Lessons learned
My first weekend in Nairobi gave me a bit of a reality check.
Although I came here fully prepared for limited resources and the occasional bout of boredom and loneliness in a city where it's considered very dangerous to step out after nightfall - I now see there is no real way to prepare for the idleness that can come with living in a city like Nairobi.
On Friday, I rushed home from work in order to quickly do some grocery shopping and top up my phone card before it got dark. When I got in, I realized my phone didn't work. To my further agitation, the internet wasn't working either. The setting sun cast a bright orange hue over the dirt roads outside my window, indicating that I had very little time to go outside - a trip to the market would bring me back after dark. So I was stuck. And beyond frustrated. A Friday night, home alone with nothing to do takes some getting used to, especially for me. I lost my appetite - to eat, read or do anything. I sat staring at the wall for more than a few minutes, pondering my current predicament. . .
And then I started to think about the images I had absorbed in my first four days in Nairobi - the people, the houses, the roads, cars, restaurants, shops, markets - in all, a stark contrast between the haves and the haves-not was readily apparent - and the have-nots far exceed the haves, with no exception. Although Kenya is one of the more developed countries in Africa - poverty is still rampant and apparent to even the most sheltered eye. Down the street from my apartment are a few market stands that I pass everyday on my way to work, they sell barbecued corn and phone cards - sometimes the vendor's family will sit out there with him - babies in hand - selling corn for the equivalent of 10 cents apiece. Further down the road, there is an area where mothers and their children congregate. Every time I pass they ask me for money, food, anything - and its obvious why. On the bus ride to work, I pass dozens of these kinds of people - who are just trying to get by and survive. They don't have money for vacations or music or movies or the internet, their faces are conspicuously absent from the fancy restaurants and malls, and many don't even have the luxury of a roof over their head or clean water.
I thought about all of these people and realized how selfish I was - to sit there and wallow over a lost internet connection. I made up my mind to not do this anymore - to retain perspective - to appreciate my fortunate circumstances. At times, its hard not to miss the comfortable lifestyle and long for the things I've been so used to having - but hopefully I'll be able to curb that impulse when I'm here and more importantly, once I go back.
So, I shook myself out of my bad mood, made dinner and actually started to enjoy the prospect of having nothing to do.
The rest of the weekend was great - I got to enjoy some of Nairobi's nightlife, met some great people, and visited Karen Blixen, the town named after the dutch author Karen Blixen (Out of Africa), which was beautiful - I spent the afternoon reading in the gardens. On the way I passed hundreds of other Kenyans also simply enjoying their Sunday afternoon - going to Church, playing soccer, gardening, getting their hair braided, napping in the parks, cycling, strolling - I even saw an indigenous Masaai woman going for a stroll - if only it was safe for me to pull my camera out on the bus I would have tried to capture these striking images.
I will however post the pictures I have taken soon enough.
Until next time, kwa na siku jama (have a nice day).
Although I came here fully prepared for limited resources and the occasional bout of boredom and loneliness in a city where it's considered very dangerous to step out after nightfall - I now see there is no real way to prepare for the idleness that can come with living in a city like Nairobi.
On Friday, I rushed home from work in order to quickly do some grocery shopping and top up my phone card before it got dark. When I got in, I realized my phone didn't work. To my further agitation, the internet wasn't working either. The setting sun cast a bright orange hue over the dirt roads outside my window, indicating that I had very little time to go outside - a trip to the market would bring me back after dark. So I was stuck. And beyond frustrated. A Friday night, home alone with nothing to do takes some getting used to, especially for me. I lost my appetite - to eat, read or do anything. I sat staring at the wall for more than a few minutes, pondering my current predicament. . .
And then I started to think about the images I had absorbed in my first four days in Nairobi - the people, the houses, the roads, cars, restaurants, shops, markets - in all, a stark contrast between the haves and the haves-not was readily apparent - and the have-nots far exceed the haves, with no exception. Although Kenya is one of the more developed countries in Africa - poverty is still rampant and apparent to even the most sheltered eye. Down the street from my apartment are a few market stands that I pass everyday on my way to work, they sell barbecued corn and phone cards - sometimes the vendor's family will sit out there with him - babies in hand - selling corn for the equivalent of 10 cents apiece. Further down the road, there is an area where mothers and their children congregate. Every time I pass they ask me for money, food, anything - and its obvious why. On the bus ride to work, I pass dozens of these kinds of people - who are just trying to get by and survive. They don't have money for vacations or music or movies or the internet, their faces are conspicuously absent from the fancy restaurants and malls, and many don't even have the luxury of a roof over their head or clean water.
I thought about all of these people and realized how selfish I was - to sit there and wallow over a lost internet connection. I made up my mind to not do this anymore - to retain perspective - to appreciate my fortunate circumstances. At times, its hard not to miss the comfortable lifestyle and long for the things I've been so used to having - but hopefully I'll be able to curb that impulse when I'm here and more importantly, once I go back.
So, I shook myself out of my bad mood, made dinner and actually started to enjoy the prospect of having nothing to do.
The rest of the weekend was great - I got to enjoy some of Nairobi's nightlife, met some great people, and visited Karen Blixen, the town named after the dutch author Karen Blixen (Out of Africa), which was beautiful - I spent the afternoon reading in the gardens. On the way I passed hundreds of other Kenyans also simply enjoying their Sunday afternoon - going to Church, playing soccer, gardening, getting their hair braided, napping in the parks, cycling, strolling - I even saw an indigenous Masaai woman going for a stroll - if only it was safe for me to pull my camera out on the bus I would have tried to capture these striking images.
I will however post the pictures I have taken soon enough.
Until next time, kwa na siku jama (have a nice day).
posted by Nadia at
12:36 AM
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