Well, Welcome to Africa

Welcome to Africa

Habari,

I’ve been back in Nairobi for two and a half weeks now.  Things have been a little slow on the startup at work, but now I feel like I’m drinking from a fire hose.  Up until last Thursday, I was without a computer…at least not an IBM-issued one.  I was dumbfounded at how long it took to get a computer and I only got this one because I ambushed a person leaving IBM.  If I hadn’t forced the issue, I could have been waiting for 6 to 8 weeks for a machine.  Seriously?  When I expressed my disbelief in the length of time it took to get a computer, people just looked at me and said, “Welcome to Africa.”

Once I was able to log into my machine, I was dismayed by the fact that people started sending me email weeks ago. Ugh.  Needless to say, I’ve spent a good portion of my weekend getting caught up on mail.  On top of that, Master Pu decided to call a Saturday meeting.  I’m not talking about an hour or two long; it was a full 7.5 hours…on a Saturday!!  Coming from the slow pace of Tyco, this will take a bit of time to get use to.  The funny part is, this appears to be a normal practice of my fearless leader.  As a matter of fact, we have another meeting scheduled for next Saturday and I’m told that this one will probably go long. What? LOL.

Commuting to and from work is an adventure all on its own.  Whether it‘s Monday morning or Saturday afternoon, there is always traffic.  And, you get to see the most interesting things while sitting in traffic.  In addition to my friends the Marabou Storks that I mentioned in, “The Journey Begins Part 3: The First 24,” I’ve witnessed ‘live chickens’ strapped to the top of a public bus, called a City Hoppa.  Yes, you heard me correctly.  We were coming from work last Friday and we passed a public bus with a ton of chickens tied to the top of the bus. 

I was in a taxi with four men from Ireland, Australia, South Africa and the US.  We were all amazed at the sight of these chickens on top of a public bus.  Our driver, who is Kenyan, couldn’t understand our amazement.  As far as he was concerned, it was the most cost effective way to transport chickens to the slaughter house.  He was dead serious.  LMAO.  One of the guys in the taxi tried to take a picture, but it was a blur because of the speed of the taxi and the flurry of feathers.  LOL, I’m not making that up.

Earlier in the week, my driver and I came up on a public bus that had been turned over on its side.  WTH?  Let me remind you that there is ALWAYS traffic.  All I could think was, how fast could he have been going to turn the bus over?  Traffic was backed up for miles in all directions and there was a Land Rover with cables hooked up to the bus trying to stand it up.  There was a crowd of people standing on the sidewalk near the bus as if they use to be the passengers.  Crazy! 

The strange thing was, there was no ambulance.  It was like the people were waiting for the bus to stand up so they could continue their commute home.  LOL.  Guess what experience I DON’T need to have before going home…riding a public bus.  The entire bus system here can be summed up as semi-controlled chaos, but it works for the people of Nairobi.  I witnessed a guy getting off the bus while it was turning a corner.  I guess it’s not necessary to come to a complete stop here.  Imagine how much time we could save if we just slowed down to let people off the bus instead of stopping.  Think about it people. J Welcome to Africa.

Last weekend…not the weekend I spent locked away in a boardroom, Master Pu took me to the best mall in Nairobi…there’s really only two that qualify.  It was the West Gate Mall (http://www.westgate.co.ke/).  I felt more at home instantly.  They have a department store called, Nakumatt.  Okay, you can buy anything from a loaf of bread, to a washing machine, to a bed.  I liked this store immediately.  It reminded me of a Super Wal-Mart.  Their slogan is, “You need it, we got it.” Catchy, right?  I was able to get groceries, toiletries and face towels (there are none in my apartment).  Master Pu even contemplated getting a machete to protect his home.  Yes, they sell machetes!!  I discouraged him from getting the blade by pointing out the fact that he may cut his own damn hand off.  He agreed. LOL.

Needless to say, I believe I can make the adjustment to Nairobi without a problem.  I got to see a beautiful neighborhood where Master Pu and his family live.  It gave me hope.  You can see from the picture that it looks like a really nice neighborhood in the States.  I’m hoping that when my work permits come through and I’m able to secure my permanent residence, that I’ll be able to find something equally as nice.  Let’s keep our fingers crossed.  Well folks, that’s it for me for this week.  Tune in next week when I talk about the issue with Kenyan mattresses.  SMH.  Welcome to Africa…Nairobi to be exact.

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Della Rochelle

Copyright © 2011 by Della Rochelle Williams