Nairobi
is unlike any city I have ever traveled to.
We
hired a driver recommended by the sister of a friend, because a) you
don't take just any taxi in Nairobi, and b) you definitely don't go
walking around on your own. At least not many of the areas.
So
after an early breakfast, we met Jimmy, and off we went. This
morning's traffic was not too bad (it's a Saturday), and we enjoyed
seeing the varied neighbourhoods and city streets. It was a mix of
run down and modern – little makeshift shacks selling handfuls of
bananas next to large piles of mud and debris right alongside
brightly painted advertisements for modern consumer items. Old
rundown shops with faded signs with a few Western establishments
mixed in, like Subway or Pizza Hut.
Jimmy
took us by the Canadian Embassy, and it made me smile to see the
familiar Canadian flag waving amidst the tall trees in the African
sky. Along the way we also passed other embassies – the US,
Belgium, Czech Republic... and other beautiful, gated establishments.
“This is the most expensive part of Nairobi,” Jimmy explained to
us. No makeshift shacks here.
Our
first stop was Karura forest. We paid the entrance fees and Jimmy
told us he'd be back in two hours for us. The trails were quiet
today – none of the birds or monkeys we had heard so much about.
But oh, the butterflies! Every colour you could possibly imagine -
“It's like we're in a butterfly conservatory,” remarked J, while
I chased butterflies with my camera. My favourite was the most
difficult to capture, as it rarely landed anywhere – bright,
beautiful green, fluttering everywhere but in front of my lens.
It
was hot, but not humid. The trees were tall and gave us enough shade
so that it wasn't uncomfortable. We walked along the dusty paths,
amused with ourselves for hiking in an African forest on our first
day. But we wouldn't be us, otherwise.
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| Even African forests have geocaches! |
We
eventually made it to the promised waterfall, and enjoyed the
coolness of the riverside as we kept walking along to the caves.
Little bats hung from the ceiling, trying to sleep, while young
African schoolchildren shone lights at them to try and get them to
react. One yawned, ruffled it's wings a little, and went quickly
back to sleep.
It
was a rewarding way to spend two hours, and a unique way to
experience a different side of Nairobi.
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| Bats in the caves in Karura forest |
Jimmy
was waiting faithfully for us in the parking lot when we got back out
of the forest, and our next stop was Nairobi National Museum. We had
to check our backpacks at the security desk when we arrived. After
buying our tickets, we were assigned a guide who took us through some
of the most interesting parts of the museum and gave us some
wonderful explanations of everything we were seeing.
I
had mostly gone for the ancient skeletons of early human ancestors.
When I was in high school, I did an extensive end-of-year project on
one of the most famous ones (“Lucy” - australopithecus afarensis,
as well as the Laetoli footprints (ancient footprints of early human
ancestors preserved in volcanic ash). Back then, the Kenya I was
studying was an impossibly far away, almost mythical land, where such
discoveries took place by passionate archeologists under the hot
African sun – in other words, somewhere I would never go myself.
The
bones of “Turkana Boy” were also there, as well as several other
skulls from different periods of pre-human evolution.
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| Lucy and the Laetoli footprints |
It
was quite powerful, seeing those skeleton fragments in person. Even
though they were replicas (the originals have been deeply stored away
for safe keeping, due to certain religious sects demanding they be
removed, and fear for the safety of the originals), it was still a
fascinating look at our earliest ancestors, and a personal moment of
coming full circle, for me. Back in those high school days where I
was painstakingly drawing out each of Lucy's bones and colouring them
in, I didn't dream of travel. I struggled with a lot of difficult
things that made it hard to even see past the next day at times. I
wish I could go back in time, and tell her things like, “Hey, those
ancient footprints that fascinte you so much? You'll get to see them
one day. In the country they come from. And so much more. Hang in
there.”
Our
guide took us to a few other parts of the museum as well and
explained some of the history of Kenya, old customs, British
colonialism, new politics. He was so excited to talk about
everything he knew, and brimming over with knowledge. I highly
recommend this museum. We rushed through it, so if you like museums
and history, give yourself at least a good three hours, and let your
guide take you on a rich tour of Kenya.
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| Turkana Boy |
Jimmy
was again waiting for us in the parking lot for our trip back to the
hotel. By this time, traffic had picked up, so it was slower-going.
It gave me a chance to really take in the sights and sounds of...
well, being stuck in traffic in Nairobi. Unlike being stuck in
traffic back home, there is never a dull moment. For starters, while
there may tecnically be lines dividing the lanes, Kenyan drivers seem
to take them as mere “suggestions” about where their vehicle
should be, and we often found ourselves smack in between vehicles in
both lanes, as he tried to get ahead of the traffic, one car at a
time. Behaviour that would cause massive horn-honking back home was
barely glanced at. Drivers are ruthless about not letting you cut in
front, though, so you have to be ruthless back – which caused me to
grip my bag tightly in fear on more than one occasion, as we were
almost sardined in between two buses, narrowly missed driving into a
motorcycle in the oncoming lane, bullied a bus onto the shoulder, and
plenty of other near misses. (J, by the way, sat there cool as a
cucumer, used to such driving madness from many other trips around
the world).
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| Boys riding their bikes in Karura forest |
And
then, the street vendors! What a strange concept. As your car is
stuck in traffic, people of all kinds weave in and among the cars
(how they remain alive in the madness is anyone's guess), holding
bunches of bananas at you, bottles of water, brightly coloured
plastic table cloths, furniture... anything under the sun.
We
obviously survived the drive, and I must say I was more than a little
relieved to get out of that vehicle!
In
the evening, we met up with our tour guide and group for the first
time, and he gave us all the introductory details about our trip into
the Serengeti. We then went out for dinner at the famous Carnivore
restaurant - with a hired driver, of course. There is so much
security in Nairobi – our hotel, the restaurant, the museum, all
had gates which you could not enter until you were examined by
security. This mostly included the driver simply signing in and/or
showing some sort of ID; a peer into the car to see the passengers...
and a mirror on a long pole checking under the car for hidden
weapons. You know. The usual.
The
Carnivore was interesting. It is essentially a prix-fixe meal of
meat. They come around to your table and saw off pieces of meat that
has been cooked on skewers. Chicken, ribs, beef, wings, pork, ox
balls, crocodile... actually, the last two weren't that bad. The
crocodile? - tasted like chicken. I'm serious! I always thought
that was a joke. I'd eat it again. The ox ball was all right –
reminded me vaguely of the chicken hearts, gizzards, and other little
organs my mother used to feed us all the time as kids.
So
that was Nairobi. We leave at 7am tomorrow on our tour of southern
Kenya/Serengeti, and won't have wifi until we get back to Nairobi in
about a week. I will, however, be writing my blogs every day while
there, and posting them when I return.
Thanks
for the taste, Nairobi. Maybe one day, we'll be back.
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| By the waterfall |
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| My best attempt at the green butterfly |
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| Green butterfly finally agreed to pose, but only with wings closed |
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