I upgraded this blog to the latest WordPress version (2.7). The only change that you’ll notice is a new “threaded comment” functionality which allows you to reply to other comments. I had to make some small tweaks to this site’s theme to enable the new comment stuff. I suppose this would also be a good time to post a link to my theme files just in case you’re interested in using it on your blog.
Month: December 2008
Alan’s Wild Ride!
I’m home safely from Mombasa (read on). I spent the week wandering around Mtwapa, Nyali, and Mombasa itself while my friend Anique was at work. I’ve been to the coast before but I have never had as much fun as I did this visit! I don’t have any pictures because my camera is dead… pole sana (so sorry)!
Highlights
- Salsa dancing lessons
- Swimming in the ocean for the first time since April
- Bus home to Nairobi being attacked by people with crude weapons
- Kid on beach bouncing a dead, but fully puffed, puffer fish
- Being in a matatu (public service bus / minivan / taxi thing) which got in two crashes, the second one after the conductor and the door operator were yelling at each other about the first one
- Browsing a spice market and being asked if I wanted to buy something that would let me “touch the sky”
The Bus Attack
The bus attack was pretty hardcore actually. I was on the 10pm Mash Poa bus from Mombasa to Nairobi. Mash is one of the coach carriers in Kenya (think Greyhound). I think it was around 2 am and I was asleep, but I awoke to some commotion and banging sounds around the bus. People around me were wincing and ducking, and the women were yelling “Twende!!” (Swahili for “let’s go!”). At first I thought the bus was broken but then the guy next to me said something like, “Alan, they have crude weapons!” Sure enough the front windshield had two large cracks in it from rocks. It was over as quick as it had started.
I guess what happened is that there was another Mash bus with a flat tire and we had pulled over to see if everything was ok. That’s when the commotion started. There were a bunch of cars and police after about 10 minutes and we all got out. The other bus wasn’t as lucky, several windows were completely shattered and some passengers had been robbed/beaten, including the driver.
Karibu Kenya (welcome to Kenya)!
Music in East Africa
I’m headed off to the coast for a few days because work’s been slow. This past weekend I was in Nairobi and I went to a UB40 concert. I had never heard of them before, but every Kenyan who I told I was going was very jealous. It turns out that they are a British Reggae band that sings a million songs I know you’ve heard, like Red Red Wine. I went with a few volunteers and some Kenyans and we had a good time dancing and hanging out.
Music and dancing is really big in Kenya. There’s plenty of “traditional” music around, but the pop scene is overflowing too. There are lots of rap and hip-hop artists in Kenya and Tanzania, and lately I discovered there is even a Somalian hip-hop scene. Oh, but once you enter my house it’s almost always all metal, all the time! Here’s some music to keep you busy while I’m gone.
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