ARUSHA TOWN:
Arusha, one of the oldest towns in Tanzania, is nestled in the shadow of Mount Meru with commanding views of the roof of Africa, the mighty Kilimanjaro mountain. Arusha is visited by thousands of tourists every year as it happens to be the gateway to the famous northern safari circuit proud of its unique world-renowned national parks. Safaris and expeditions for the northern region all arrive and depart from here, with daily connections by air and road from Dar es Salaam, Moshi, Zanzibar and Mwanza.
The city, 1,540 m (5,053 ft) above sea level, is surrounded by fertile lands that nurture coffee plantations, bananas and horticultural undertakings by various private farmers. It is a small industrial center producing export class textile garments, beer, tyres and a host of small-scale manufacturing enterprises. It is connected to all major towns and cities in the country and to Kenya and Uganda by trunk roads and most of these towns and cities are reachable from Arusha by elaborate bus and transportations systems.
Arusha town is sectionalized into a downtown busy commercial centre and a newer section housing governmental buildings, corporate offices and major utility companies as well as banking and financial sectors. At one time there was a distinct difference between the downtown and upper section owing to a small valley through which flowed the Naura River. However, presently the heavy business activity in this small town has done away with that distinctiveness and one hardly notices the difference. The trunk roads serving the town are those that lead to Dodoma and the parks on one hand and the one leading to Namanga and Nairobi on the other. Suburban hills surrounding the town house residential areas as well as major tourist hotels. There are three industrial sections and three distinct suburban residential areas around the town.
Despite the fact that coffee was not planted in Tanzania until the turn of the 20th century, when it was imported by the Jesuit missionaries of Reunion Island, Tanzania is now world famous for the excellence of its coffee, most particularly the Coffea Arabica grown on the slopes of Mount Meru and around the Arusha region. This distinctively flavoured coffee provides the foundation for some of the finest blends of coffee in the world and accounts for 75% of Tanzania’s coffee exports.