Bon-jore-no (some of you may know the reference),
Not that I do a very good job of hiding it, but some fellow expats got a hold of my blog so I'm going to have to be more careful and not talk about how awful my "friend" Abida is anymore...
:) OMG I'm totes JK!!! Obv!!!;)
So I must've angered someone bragging about the perfect weather because the rainy season seems to have come early this year. It normally comes in late March, but we have gotten a little bit almost every day this week. It's still always warm here, so it's not terribly unpleasant. The bigger problem is the frequent power outages and the drainage systems are almost non-existent, so it gets pretty messy. My once shiny-black Cole Hahns are now just a dusty African memory. So poetic.
Last weekend was very busy. Friday night we went to a restaurant called the Phoenician - a unique combo of Sushi and Lebanese. I asked the waiter about the Spicy Tuna Roll, and he mentioned something about "Scoop Tuna". Ha I'm not sure if that meant Starkist or something, but I stayed away from it. The sushi was actually quite good. Afterwards we went to a couple clubs: Mercury and Gypsy's, where you have to keep an eye on your drink and hand on your wallet at all times. It's like walking through a minefield and some of these gals aren't so easy to pick out. I stuck with my group, though, and managed to get out unscathed.
Saturday, with some friends from Deutschland, I visited the Ngong Hills outside of Nairobi. We did a short hike with some Maasai tribesman, and then visited a well-known recycled glass factory. We didn't get to see the glass blowing, but it was an interesting place built almost entirely from gladd. Dinner that night was a nice home-cooked meal at my old guesthouse. I had a bowl of Beet Borscht, one of my favorite classic yid-dishes, accompanied by some perfectly spiced Okra - both were absolutely stunning. Later on, I had another exciting night out at a UNEP house party - one of the biggest I've been to in a while. My friend said that these UN parties occur every weekend, which is nice, but that I will start to notice the same people over and over again...
Finally, Sunday I took a matatu with my friend, Steffi, to meet her friend, Dan, who works at an orphanage in Mathare (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mathare) - one of the biggest slums in the world. We had hoped to walk around the slum a bit, but then the rain started as soon as we arrived. We could see and smell the conditions from a safe distance, though, and it is shocking. Dan invited me to return to volunteer there one day. I normally do not have a stomach for these things, but I think it is important that I understand.
On a lighter note, there has been a French Film Festival at the mall this week. The movies are free, which is very rare, so I'm taking full advantage. Tuesday I saw "London River" and last night I did a double feature "Welcome" and "Tournee (On Tour)". I highly recommend first two. A couple things of note: 1) last night marked the first time I've ever been to a movie alone - we had a lovely time and 2) before the previews here, they project the Kenyan flag and everyone stands for the National Anthem.
This weekend I will be traveling to Lake Naivasha. We will camp out and do some hiking and biking in Hell's Gate National Park. I will post some pictures from the past week and report back on my trip. Miss you all.
Until next time, mahalo.
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