Calls of greeting carry across the street, then a minibus rattles past. Swahili runs through all of it, the shared language between many others, and it turns a crowded market into one long conversation. Far off, the broad shoulders of Kilimanjaro rise over the plains.

Outside the highlands the days stay warm, and the year follows wet and dry seasons instead of winter and summer. Come in the cooler months and evenings are made for walking and talking. A Local Friend opens a door you would not have knocked on, from a family kitchen to a neighbourhood football pitch.