Here i am, back in Nairobi. I am here trying to figure out more visa/permit stuff. I think the answer will be that i will have to leave the country for a bit. So if any of you are on the continent, or near by, let me know! in the mean time i have been enjoying the culinary experience of Nairobi immensely. By this i mean mostly KFC, lots and lots of espresso, burgers, and salads. it has been a nice break from mashed food. Everywhere else in the country you must cook all vegetables before eating. Back in the 80's i think there was a cholera outbreak so this became necessary, and then a habit. yuk, i am so sick of cooked spinach. I never understood why the cartoons of my childhood made fun of cooked spinach, i always liked the raw stuff, but now i do.
KFC is so weird! It is where rich people go. It is full of rich Kenyans, and Indians, and of course the whites. I was so excited to find one here, but a meal is around 15-20$. You go and order at the counter, and for the rest of the meal you are waited on like in a sit down restaurant. Such a turn around from the obese, white people hang out it has become in the States.
I have now been staying in Nairobi for a week, and it has certainly been a little different then i am used to. The apartment i am staying in doesn't have any running water. I really don't mind this so much, except for washing dishes is a real pain. The shocking thing to me is how much water we go though in a week. They have two big plastic water tanks, and 5 buckets that are filled with water every week. It is filled by the watchman, so the people i live with don't actually do any of the fetching. In rural areas it is the norm to not have running water, so they must go and fetch water in 20L jugs, and can usually carry one, but maybe two containers. Water becomes so much more valuable when you have to work so hard to get it.
Another thing i love about Nairobi, no staring. Kenyans in Nairobi are used to seeing white people, and so i am not the oddity that i am in Meru. I cannot express how nice this is. in Meru there are maybe 2 residential white people. No matter where i go, people know who i am, and where i am coming from. Of course i have gotten used to it, to a certain extent, but i miss being anonymous. My actions are always watched and my entire race/country is judge for it. it becomes exhausting. Parents always want to bring their children over to greet me, or i get harassed by the local layabouts.
Hope that everyone is well, and love to you all!
xoxo Suzanne
KFC is so weird! It is where rich people go. It is full of rich Kenyans, and Indians, and of course the whites. I was so excited to find one here, but a meal is around 15-20$. You go and order at the counter, and for the rest of the meal you are waited on like in a sit down restaurant. Such a turn around from the obese, white people hang out it has become in the States.
I have now been staying in Nairobi for a week, and it has certainly been a little different then i am used to. The apartment i am staying in doesn't have any running water. I really don't mind this so much, except for washing dishes is a real pain. The shocking thing to me is how much water we go though in a week. They have two big plastic water tanks, and 5 buckets that are filled with water every week. It is filled by the watchman, so the people i live with don't actually do any of the fetching. In rural areas it is the norm to not have running water, so they must go and fetch water in 20L jugs, and can usually carry one, but maybe two containers. Water becomes so much more valuable when you have to work so hard to get it.
Another thing i love about Nairobi, no staring. Kenyans in Nairobi are used to seeing white people, and so i am not the oddity that i am in Meru. I cannot express how nice this is. in Meru there are maybe 2 residential white people. No matter where i go, people know who i am, and where i am coming from. Of course i have gotten used to it, to a certain extent, but i miss being anonymous. My actions are always watched and my entire race/country is judge for it. it becomes exhausting. Parents always want to bring their children over to greet me, or i get harassed by the local layabouts.
When i stand before God at the end of my life, i would hope that i would not have a
single bit of talent left, and could say, "I used everything you gave me."
Erma Bonbeck
Hope that everyone is well, and love to you all!
xoxo Suzanne
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