Lazy Sunday

Breakfast of Champions

After an action-packed night at the club with Haley, Katie, Kate, Max, Allie, Danny, Megan, Addie, Butch and friends, I woke up this morning around 8:30 to the smell of sausages and eggs wafting down the hallway from the kitchen. Although I miss lazy Sunday mornings strolls to Dana and the ceaselessly amusing ritual of watching people piece together and recount their evenings over french toast, waffles, and blue powerade, there is something to be said for waking up in a warm home to the smell of a home-cooked breakfast. I think Kenyans have just the expression for this; to borrow from the wonderful language I am learning to love, asante sana.

I am so thankful for all the opportunities I have been granted on this adventure so far, and I think this is an excellent time to take a minute to thank some of the people who have made this trip possible. Chiefly among them is loving and supportive family. Mom, Dad, Lilli, and everyone else: All of you keep me going. Every time I open my laptop I see your smiling faces gathered around the great room in Ruru and Grandpa's beautiful home (except for you Anna Leigh, as your facial expression in the particular photo I've set as my desktop clearly shows a playful spite fixed on our aspiring professional photographer, Andrew, whom I always imagine is grinning from behind the lens while perched atop the staircase landing). Hearing updates from home, like Dad's most recent email about Grandpa and Andrew skiing together at Waterville, Mom and Ruru's bake-a-thon and harrowing delivery/visit to Lilli at the Naval base in a blizzard, and Jay's recent successes leading the Masco Ski Team, are treasured by me while I'm so far away from you all. To all my friends who encouraged me to apply to Kenya, and to all the faculty who helped make this adventure possible: words would only betray my gratitude towards you all, as I am so incredibly thankful for your efforts and support. I will continue to make the most of this experience with you all in mind, and please know how thankful I truly am for this opportunity.

Tree House 

Last night was easily the most exciting, spontaneous, and amazing night out yet. We started the evening the same as Thursday and Friday, by checking out the scene at the bars in Westlands (at which I think we will soon be regulars). After we hung out there for a bit, we headed to a club called Tree House, which ended up being the place to be for all aspiring Nairobi night owls. Despite initial difficulties some members of the group encountered at the door due to the seemingly arbitrary discretion of certain doormen, we all made it into the club eventually and gathered in a couple booths for a while as we checked out the scene inside the club and acclimated to the deafening thump of sub-woofers and European house music. The crowd was a nice mix of young people from all over, including many Europeans and exchange students like us. In retrospect the name of the place should have prepared us for the unfamiliar genre. Two Swedish DJs perched above the main stage and dance floor did an excellent job hyping up the crowd of young people, and the vibe was really enthusiastic the whole night.

The night spent at Tree House was marked by hours of dancing, mingling, and people watching that combined for an amazing night to remember. In addition to meeting many fascinating characters from all over Kenya and elsewhere worldwide, I was able to learn much from two nice young guys  who live and work in Nairobi. Both work for local NGOs in  that work directly with development agencies and the operating branches of government programs like USAID and UKAID working to ensure Kenya continues to progress politically and economically while maintaining peace. The opportunity to speak with these recent university graduates working in the very fields I'm studying provided some great insight into their particular fields of expertise. We exchanged contacts and I hope to meet with them in the future and learn more about what they do.

Church

This morning I went to church with Trevor and my dad at 9:00. Although the venue for the service was a bit unconventional, it was lovely just the same, and I really enjoyed the sermon delivered by an enthusiastic American pastor lady. The Pentecostal service was held in a gigantic wedding tent located on the grounds of a local primary school, and the whole experience was so far from any conventional church service I've participated in. Instead of a choir, there was a full band onstage leading the congregation in a nice mix of English and Swahili gospel songs whose lyrics were projected on two large screens flanking the stage. A large section of the service revolved around a powerpoint prepared by the visiting pastor, and the interactive sermon called on audience members to participate. The general demeanor and tone of the entire congregation and clergy was both inviting and enthusiastic, which made for an overall enjoyable situation. I was also given the opportunity to meet some of the pastors in a less formal new visitors meeting following the service, and they were all young and interesting. I would like to return to this church as it is surely a welcomed change from the more rigid services I'm accustomed to back in the states.

Nyama Choma


This afternoon we went out for a late lunch/dinner to experience a treasured favorite among many Kenyans, nyama choma, or roasted meat. Unlike the cheesy atmosphere at the Carnivore, which we visited with the program, the place we went this afternoon was far more authentic, especially since we were able to pick out the butchered meat ourselves and sit nearby the open charcoal grills on which it was cooked by locals. Accompanied by chapati and some fresh tomato chili salads, with the amazing backdrop of Ngong hills surrounding us, we feasted on delicious goat ribs, legs, fresh spicy sausages for hours. We all had a blast walking around the restaurant and resort area and watching the staffed Maasai men and women perform traditional songs and dance for all the customers. I had an opportunity to dance with the Maasai men when they came to our table, an experience that was pretty cool, even if somewhat touristy and contrived.

Also of note during our meal, which took the better half of the afternoon including the hour-plus drive there and back, was the opportunity to meet the former Kenyan Ambassador to the US, a colleague of Nelson's who was there with his wife and sister-in-law. Ambassador Ogego spoke with us about our university pursuits, our feelings about the US-Kenyan relations, and told us much about the time he served as ambassador in Washington for the last eight years. It was really valuable to be able to speak so candidly with him about his time in Washington, during which he spent much time in high-profile political circles working on important relations between our two closely-tied nations.

The restaurant/resort where we ate was called Olepolos. This roadside welcome sign is made of an elephant shoulder blade. 

I took this photo to show the freshly butchered meat we ordered. This guy had just finished butchering the goat we feasted on and you can see the ribs that we ordered sitting on the scale. 

Nelson snapped this photo of Trevor and I chowing down on our mbuzi ribs as the Maasai men danced and sang in the backgorund. 

I captured this photo of the Maasai dancers as they approached a family eating on the patio. Notice the long hair and headdresses of the men and the elaborate necklaces and collars worn by the women trailing behind them.  

The Maasai guys had a very peculiar way of getting our attention as we ate. Although we did our best to ignore them, this one persistent fellow would come and lay his arm, shoulder, and head down on my shoulder as I was eating. After maybe three times doing this, I finally agreed to appease him and get up to dance a little. There is a video, which I will try to attach later.  

Chili Challenge

This is the before shot. Notice Trevor's lovely chili mustache. 

Before we headed home, we decided to cap off the wonderful meal with a bit of a gentleman's bet. We all took one of the small chilis we had been picking around from the tomato salads and agreed to eat the whole thing. Perhaps demonstrating a wisdom none of us youngsters could manage, when we all went to bit into the hot little chilis, Nelson simply tossed his passed his mouth and over his shoulder, leaving us to sweat through a couple fiery bites before we smartened up enough to swallow the little devils. Needless to say, as the following before and after pictures show, the following minutes were spent in disbelief as we attempted to fight the spicy death thriving in our stinging and seemingly swollen tongues and cheeks.

This photo highlights the fiery death aftertaste. Notice that Nelson is not in the picture. He was cheeky and decided to toss his chili over his shoulder as we all chomped into ours. 

Just another close up to show the anguish on our faces and in my eyes. Fiery death, I'm telling you.