nairobi. (Week 7: September 20-26)

Writing resumes. My computer is bust, crashed and done.  So you will have to have patience with me as I try to catch up with more recent stories (as well as replying to emails, etc).

August hosted the 2009 Kenyan Census, and I forgot to mention being counted as one of the country’s possible 40 million people.  There is one thing that is for certain, there is never a shortage of people; Lora and I continue to observe this fact on our Tuesday trips into Nairobi.  As exhausting as it is, the both of us cannot get enough of the urban center.  Our bus leaves at 5:30AM and we arrive by 7AM, rush hour.  The usual Kenyan walking pace is much slower than that of a Canadians, but at 7AM the Kenyans bolt past us – most of them hoping to arrive at work on time (they are successful, I assume).  After grabbing our breakfast regular, fruit salad (best ever – mango, avocado, banana, watermelon, papaya, apple and pineapple – 70SHL) at some sketch market stands, we begin a conversation with the owner.  Most of this chat is spent on casualties, and the rest of it is spent trying to teach him how to say Lora’s name (Kikuyu’s don’t pronounce neither “l” or “r” in their dialect) a hilarious pursuit.  Some chai is what we normally head to next.  Lora and I discuss how we would try and describe the city of Nairobi to someone who has no concept of what it is like, and both of us struggle with an answer.  It is hard to not mystify a place like Nairobi. I am going to try and encapsulate some things we have experienced while here:

1. Jambo – basically an insult “Hello,” said to tourists or those looking out of place in the city.  Constantly it is a greeting used when Lora and I walk around, our favorite: “Jambo, I’m a taxi driver.”  As if our legs cannot do the walking.  We have also met many “Safari Guides” – “Massai Mara at a very good price” – I have lost count of how many times we have had to explain that we live in Kenya.

2. Pictograph – art.  We stumbled into a fantastic little gallery on Post St. that was a photography exhibit.  The majority of the photos were portraits.  I think that one thing Nairobi is underestimated on is the Arts; there are spoken word, hip hop and endless Afro-fusion concerts happening every weekend (will get to one soon), and galleries hosting contemporary Kenyan art are popping up.

3. People – it one of my favorite things to do (anywhere in the world) – to sit and watch people, something about ordinary life is voiceful.  Curiosity is almost never fulfilled, as most of the time is spent inventing imaginary lives for the people who pass you by.

4.  Kito International – practicum/internship.  Every Tuesday also hosts a meeting with the Director of Kito International, an organization that is helping rehabilitated street-boys from the slums go through Vocational school and then assisting them with obtaining micro-finance loans that will help them start businesses.  The organization is young and therefore there is plenty of opportunity to help them expand in research and ideas.  The role that Lora and I are playing is one of consulting and researching suitable Micro-Finance practices for Kito to partner with, we are also hoping to meet with focus groups about business ideas.

That’s all the time I have for now (as I am now borrowing others computers and do not want to waste their time).