Nairobi Nights

Apparently, in Nairobi’s expat community, the weekend starts on Thursday night. I could have sworn that I was telecast to Marshall Street or College Park or Adams Morgan (or any other college town for those of you who are unfamiliar with those locales). My colleague and I went to a Cuban restaurant for dinner and drinks for her friend. When we walked in, the scene was quite overwhelming. The bar was packed and people were literally hovering over each other talking, drinking, and having a good time. I was actually taken aback because I wasn’t expecting any of this- at all. I don’t know if it’s because it was only my second night in the cit or the clientele, which I wasn’t expecting, but it was all a lot to take in, especially at once. Luckily, we were able to retreat to the back of the restaurant and found a table in the corner, where the scene was a bit less “overwhelming”.

The food was DELICIOUS! It was Cuban and I had prawns with tostones (fried green plaintains). I thoroughly enjoyed my meal along with a bottle of wine and great conversation. I almost forgot where I was until it was time to leave our little nook in the corner of the restaurant.

Walking back out and through the bar centered party that had literally tripled in size was quite an experience. In addition to the young professional expats who were by this time fairly drunk, some Kenyan prostitutes joined the party. Under normal circumstances, I would have been a tad bit self-conscious that someone might mistaken me for a prostitute, but luckily I was fully dressed. Them, not so much… But they were having a great time, gyrating against smitten European men, while onlookers got sneak peaks of their “goodies”.

As I meandered through the crowd, one decided to greet me with a head butt to the forehead. For a split second I wondered if she thought I had encroached into her territory and was fighting me for her “track”, but then she profusely apologized and I acknowledged that she was drunk and in an effort to impress her potential john, she exaggerated her laugh, throwing her head back and right into my forehead. Great.
But I was able to escape and without any knots on my head in the morning.

No Paparazzi Allowed

Last night, I went out to a club in Ntinda. I’ve always enjoyed the nightlife in Kampala because the music is a mix of hits from all over the world. No matter which region it comes from, the deejays just want to play good music. This night, the dj was particularly on point as he played music from West Africa that made me feel at home in so many ways. An artist named Priscilla even came out and did a surprise performance. Her songs were really good and she could really dance! In the states we’re often amazed at Ciara’s talent and the control she has over her body when she dances, but I’ve seen so many artist here who would kill Ciara in a dance off. One girl in particular, named Aisha, at MYDEL has so much talent, I wish she had the avenues to become a wider known entertainer…
But back to my night out, I had a fabulous time! Another thing that surprised me about Priscilla’s performance was that though she was a well-known performer, the crowd wasn’t fazed by her presence. They enjoyed her performance, but they were no where near as star struck as Americans are when celebrities are around. She performed right on the dance floor of the club and once she was done she continued dancing in the club with the other patrons. She was treated and regarded as any other person in the club.
Towards the end of the night I decided to take pictures of the group. My friend had already told me that cameras are not allowed in the club, but I had a big pocket book and was able to smuggle it in. But in the midst of my photo shoot, I was stopped by a bouncer and told I couldn’t’ take anymore pictures. He wanted me to delete the ones I had already taken, but I quickly put my camera away and assured him that I wouldn’t take anymore.
I asked my friends why people weren’t allowed to take pics in clubs and they said that some people don’t want others to know that they go to clubs. Kampala is a fairly liberal city, but there are still some groups who are very traditional and believe that drinking and dancing is sacrilegious. Even though it is against their beliefs many people still sneak off to clubs and bars, sinfully. Funny enough, tabloids in the region seek to expose members of the community who claim to be righteous, but are out and about town drinking and dirty dancing. For this reason, clubs try to protect their patrons by banning cameras.

Back to Basics

Today, I did the first thing that is usually on my mind when I visit the continent. I got my hair braided. I always take advantage of the fact that I can get my hair done exactly the way I like for an extremely small fraction of that which I would pay in the States to get it done very subpar. Of course, I sent my friend over ahead of me to bargain for the price because once the braiders heard my accent, I’d have a great deal of difficulty getting the local rate.
I was successful getting it done and I love it!
I also did the usual tasks like exchanging money, and got a cell phone.
I also met some of my friend’s family. He has a million and one brothers and they are all very nice. Their family store is the local hang out spot and when I got there, there were about 20 of his friends and family to meet. I apologized ahead of time because I knew that I would not be able to remember all of their names.
During this time I actually realized how horrible my memory has been getting. There were people that I met last year and who even met me at the airport the day before and I could not remember their faces, much less their names for the life of me!
The rest of the day was spent hanging out with friends. We watched music videos and had some drinks the earlier part of the evening. This was actually more enlightening for me because when I am home I rarely have time to watch television and definitely not videos. Here there is a music channel that plays videos all day long and a good majority of them are from the US, so I was able to put a face to the voices that I often hear on the radio and in the club.
The second part of the night we went to a bar in town and that was also a good time. The music was great. It reminded me why I like being here so much. They play the best songs, new or old and I love that.
Overall, it was a great way to start the trip.