Tanzania Tourist Board holds press conference for the "Kilimanjaro Uhuru climb"

This morning I attended a press conference called by the Tanzania Tourist Board (TTB) to publicize the forthcoming "Kilimanjaro Uhuru Climb" to take place from 4th to 9th December to mark 50 years of Tanzania's independence.

The Tanzania Tourist Board gave me the honour to lead other climbers on this historic climb as part of country-wide celebrations. The objective is to retrace the footsteps of Lt. Alex Gwebe Nyirenda who at the stroke of midnight on 9th December 1961 placed a torch and the flag of newly-independent Tanganyika on the peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest peak and the world's highest free standing mountain.

With me at the press conference was Deogratias Malogo, left, and Geoffrey Meena of the Tanzania Tourist Board.

Training in Germany for Kilimanjaro

I took a bicycle ride through a scenic route of Leipzig with filmmaker Benjamin Leers, with whom I will climb Mt. Kilimanjaro next month to mark 50 years of Tanzania's independence. It was good exercise for the upcoming climb and I told Benjamin I would tell my guide, Yahoo, that this time I trained in Germany for my climb.

Later at a cafe', we met his co-partner, Maurice Housni, with whom they will film a documentary during the Mt. Kilimanjaro climb.

Related post:
http://madarakanyerere.blogspot.com/2012/10/yes-mt-kilimanjaro-is-in-tanzania-and.html