Kenya

Nairobi’s Favorite Car

A few months ago we bought a car, a pink Toyota Vitz. It’s not pretty, but the price was right and it gets the job done. Cassandra mostly uses it to get to and from work, but it’s really convenient for things like grocery shopping, dinner in the evening, etc, or simply when matatus or taxis are a pain wherever it is you’re going.

Cassandra's pink Vitz
Cassandra’s pink Vitz

Ironically, I had never heard of a Vitz until well after I moved to Nairobi (apparently they’re called “Yaris” in the US), but now I see them everywhere. A buddy of mine even quipped, “It’s Nairobi’s favorite car,” most undoubtedly because of its price, small form factor, and the way it sips gas (as opposed to gulping, of course).

Anyways, living in Nairobi these past two years has been a wildly different experience than living in Tala. Unfortunately I never had the experience of driving around in Tala’s favorite car — just lots of run ins snakes, scorpions, and satanic goats. ;)

5 Comments to “Nairobi’s Favorite Car”

  1. michael k. m.

    I don’t know why guys here hate on the Vitz so much. Sure the pink one is pretty feminine, but that has everything to do with the color and nothing to do with the car. Back in the states I knew it as the Yaris and it was a pretty sweet car. Small on the outside, surprisingly spacious inside.

  2. Zoro

    They are wonderful little cars. My wife and I had one (exact same colour as yours but different wheels) back home in Zimbabwe….wonderful little thing though sometimes a bit underpowered. We recently upgraded to a Honda CRV but we still kinda miss the Vitz. We made a few mods before selling it – fat wheels and a USB capable sound system, not bad for a bunch of old people hahaha

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