Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa and one of the largest free-standing mountains in the world, and some say, the most beautiful place on the earth!
   The mountain towers 15,000 feet above the plains. Mount Kilimanjaro is in Tanzania and it covers an area of 60 miles long and 40 miles wide. Kilimanjaro is an extinct volcano(死火山), with 3 peaks. Kibo is the highest one in the center.
   Because of Kilimanjaro’s great height, the mountain influences its own weather. Winds incoming from the Indian Ocean are stopped upward by the mountain and drop their moisture(湿气) as rain and snow. People have planted coffee, corn, and other crops on the lower slopes(斜坡).
   Mount Kilimanjaro now attracts many thousands of walkers each year. Because of a temperature rise in recent years, the beautiful snow cap of Kilimanjaro is retreating(消退)fast. A research said that the white snow on the mountain might be gone in 15 years. What a pity!