Hello from the Kenya! I am finally here and loving it. My flight from Dubai to Nairobi could not be described as posh. I asked the girl beside me what was the deal being it was the same airliner and all. She just laughed and said, "Honey, you're going to Africa" and giggled. Well, at least she didn't sugarcoat it for me.
I was certainly the celebrity on board and everyone wanted to know what I was doing. I got a ton of advice on where to go and what to do. Everyone was so lovely. We exchanged numbers and are going to hang out while I am here.
Arriving at the airport was rather eventful. Needless to say, I was less than thrilled to be missing my Africa "junk." It turns out I was one of three volunteers to lose their luggage so we are all pretty empathetic to each other. We have merged our things to help each other out but there is still a ton of things missing that we totally need. For example, we all have toothbrushes and no one has toothpaste. I have deodorant by refuse to share it; three people using the same stick in African heat is too far out of my comfort zone.
I got in really late the first night and went straight to the hotel. Boy, if that hotel was in Canada -- China even - it would have been condemned and burned to the ground. Anyway, the view was a backyard full of garbage that would have been a health hazard to walk in, and it didn't smell too pleasant either. The neighborhood was full of strays dogs - that love to lick the smelly Dee. I had to shower nearly straddling the toilet because they were in the same room with no divider. The hot water button didn't work so I got the coldest shower of my life. The staff were amazingly nice and were used to foreigners; we spent a lot of time chatting with them. Tonight at the hotel I had African spaghetti with nut sauce. It was… ummm…nutty.
That being said... I AM LOVING IT! Luckily, I had the China experience and wasn't too shocked. It has to be noted, however, that China should be considered heaven compared to the average conditions of the normal African community. If you took a Kenyan at put them in a hutong they would feel like they were on the show "Extreme Makeover Addition." Seriously, there are no words to describe it.
Till next time...
2 comments:
I wish I could run across the street to CVS and buy you a tube of toothpaste and then send it to you via Internet. I hear baking soda is a good alternative, but very gross. We're rooting for you over here!
Leticia
Would you really love Africa and the entire experience as much if you were well groomed and perfumed? Okay, so the answer to that question is most likely YES but there is nothing like rugged conditions and new sights and smells to pique your senses and make you feel alive.
Lucky!
Jessica
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