTCs, I'm starting good, putting the bad stuff in the middle, then ending with good again! Life here (like anywhere) is not perfect. I like to post the positives, because that's where I focus. But I think it is good to represent life as it is: high and lows all mixed up with some insanity and topped with your attitude toward things.

Some Highs:
As I posted on Facebook, tutoring here is fantastic. Rates are great! I'm charging ~$60 per hour for one student, and I'm charging ~$100/hour for two students at a time! In addition, the families that hire tutors are so well off that they have maids and drivers and all sorts of great amenities to help make my life lovely. I got an amazing dinner last night before I tutored my 2 students, and their driver picks me up and drops me off every time I tutor. It is fantastic!! I am excited to get more tutoring gigs - I can easily make more than enough to pay for my car each month and my utilities. Then my salary can go to PLAY! ...and a retirement fund....

Speaking of that retirement fund, I've got a financial planner here who is setting up an off-shore account that I'm putting in my maximum contribution toward a Roth IRA each month. Because the UAE has no income taxes, and I make <$100,000 per year, I won't have to pay ANY taxes on this saved money. How awesome is this?!??! I've never been so excited to save money before!

Some Lows:
My school, it seems, is the private school dumping ground of low-achieving, poorly-behaved, and special-needs students. Not all students are in those categories, but many are in at least one. There are hundreds of private schools in Dubai, and this school will take any student, no matter their issues. This is not the case with any other private school here, and thus, we end up with the dregs of Dubai's rich population. When I took the job, it definitely wasn't with this knowledge! But, I am going to work hard and do my best for these years to help as many kids as I can achieve as much as they are able. Unfortunately, this makes for a LOT more work than I've ever done teaching: not only am I making extra projects and extensions for my high-achieving students, I'm making individualized remedial tasks for my low students. And all this for three different preps. Yeeesh.

Derby here is tiny! I started skating with Dubai last month, but they skate on a floor that is impossible to play derby on: it is a cushioned laminate or vinyl-type floor. This would be awesome for most sports, but you can't even coast on this floor! It is really sad, since I was hoping to skate with them. But on this floor, most stops don't take any strength since the floor stops you automatically after a few feet! Abu Dhabi's league is skating outdoor on a concrete lot, which is much better for skating, except that it is still in the upper 90's with humidity most nights! I'm going to skate with them, though, until Dubai meets in a space with a floor conducive to skating.

More Highs!
I'm getting a car!!! Well, first I'm renting for a few months, because driving here is INSANE. But then, I'm gonna buy one! This rental is going down this weekend and I am stoked to be a mobile person who doesn't have to rely on cabs/buses/trains all the time. I will still use those things on weekends (for when play-time happens), but having a car for errands and school and all that will be amazing. So excited!!

My coworkers are fantastic humans. Always willing to lend a hand (or a listening ear to my b*tch-fests, sometimes), and so fun to hang out with! It makes the previous low a much easier thing to handle when you have such good support and helpful colleagues. Christine Cress, you'd be happy to hear that we can call our monthly Happy Hour by its real name, and that the ADMIN all come to this get together! (I do miss our times at Tin Roof/Guadalahonky's though.) Hilarious and awesome times are had by all!

I have my first visitor coming in about 2 months!! Wolfgang has booked his flight and is coming to see me for some Dubai life, scuba diving and then he's off for some more exciting places! I'm excited to share some of this crazy place with him and with all the other people that schedule trips to visit. (ALL OF YOU!!!)

My derby peeps are (unsurprisingly) awesome human beings. As with most derby peeps, there is insanity in some way with everyone. And the leagues have that same spark of fun, camaraderie and irreverence that I fell in love with at WRD and I'm definitely excited to skate with them. YAY DERBY!

Running here is... interesting. The low elevation is awesome; the flatness is nice. The humidity is awful and so is the heat. The fact that I'm super out-of-shape is depressing. But! There are a lot of my coworkers that run in the Fall/Winter/Spring and I'm excited to get together for a 5k with them in November! :D Gonna work on the endurance.

Bonus: Mayo-Chup could be like the fry-sauce of this place. LOL

tl:dr - Ruth Pants is crazy and busy and figuring out life as a real big kid. Also, tutoring and visitors and cars and derby and work humans are great things. 

A month already!!

Today is my one month Dubai-versary!!

Life here is becoming the new normal, with daily surprises of both the good and bad kinds:

The floors have the wrong names. First floor is called ground. Second is first, etc. Confusing!

I went to the mall (basically I go there for everything) to get some errands done, one of which was to refill birth control. In an ultra-conservative place like this, I was expecting it to be a hassle. Walked into a pharmacy, asked how I can get birth control and they showed me the SHELF in the store where it was kept. WAT. Picked up a 3-month supply and paid a total of $23 for it. This is awesome!!

Ordered some Mexican food. It was not great. :'( I miss good Mexican food.

School is slight insanity. I've now helped write the curriculum for 9-10 grade science and 9-10 grade math. These were "finished," approximately 2.5 weeks after school started. Definitely made for some stressful lesson planning, not knowing where I was supposed to be teaching for the year! New things get thrown at us a few times a day, and most of the time I figure it out in time. Some kids are great, some kids are little buttfaces, and I've got a new math "Auntie" to help me along when I need it.

I searched out and found ingredients for homemade Mexican food, and made some burritos and homemade salsa and it tasted almost like home. My stir-fry of last week was pretty spot-on, though. And the cucumbers here are little and yummy!

Still no car. Walking to the mall for errands or waiting in the heat for a cab is getting very sweaty and icky. Once my visa is all done, I can get a license and I can lease a car! Want that to happen.

Dating in Dubai is the worst. I have decided to not to. Just going out and goofing around and hating boys. It's gonna be great!

Went to skate with Dubai Roller Derby on Monday night! It was fun to be with derby girls again. Including me, there were 8 of us! They use different words for things than I am used to, so I felt a little like an newbie, just because I didn't know what they were talking about half the time. Also, the floor they skate on is awful. AWFUL. Squishy and sticky and you can come to a stop by just "coasting" for a few seconds.  But! I met a girl at work that has skated with Abu Dhabi's league and apparently that's the place to get better derby 'round here. Yay!

I still need to go scuba! Next week is Eid Al Adha, which gives me 2 days off of school, so I'm hoping to go to Oman for some diving then. :)

Got a 1 hour massage and a 1 hour pedicure for a grand total of............$50. Yep. I can get used to that!



I miss my Joey. SO. FREAKING. MUCH.



That's the end.



P.S. I love you all!!!!!!

Settling In

Amidst the stress of the first week of school, I am finding that I really like it here (so far!) and have so much in common with nearly all of my coworkers. Some things will be hard and some things will be easy, but I'm happy that I am finding a groove in a place so different from my own little Utah world.

There are sad things: I miss my family, I miss my friends, I miss my derby peeps and I miss my CCHS coworkers. I miss my doofus dog greeting me when I get home from an exhausting day at work.

But! I love the skyline here, I love the adventurous attitudes of the expats I meet, I love having my own place, I love teaching - no matter how different the kids can be, I love trying so many new foods, I love being so close to the ocean, and I love the support I continue to get from amazing people back home.

Caleva, whose birthday was on Monday!!

Wanna know another thing that is awesome? Everything here is open late; shops don't close until 10pm at the earliest and the city is bustling until the wee hours no matter what night of the week it is. On any given day, there is a Ladies Night special someplace around town where the wine flows freely and and is also FREE! I don't mind that one bit.

Oh, and did I tell you that the administration sponsors/endorses employee happy hours, a trip to Oman, visiting a water park, camping trips and sporadic brunches? Yeah. What a change from Utah public schools!

Math Department Selfie!

Science Department Selfie!

I've not had a chance to see much of the sights yet, but hopefully this weekend I'll get in a few necessary spots.

Battle of the Instant Coffees

Instead of being depressed by the prevalence of instant coffee, I've decided to put the ridiculous number of instant coffees in this place to the test! Every 2-3 weeks, I'm going to buy a few new varieties of instant coffee. Then, I'll do a side-by-side comparison, as well as individual cups over the course of those weeks. And then, of course, I'm going to record my opinions/findings. The best of each set will then be put into sets for the final showdown(s) and then I'm going to post a huge review of my personal decision about the best instant coffee readily available in Dubai. Boom!

SET ONE: 

L to R: Davidoff Rich Aroma, Casino Gold and Tchibo Gold. 

I took a good whiff of all of them today, and the Casino definitely smells the worst. The Tchibo smells similar to the Davidoff, though less potent. All still have that hint of chemical smell, though the Casino has it the worst!

This morning, I had the Davidoff, which was miles better than the Nescafe Red Cup that it seems like everyone drinks out here. It was very sweet naturally, which I wasn't a huge fan of, but once I added some creamer it was actually palatable!

This weekend will be my first side-by-side taste test. But tomorrow, I'll be trying out the Casino Gold (with Davidoff in tow, just in case it is as bad as it smells). 

P.S. I'm just going to keep adding to this post as I go, so as to not explode this blog with Instant Coffee and also to keep it all in one place!

P.P.S. SCIENCE! OPINION!

I will be using the Ruth Scale of Instant Coffee-ness, where 1 is the Nescafe Red Cup flavor (blech) and 10 would be a coffee that's indistinguishable from freshly brewed coffee (probably unattainable).

Reviews (Set 1):

Davidoff (Rich Aroma): Much better than Red Cup. Naturally quite sweet, not very acidic. Smooth, but still a slight chemical flavor. RSIC: 6

Casino Gold: Flavor is very similar to Red Cup, though a little more acidic and bold. Strong chemical flavor right off. Not the winner of this set. RSIC: 2

Tchibo Gold: A step above Casino, but still that strange chemical taste I have learned to associate with instant coffees. Fairly balanced flavors, though somewhat mild. RSIC: 3

This set's winner was pretty clear. The Davidoff's flavor was the closest to that of regular coffee, though it still had those strange hints in the flavor profile that give away the instant-ness of it.

SET ONE WINNER: Davidoff (Rich Aroma)

Bought some Colombian Supremo and had it (drip) this (28/8) morning. I don't think I can drink all this instant all the time! But I will persevere on my quest!!

Mall of the Emirates

After Ibn Battuta Mall yesterday, and Mall of the Emirates today, I'm all mall-ed out for a bit! (Though I did get a lot of helpful housewares, and I'm sure I overlooked a lot of things.)

Mall of the Emirates was like Caesar's Palace on the strip. A classier mall than IB Mall, and also about 3 times bigger! MoE is the mall with the indoor ski slope: 

Tiny luge and little buildings.

That's the slope. Probably takes 10-20 seconds to go down.

I didn't go skiing here. Seemed like setting myself up for disappointment after only ever skiing in Utah. But I did meander around (took about 20 minutes to walk from one end to the other!), and went to a a HomeCentre (like a British Ikea) and Carrefour (a huge France-based WalMart-type shop) to get more things to make living more comfortable. Tried to find a Roku for my TV, which turned out to be impossible! Sooooo I may just wait and get a PS instead of spending $ on a crappy WD streaming device or the Apple TV. 

The center of the mall had this huge train-station-like dome with skylights and ornate tiling everywhere. Much more elegant and classy than the IB Mall's crazy domes!

My coworkers are much more used to this and kept walking, so I only had time to snap one picture!

I didn't take a picture, but the mall has these ramp-escalators, which were super cool when combined with using a cart! The carts magnetically stuck to the ramp surface, so it didn't roll down the ramp as you got conveyed up or down a level. I love science. 

Tomorrow is the first day of regular inservice meetings (time to meet ALL the coworkers, not just the new-to-CAS ones)! Also, I get my class schedule (finally) and get to meet my Science department head! 

Ibn Battuta Mall

Remember how I said malls aren't just for teenagers? That was an understatement!! There are over 15 malls in Dubai alone and the two biggest are the Mall of the Emirates and Dubai Mall. And today I'm going to the MoE.

I went to one of the "smaller" malls yesterday, and it was huge! The ornate decor reminded me a lot of the casino malls in Vegas, but much more regional to the Middle East. The people there are so diverse, it is like a people watcher's dream! I have so much to learn about the different religions out here. There were probably 10 different religious ways of dress that I saw, and I had no idea which ones were which. I'm excited to learn about so many new ways of life here!

Here are some pictures of the fancy "domes" of the Ibn Battuta Mall:

China Dome (that's a ship, yep.)

Animatronic people on a fake elephant. 

More animatronic people.

In the India Dome!

This dome was like a museum! Ibn Battuta was a famous explorer here.

Egypt Dome!

Observations/Realizations so far

• Sunday is the new Monday. (Weekends are Friday & Saturday.)

• Milk gallons (still available here, pew!) have rectangular bases, not square ones. Genius.
  
  
  
  
  

• Everything feels just a little bit sticky.

That's a Smartboard! Back to my roots

• I am one of three members of the secondary math department.

• The other member has been nicknamed "The Nutty Professor."

• Still no textbooks or curriculum map for any of my classes yet. School starts in 9 days. O_o

• Produce is sold by the kilogram (no wonder it all seemed so expensive)!

• There is no stopping the Arabic subtitles on the TV. I've tried all the things.

• Sounds like an ad, but my Venture credit card is my new favorite thing: ZERO fees for any purchases!

• I miss having adventure buddies around. Getting to know people takes time, ugh. :P

I miss this guy. SO MUCH!

• Malls aren't just for teenagers anymore - seriously! They are a main source of entertainment for everyone.

• Scuba is huge with expats. So glad I have the gear and the certification!

• Wifi isn't friends with brick walls/I need another router.

• Hang-dry seems to be the way of things.

• So much instant coffee everywhere. EEEEW.

• Take-out is super inexpensive. I got dinner for 3 dollars. THREE DOLLARS!

• My residence visa needs to be done soon, so I can get on with my life! (Car leasing, liquor license, phone contract, bank account, shipping address, etc all need it.)

Getting Situated - Discovery Gardens

Dubai - First Full Day

I was awake starting at about 4 AM today. Unfortunately, I got a giant migraine headache at about 5, so I was pretty miserable until 9 ish when the Tylenol kicked in. But, it was Tylenol PM, so I passed out until 4 PM. Ooops!

Once I was awake this afternoon, I walked to a grocery store in the humid 107F weather. HOT. Most things were easy to find, just a very different set of options than I'm used to! There is a whole aisle of bagged beans and rice varieties, many types I've never seen before. Found a beverage I'd loved in Samoa - Mirinda Orange soda - yum! When I'd finished buying everything, they asked if I wanted it delivered to my apartment. I tentatively wrote down my address, and left my groceries behind to get some take-out food before heading home.

Went to The Green Chillies restaurant (lots of good misspellings here), and ordered a Greek salad, some Chicken Korma curry and something called Vegetable Hakka. It took longer than I expected, but I was feeling antsy about the delivery (since I'd forgotten what my phone number was), so it may have been a normal wait. Got my food and walked the few minutes back home. Ate some food (the Hakka noodles were yummy), and about 15 minutes later, the shop boy came to my door with bags in hand. I could get used to this!!

Things I didn't find at this little grocery store:
Lettuce - A couple bunches of wilted spinach doesn't count.
Tampons - They only had pads. WHAT.
Chili - I know, it's pretty regional, but I love canned chili.
Popsicles - With the temps as they are, I'd expect there to be some!
Tortillas/chips - Again, regional to the Americas. Oh well!
Real cheese - Nearly all the cheese is processed icky stuff. YIKES.

That's pretty much my whole day. Gotta love jet lag! Tomorrow is my first day of "work," though it is just an orientation day at the school. Since the work-week here is Sunday-Thursday, I'll have Friday/Saturday to get more house supplies, and then more meetings all of next week. Whew!

Knitting Pattern: Thrummed Spiral Hat

Thrummed Spiral Hat:

Materials:
US size 6 - 16" circular needles
US size 6 dpns.
150-200 yds of worsted weight yarn (I used Patons Classic Wool Worsted.)
1-2 oz unspun roving (I used KnitPicks Wool of the Andes Roving.)
Tapestry needle (for weaving in ends)

Instructions:

CO 100 sts on 16" needles.

Work in K2P2 Ribbing for 5 inches (folded brim) or 2 inches (flat brim).

Follow the pattern below for the thrummed portion of the hat, about 5.5 inches, depending on your head size:
Rounds 1-3: knit all sts
Round 4: Thrum Rounds as listed below

Thrum rounds are worked in a k9, thrum 1 pattern that shifts around the hat by 3 stitches each time it is done.
Thrum Round 1: *k9, T1* repeat until the end of round.
Thrum Round 2: k2, T1, *k9, T1* repeat until last 7 sts, k7.
Thrum Round 3: k5 T1, *k9, T1* repeat until last 4 sts, k4.
Thrum Round 4: k8 T1, *k9, T1* repeat until last 1 sts, k1.
Thrum Round 5: k1, T1, *k9, T1* repeat until last 8 sts, k8.
Thrum Round 6: k4, T1, *k9, T1* repeat until last 5 sts, k5.
Thrum Round 7: k7, T1, *k9, T1* repeat until last 2 sts. k2.
Thrum Round 8: T1, *k9, T1* repeat until last 9 sts, k9.
Thrum Round 9: k3, T1, *k9, T1* repeat until last 6 sts, k6.
Thrum Round 10: k6 T1, *k9 T1* repeat until last 3 sts, k3.
Thrum Round 11: Same as Round 1
Thrum Round 12: Same as Round 2
Etc.

This thrum pattern will form a spiral of thrums around the hat.
If you are unfamiliar with thrumming, this is a good tutorial for thrum making. I used a fairly small thrum each time, to keep the hat from becoming too poofy.

Decrease rounds:
Continue with the 4-round thrumming pattern, but introduce the following decrease pattern as you go. Switch to dpns as necessary.
Round 1: *ssk, k8* repeat (90 sts)
Round 2 - 12 (all even rounds) - either knit all or do the next thrum round
Round 3: *ssk, k7* repeat (80 sts)
Round 5: *ssk, k6* repeat (70 sts)
Round 7: *ssk, k5* repeat (60 sts)
Round 9: *ssk, k4* repeat (50 sts)
Round 11: *ssk, k3* repeat (40 sts)
Begin decreasing every round.
Round 13: *ssk, k2* repeat (30 sts)
Round 14: *ssk, k1* repeat (20 sts)
Round 15: *ssk* repeat (10 sts)

Break yarn and thread through remaining sts. Pull tight and weave in ends.

If you have any questions, please email, send me a message or leave a comment! Thanks!