Mighty matatus, pink flamingoes and a pet named Pet Rified

Been in big, bad Nairobi for a month now and things are looking pretty good. Nairobi is so much more than I expected. It’s not as crowded as I thought. Unlike Manila, Nairobi is less densely populated. Trees abound everywhere in Nairobi, the streets are relatively clean (even in the downtown area) and there are plenty of parks (it’s always cool so flowers are in full bloom all year round). It’s a modern city that has replaced colonial-era infrastructure with modern office buildings. There are malls, hypermarts and cafes with the all-important free wi-fi, though admittedly quite slow. Nairobi isn’t that big either; it’s just the traffic that eats up travel time. It takes me a full hour to commute from my place in the west all the way to the east where I work.

Nairobi is an expensive city. Being a take-off point for tourists going on a safari in East Africa, it caters to Westerners, although plenty of locals enjoy the wealth as well. Nairobi is also the hub of UN agencies and international NGOs where regional offices are housed so an influx of expats has surged over the years. Residential condos and apartments are also sprouting and some locals speculate that Somali pirates’ money funds these constructions.

Sadly, the high standard of living here is directly proportional to the crime rate. “Nairobbery” as locals sometimes call it. Houses and apartments are in gated areas and are equipped with security alarms where askaris (security guards) are on duty round the clock. I live in such a compound and I feel pretty secure here (albeit a bit guiltily as I am just a wee volunteer and not an expat). But I never take a bus at night. I have a regular taxi guy whom I call and he takes me where I want to go. I’ve heard one too many incidences about break-ins, cars being halted and petty thefts. On my third day here, my phone was snatched through an open window of a bus while sitting in traffic. It was unsettling to say the least, particularly as I was still on a high about being in Africa and everything was just so rosy. They say if you live in Nairobi, you have to “donate” a mobile phone at least once.

Apart from the few bad apples, Kenyans are generally kind and polite. They also love to shake hands as a greeting. So whether you’ve known each other for two seconds or two hundred years, you shake hands as a form of greeting. They also speak good English (apart from Kaswahili which is the official language) so it’s easy to get around and ask for directions. It’s funny that even though people are “brown”/Asian, locals still see us as mzungu (white person). I do occasionally get a “ni hau ma!” or “kunichiwa!”

the mighty matatu

In Kenya, matatus are the king of the road. These are mini-vans (or L-300 in the Philippines), the common public transport that are usually old, a bit rickety and are driven with much gusto and madness. And of course, a matatu is never a matatu without the heart-thumping, eardrum-splitting, decibel-defying boom of loud hip-hop or benga music. Matatus are colorfully painted as well, sometimes with icons like che guevarra. I have yet to see again the purple matatu with Osama Bin Laden’s face painted at the back.

Kenyan cuisine is not as exciting as I expected. There’s the famous nyama choma (barbecued meat, usually goat) and little variety of vegetables. However there are good Indian and Ethiopian restaurants in Nairobi and plenty of western food everywhere. The nightlife is bustling, as in any big city, and Nairobi seems the center for aid workers coming in from eastern and northern Africa looking to party, hook up or network on weekends.

It’s quite surprising to discover that Philippine soap operas are big here in Nairobi. The likes of Kristine Hermosa and some Angelica I-forget-her-last-name are drama icons whose soaps are shown on the public network. Once, police accosted some Filipinos on the street but when he found out that they were from the Philippines, he softened up and started asking about the celebrities and if the tears they cry on the soaps were real.

Work here is a bit slow – ok, real slow, as expected. I work as a volunteer for Slum TV which produces documentaries about the lives of people in Mathare slum. It’s a local NGO founded by a British artist but all the staff are Kenyans. My job is to ensure that the locals have the capacity to manage the organization by themselves. Right now, all of the staff are in Austria for a festival where they will show the documentaries they produced.

After about a month, I feel more at home now in the city. I’ve gotten used to taking matatus and buses, but I prefer to walk since the weather is pleasant plus I get my daily exercise – although I noticed that I tan easily since we’re under the equatorial sun. I’ve also moved into a lovely 3-bedroom apartment which is huge for two people. My roommate is a Filipina who is a volunteer for Unicef. She puts in long hours and comes and goes but we chat at breakfast or dinner when we can. And whenever I live in a new place, I like to make it as homey as possible so I’ve decorated my room, bought some curtains, a table, sheets and the latest addition, a little palm tree which is the closest to a pet I can get. I named her Pet Rified (don’t ask). Having a plant makes a lot of difference in a room. (My mother would be so proud of me). I found another plant at the back and put it on my table, and snipped a bunch of flowers from the garden downstairs. I found boxes at the storage and put scarves over them and made them my bedside table. Now my room looks more like a bedroom and no longer a dormitory room.

And you’ve never been to Africa if you’ve never gone on a safari. So I went to Lake Nakuru National Park, famous for its multitude of pink flamingoes, and to Nairobi National Park, 7km from the city center, where we saw a couple of nonchalant female lions, as well as zebras, zebras and more zebras. I’m hoping to get to Maasai Mara in July where the world’s most fascinating traffic jam happens – the annual wildebeest migration from northern Tanzania.

So far, life is sweet. Welcome to big, bad Nairobi. Spanking!

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