2/1/2011
The 31st of December, commonly referred to as New Years Eve, is one of the most looked forward to days of the calender. That day is pregnant with the anticipation of a new year, a better year, a brighter year and a host of good tidings. I spent the 31st of December 2010 at a wedding; speaking of which...congratulations to Peter and Jane - an eternity of bliss and happiness be heading your way. Away from all the glamour that weddings present and the wedding juice all mothers imbibe before they show up, a wedding of a common friend from Kitas brings all characters that make up Kitas 00208, The Series, together.
More so, when the wedding spills over to an evening party which will in turn double up as the New Year's party and then you see that Kitas is not just a place, its a way of life! Midnight comes and is marked with the attendant pomp and splendour deserving of such an occasion. That marks the beginning of a 'party till we drop fiesta' fuelled by the over zealous dj and his 'Shouter' (this is the name I have appointed to the guy who stands next to the dj and yells random things into the microphone in an attempt to hype the crowd).
Come 7 am as we drive into home after a night well spent crossing over into a new decade. How many would have loved to see this morning but for one reason or the other could not; we never forget to give thanks for such mercies and indulgences.
The time to get back to the Northern Hemisphere is fast approaching; however, before leaving, a mention must be made of all those who made this holiday as massive as it was: Dq and her attendant posse - y'all take rocking to a different level. Pilli, Liz, Nduku, Eric, Muriuki, Dmuitta, Di - la familia extend! Mko juu tu sana. Lillian, way too long it had been...lets fix that. Bubbles, sigh! Need I say more? Mutheu, unofficial Nairobi tour guide, how awesomely awesome are you? Brilliant! Sheri and the crew of Kabasiran, next time we make it bigger. Kitas crew hi5's all round. To all who might have been missed in this, you are never forgotten in the heart - where it matters most. To Nairobi in general, the love I have for you is unbelievable! Stay good, till next time.
I'm out.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Friday, January 14, 2011
Christmas times...
25/12/2010
When I was a young one, say in primary school days, we had a used to have Christmas holidays at the end year which also coincided with the end of year school holidays. As we were wont to do, we had this little nifty songs that we would come up with just for the occasion. We had a mix of a famous Christmas song that would go:
'Tis the season to be be naughty,
fa la la la la la la la la,
burn the maths books and the textbooks,
fa la la la la la la la la la,
set the teacher's desk on fire,
fa la la la la, la la la la.'
I awoke this morning with that song playing in my head; a random hum of the same permeates my room as I get into the Christmas mood. I mean, it is Christmas and though it shall not be a 'white Christmas' (26 degrees begs to differ) it shall still be an epic one. There are certain duties that need to be carried out on such days by the men of the house and top on that agenda is the death of the goat to be partaken. That done, and the hapless animal hanging decapitated and skinned upside down off a tree, and fire set up for the open roast.
The beauty of Christmas at home is the superb atmosphere. Graced by my uncle and his family and a friend peculiarly named Jesus, Christmas could not have been better. Humour abounds as stories galore are flung about the fire. Picking myself up after every tale gets harder and harder as they evolve from the true to perhaps only bits of truth and more fiction. How much more awesome can Christmas get? I don't quite know.
Jesus (pronounced as Hesus!) took photos of the barbecue so as soon as I can track him down from Kakuma (way in the North of Kenya!) those shall be uploaded.
A great day was had by all; and memories galore shall remain with all present.
Oh happy days.
'tis the season to be naughty...'
When I was a young one, say in primary school days, we had a used to have Christmas holidays at the end year which also coincided with the end of year school holidays. As we were wont to do, we had this little nifty songs that we would come up with just for the occasion. We had a mix of a famous Christmas song that would go:
'Tis the season to be be naughty,
fa la la la la la la la la,
burn the maths books and the textbooks,
fa la la la la la la la la la,
set the teacher's desk on fire,
fa la la la la, la la la la.'
I awoke this morning with that song playing in my head; a random hum of the same permeates my room as I get into the Christmas mood. I mean, it is Christmas and though it shall not be a 'white Christmas' (26 degrees begs to differ) it shall still be an epic one. There are certain duties that need to be carried out on such days by the men of the house and top on that agenda is the death of the goat to be partaken. That done, and the hapless animal hanging decapitated and skinned upside down off a tree, and fire set up for the open roast.
The beauty of Christmas at home is the superb atmosphere. Graced by my uncle and his family and a friend peculiarly named Jesus, Christmas could not have been better. Humour abounds as stories galore are flung about the fire. Picking myself up after every tale gets harder and harder as they evolve from the true to perhaps only bits of truth and more fiction. How much more awesome can Christmas get? I don't quite know.
Jesus (pronounced as Hesus!) took photos of the barbecue so as soon as I can track him down from Kakuma (way in the North of Kenya!) those shall be uploaded.
A great day was had by all; and memories galore shall remain with all present.
Oh happy days.
'tis the season to be naughty...'
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Dude in the big city
16/12/2010
Farmers choice sausages and free range eggs; chai ya Ketepa, mkate nusu na uji - Now that is a breakfast of champions. You see, the perks of being at home are varied but without a doubt, food is right there at the top. How dare one not appreciate just how epic a breakfast of this magnitude is? While acknowledging the skill of the chef who put effort into it?
Today is day one in the big city; been away all of twenty four months and rumour has it development has finally found its way to my beloved city. I'm curious as to how well it has turned out seeing as the ride up to home began all smooth and dainty but ended up as a version of The Rhino Charge at some point when we still alleged to be on the road.
The impressions of the city are not lost on me; brilliant expansions of roads I once considered no better than one way estate roads, re-carpeting of these same roads and every other major road I can think of; and the crown jewel of them all, the multi-level interchanges on the 5 lane a side Thika road due to be commissioned later next year. Tears almost well up in my eyes in a moment of sheer unadulterated patriotism as I imagine how it shall look when fully done.
It takes all of five minutes on the road to figure out that Matatus shall never change; and Kenyan's along with them. The blaring music hits me as a multi-coloured blur (that could have been anything from a vehicle to a stampeding buffalo herd) whizzes by nearly taking my life with it as I attempt to cross the road at a zebra crossing. Clearly, we have yet to make that stride.
The brilliantly warm sun shines down hard upon her people; the hustle and bustle of Kenyan's wearing smiles on their faces brings a warmth to the heart. I have missed this and I plan to enjoy it as long as I possibly can.
Much love Nairobi.
P.S: Have you seen the interchange they intend to put up at the former Museum Hill roundabout? Have you? You should! Darn!
Farmers choice sausages and free range eggs; chai ya Ketepa, mkate nusu na uji - Now that is a breakfast of champions. You see, the perks of being at home are varied but without a doubt, food is right there at the top. How dare one not appreciate just how epic a breakfast of this magnitude is? While acknowledging the skill of the chef who put effort into it?
Today is day one in the big city; been away all of twenty four months and rumour has it development has finally found its way to my beloved city. I'm curious as to how well it has turned out seeing as the ride up to home began all smooth and dainty but ended up as a version of The Rhino Charge at some point when we still alleged to be on the road.
The impressions of the city are not lost on me; brilliant expansions of roads I once considered no better than one way estate roads, re-carpeting of these same roads and every other major road I can think of; and the crown jewel of them all, the multi-level interchanges on the 5 lane a side Thika road due to be commissioned later next year. Tears almost well up in my eyes in a moment of sheer unadulterated patriotism as I imagine how it shall look when fully done.
It takes all of five minutes on the road to figure out that Matatus shall never change; and Kenyan's along with them. The blaring music hits me as a multi-coloured blur (that could have been anything from a vehicle to a stampeding buffalo herd) whizzes by nearly taking my life with it as I attempt to cross the road at a zebra crossing. Clearly, we have yet to make that stride.
The brilliantly warm sun shines down hard upon her people; the hustle and bustle of Kenyan's wearing smiles on their faces brings a warmth to the heart. I have missed this and I plan to enjoy it as long as I possibly can.
Much love Nairobi.
P.S: Have you seen the interchange they intend to put up at the former Museum Hill roundabout? Have you? You should! Darn!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Kitas - back again
14/12/2010
The sweet, slightly chilled air of the highland areas that make up the so called 'Burbs' greet me as I alight the car at home. Kitas - the fond nickname we have coined up for home - also known as Matasia (short for Enoomatasiani) has a gorgeous view of the sky I have come to admit. The silhouette of Ngong Hills over the hills at midnight is nothing short of surreal; this is what I've been missing.
The lowing of the cows and the incessant debate over which chicken gets the early worm makes for a jolting back to life in Kitas; farm politics and details make for early morning breakfast discussions and the likes - You just have to love being home. A solid ugali is on the menu for lunch without a doubt and acquisition of a sim card to join the millions of fleecees (yes derived from fleece and meaning those who are fleeced!) on a Kenyan mobile phone network are the top two scheduled activities for the day. Those and numerous phone calls that have to be made to pay homage to relatives and friends without whom the journey of my life would have taken a different tangent.
But for now, I shall sit back and enjoy the warmth of being home.
How I have missed you so!
The sweet, slightly chilled air of the highland areas that make up the so called 'Burbs' greet me as I alight the car at home. Kitas - the fond nickname we have coined up for home - also known as Matasia (short for Enoomatasiani) has a gorgeous view of the sky I have come to admit. The silhouette of Ngong Hills over the hills at midnight is nothing short of surreal; this is what I've been missing.
The lowing of the cows and the incessant debate over which chicken gets the early worm makes for a jolting back to life in Kitas; farm politics and details make for early morning breakfast discussions and the likes - You just have to love being home. A solid ugali is on the menu for lunch without a doubt and acquisition of a sim card to join the millions of fleecees (yes derived from fleece and meaning those who are fleeced!) on a Kenyan mobile phone network are the top two scheduled activities for the day. Those and numerous phone calls that have to be made to pay homage to relatives and friends without whom the journey of my life would have taken a different tangent.
But for now, I shall sit back and enjoy the warmth of being home.
How I have missed you so!
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Homecoming
This is an entry I wrote on paper but failed to upload onto this blog.
13/12/2010
Dreams of a clear, smog-free, warm Nairobi sunshine have been shelved by circumstances that go way beyond my control. The anticipation of devouring the ribs of a hapless goat brought to slaughter in honour of the 'homecoming' have been put on hold as the plane sits like a lame duck on the runway. We're back at the airport for the second time in as many days; last nights' crushing news that the flight had been delayed by 16hours has been numbed somewhat by the stay in the three star hotel and loads of open bar drinks and food courtesy of KQ.
Its boarding time, and the itchy excitement of smelling Nairobi's air and savouring its intense warmth render me all giggly; its been nearly two years since I set foot in my motherland and the excitement is palpable. Just eight hours I tell myself and I shall get my chance to do so yet again.
There is nothing quite as breathtaking as the descent from Northern part of Kenya to the J.K.I.A. at night I dare say; its starts as a bleak darkness punctuated only by the occasional light - 'tis a scene that mirrors the heavens on a clear night. The punctuations slowly graduate to a line here and there and finally an entire array of lights as streets come into view and the beauty of the city is there for all to enjoy.
Clearance done and customs sorted. Luggage does take its time when you can see your loved ones through the glass partition of the airport arrival lounge but at last it is processed and I can safely say I'm home.
Overwhelmed by emotion and love, the admission that home is home is rather evident; the smell of the clear air, the perfect night sky, the flow of Kiswahili, Sheng and all other sets of dialects is music to my ears. Fighting back the tears is quite the task but it be time to drive up to the house and enjoy being in the motherland.
It feels good to be home; +254 you have been sorely missed and I'm here to prove it!
13/12/2010
Dreams of a clear, smog-free, warm Nairobi sunshine have been shelved by circumstances that go way beyond my control. The anticipation of devouring the ribs of a hapless goat brought to slaughter in honour of the 'homecoming' have been put on hold as the plane sits like a lame duck on the runway. We're back at the airport for the second time in as many days; last nights' crushing news that the flight had been delayed by 16hours has been numbed somewhat by the stay in the three star hotel and loads of open bar drinks and food courtesy of KQ.
Its boarding time, and the itchy excitement of smelling Nairobi's air and savouring its intense warmth render me all giggly; its been nearly two years since I set foot in my motherland and the excitement is palpable. Just eight hours I tell myself and I shall get my chance to do so yet again.
There is nothing quite as breathtaking as the descent from Northern part of Kenya to the J.K.I.A. at night I dare say; its starts as a bleak darkness punctuated only by the occasional light - 'tis a scene that mirrors the heavens on a clear night. The punctuations slowly graduate to a line here and there and finally an entire array of lights as streets come into view and the beauty of the city is there for all to enjoy.
Clearance done and customs sorted. Luggage does take its time when you can see your loved ones through the glass partition of the airport arrival lounge but at last it is processed and I can safely say I'm home.
Overwhelmed by emotion and love, the admission that home is home is rather evident; the smell of the clear air, the perfect night sky, the flow of Kiswahili, Sheng and all other sets of dialects is music to my ears. Fighting back the tears is quite the task but it be time to drive up to the house and enjoy being in the motherland.
It feels good to be home; +254 you have been sorely missed and I'm here to prove it!
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