On the streets of Nairobi

You are probably asking yourself what are the things you can find in the town dani (town center) in a developed African city, as Nairobi. It is not like any other city I have seen in my life.

The first things you find in the center are tons of matatus. Matatus are a type of public transport, which we will describe in more extense towards the end of our journey, as there are many interesting stories about them. You also find thousands of people on the streets. I can say that the majority is better dressed than us, and they are not all businessmen. People in Kenya like to dress well every day, in a neat and clean way, even with ties. You can also find the counter part, poor people asking for money or selling small things while lying on the floor.

You may not believe me but you can also find various skyscrapers, taller then many European buildings, as well as thousands of shops. The shops are usually dedicated to sell fast food, mobiles, CDs, DVDs and clothes (mostly second handed). You cannot imagine the amount of these tiny shops there are.

What struck me most was the amount of Fast food restaurants, where they all sell the same thing, fried Chicken, and fries. This Chicken, I can tell you from personal experience, is better than KFC Chicken, and is very cheap, a quarter Chicken with fries and a drink costs less than two Euros. Although I must recommend not eating more then once a week because of the amount of calories and fat it has.

I do not understand how there are so many mobile retailers and how they survive. This must be because getting land lines here is really hard, they have even better mobiles then us in Europe. Selling CD copies is supposedly illegal, but why are they all selling them in well-established stores? If you give a little to police they amazingly become blind and do not see them.

As a msungu I can walk “calmly” through the streets, for almost three weeks now I have been walking and using public transportation every day and we haven’t been mugged or threatened in any way. The only thing they have tried is to con us in the matatus, but they have not succeeded. The most dangerous thing to do here is to walk, you can find any obstacle when doing so. You can find a matatu on the sidewalk in front of you or coming from behind, as well you have the danger of crossing the streets as there is no place to cross. Red lights are not followed so when crossing just run and remember to look all around you as you do not know from where a car can arise. The best technique is to cross the street at the same time a local does it. You can even find holes where your whole body fits.

For future tourists I can tell you it is a wonderful city and is one of its kind. Do not worry about what they tell you in books or on the news, it is a secure city. People here are so welcoming and ready to help in any moment.