Kenya, Rants, Travel

I was in Tanzania for a few days over the Easter holiday. I always figure, living in Kenya, it’s the closest I can get to being in San Diego and hopping over the border to Mexico to eat a few tacos. It’s only a 5 hour bus ride to the decently-sized town of Arusha, and once you’re there the going is cheap and easy. My favorite part is the street food at night; people set up grills and sell all sorts of great finger foods for just a few shillings. Even better, I’ve never felt unsafe in Arusha.

After a great weekend wandering around Arusha and Moshi (the town just below Mt. Kilimanjaro), I came back to the Kenyan border and waited in line to be interrogated by the immigration agents. I have a valid Tanzanian visa, and a valid Kenyan work permit, but for some reason the lady decided to be difficult. When she asked me “Where are you going?” I told her “Westlands,” which was apparently the wrong answer, because she asked me “Where is Westlands?” After a few more rounds of me hearing her incorrectly and giving more “wrong” answers, I finally told her, “Nairobi” and she let me go.

I don’t know if she was trying to catch me in a lie… or maybe she decided that, because Westlands is a suburb of Nairobi, the correct answer should be “Nairobi?” What if I wasn’t going to Nairobi? Would Nairobi still be the correct answer? We will never know…

Kenya, Rants

Something is seriously wrong in Kenya. I rarely have problems with people over charging me or being abusive to me, but lately I’ve noticed that if I’m with black Kenyans those problems occur more often than when I’m by myself. A few examples…

There’s a great second-hand, open-air market just outside of Nairobi’s business district, Kikomba. You can get good shoes, shirts, bed sheets, pants, etc for really cheap in “Gikosh!” Remember the gay marriage hat I saw there one time? I spotted that when I was there with my Dutch friend Renske. I’ve been with all sorts of people, and the experience is always different:

  • With white girl: People generally impressed by our Swahili — a man even told me, “Swahili yako imenibamba” (your Swahili made me happy, or “jazzed” him)
  • With black girl: Someone yells, “Umeshika mzungu!” (you’ve “caught” a white guy) to my friend.
  • With black guy: Someone asked him if he was my tour guide…

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Kenya, Music

It’s really popular to be a gospel artist in Kenya these days. Where you’d normally have heard gangster rap or crunk music coming from Nairobi matatus (minibus used for public transport), now it’s not uncommon to hear songs praising Mungu (God). I have never liked gospel, but some of these tunes honestly sound like something a DJ would spin at dance club on a Friday night. Furthermore, because of my strong convictions (read: evangelical atheist), it’s almost embarrassing for me to admit that some of these “Goddy” tunes are really catchy. If you don’t understand Swahili you can just bob your head to the beat and forget I ever said anything.

Jaguar — Nimetoka Mbali

This one’s actually not about God, but it’s my favorite of the three so it goes first! I think this guy comes from Tanzania, because I’ve never heard of him (and I know everything about the music scene in Kenya!). The song’s title means “I’ve come from far.” I haven’t listened to it enough to understand what he’s actually saying. For now just enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4BoSQ4PSLs

Ekko Dydda — Niko Na Reason

He “has a reason” to clap, snap, and even to “bounce and swagger” — take a guess at what it is. Anyways, it’s a good song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7m4AUcOoEc4

Ringtone — Pamela

A song about a girl who has fallen astray from the church. The chorus goes: Pamela njoo kwa mungu, bado anakupenda (Pamela come to God, he still loves you). It’s kinda sad, but something about it is catchy to me.

Because I live under a rock I depend entirely on the guys at GetMziki to find new music. They seem to have connections all over Africa, and even African connections in America and Europe, so there is always something for everyone on their blog. Another great website is the Kenyan-based DJ crew Black Supremacy. Don’t let the name fool you: they don’t hate white people, they just love making awesome mix tapes (you’ve probably heard at least one of their mixes in a matatu).