10 things I miss the most from the US...
10. Puffs Plus Lotion with the Scent of Vicks Facial Tissues: having been blowing my nose every 30min for 10 days on cheap toilet paper really makes me miss this product from the developing world
9. Libraries/Book Stores: where you can sit and browse all sorts of books and get exposed to various things for free! I also miss being able to just go online and request a book, a music CD, or a DVD from the library and get tons of stuff waiting for me to pick up and browse through at the library. Reading for pleasure isn't really something encouraged here in Kenya, people read to pass exams, reading for pleasure I was told is even looked upon as a waste of time. As a result, reading is a bit of an "upper class" privilege; not only is the book selection limited, all the books are sealed...I'm not much of an avid reader, but having the physical access to these things is still something I deeply appreciate and miss.
8. My Kitchen Tools: having worked for a kitchenware company I was blessed with a ton of awesome kitchen tools that made cooking/baking much more fun. My flat came with a knife that's pretty dull and a peeler that doesn't really peel...I'm also missing the measuring tools for baking...may have to try eyeballing it, not sure how it'll work when it comes to baking...
7. Being Middle Class: it's a very odd feeling to be an "elite" and have everyone seeing you as a wealthy muzungu (i.e. gringo or foreigner)...having been brought up middle class, I've always feel awkward owning expensive items or spending money on something extravagant/showy. There's almost some comfort in the ability to blend in and being just another an "average joe"...but here, even though I do not wear flashy clothing, by the very nature of my skin color people think that I'm wealthy, which I suppose is relatively true considering the GDP here, and there's nothing I can do to change people's opinion about me...being someone who's very much interested in being "one of them", and having somewhat mastered the skill to "blend in" in the many moves I've had in the past, this is truly the first time I'll just have to be comfortable being different and find a way to leverage it.
6. Good Bread and Pastry from a Decent Bakery: no need for the Pierre Hermes or
5. A Proper Map where the roads on the map actually exists...there's not really a good system here, so giving direction is mostly based on landmarks...the one map of Nairobi I got has roads that no longer exist and does not have roads that's pretty important, so it took me several hours to roughly guess where I live and where everything else is relative to where I live
4. Big selection of junk food...I loved browsing through the grocery store and finding new things...while there are giant supermarkets here, the variety of packaged food offering is relatively blend and unimaginative...
3. Discovering things off the beaten path: Nairobi is not a very walkable city for a single foreign girl like me...so every time I go out, it's always pre-planned, so I do miss walking in the city center, and discovering this boutique shop in this hidden street, or that bakery in that corner...
2. Friends I can just call up for a walk in the middle of the night: what I missed the most from college days to Minneapolis were friends who lived nearby that can just be called up in minutes notice to take a walk around the lake...obviously, walking in the middle of the night probably wouldn't be wise in Nairobi, I suppose I can always chat my heart out with my night guard, but it's just not the same
1. Freedom to go anywhere I want, whenever I want with either my own car or easily accessible public transportation:
10 Thing I am Digging about Nairobi...
10. There's a Service for Everything! for a price, you can get service from laundry to taxi to whatever you wish, there are plenty of people looking for work, now the quality may not be the greatest, but there will be someone who's willing to do it for you
9. Getting Out of Nairobi...there's lots of towns nearby to go hike, going to hike the Menengai Crater soon, so very excited about that...hopefully I can take a few weekend trips to Lamu + Taita Hill...etc. soon
8. How people say "nice" all the time: people smiles here! a lot! Everyone is very polite, I've never seen anyone fight, and everything is "nice"..."I suggest you go there, that's a nice way to get out of this traffic jam" "this is a very nice coffee shop" "she's a very nice lady" "you have a very nice purse" "oh, don't do that, that's not so nice"...etc.... and the way Kenya say the word "nice" makes it especially "nice", there's this calm, charming tone to it, imagine someone say the word nice with a smile deep into their heart...it sounds kind of like that...I later found out that in Swahili, all the nice things are expressed by "mzuri", there's not really a lot of difference in expression when it comes to that unlike in english, you would say amazing, beautiful, awesome...etc. So I guess the direct translation into English really is just ..."nice"
7. Proper Greeting: not only do people smile a lot here, people actually take time to greet you properly here, ask you how you are, talk about the weather before getting into the business...somehow these "small talks" felt a bit different from the US, people seems to genuinely be interested in knowing how you are vs. asking something without really wanting to hear the answers...it's refreshing!
6. Getting all the different TV channels around the world...more than what I've ever had in the States
5. British English...it helps that I'm working with 2 british bosses + kenyan/nigerians...so British English is used almost daily... I started to "sort out" things instead of "figuring out things", and take "holidays" instead of "vacations"...maybe at the end of this I will be able to actually fake a British accent
4. Being Called and Treated like a Lady... guys actually comes outside to open your car door for you, or walk you to your door when taking you home...and always being addressed as "Ms. Arlin" or "Ms. Tao"...feel so proper this way
3. Diversity...all the different tribes have their own language and traditions, and everyone seems to be getting along, there isn't a lot of discrimination as far as I can tell, people from different religions get along with each other, and politics doesn't seems to get people too fired up, either.
2. African Time...while this can be frustrating when trying to get things done/fixed, I'm actually quite enjoying this coming from several years of stress from "I need this done yesterday"...when someone say he's 10 minutes away, that may really mean 1 hours depending on who is saying it and traffic...when someone says, I'll fix this "now", there's no real way to gauge if he means "now now" or "tomorrow now"...so if I can actually get someone to show up on time or actually having a meeting at a previously agreed meeting time, it feels like a huge triumph! There are a lot of little things that can make my days in Nairobi!
1. My coworkers + friends... I'm really enjoying working with them and getting to know them, I've got a nice mix of Western and African culture in the office, so bouncing back and forth provides a nice variety...there's always a lot of jokes going around in the office, and I feel super comfortable expressing my thoughts since day 1, so "mzuri sana" (very nice).
10. Puffs Plus Lotion with the Scent of Vicks Facial Tissues: having been blowing my nose every 30min for 10 days on cheap toilet paper really makes me miss this product from the developing world
9. Libraries/Book Stores: where you can sit and browse all sorts of books and get exposed to various things for free! I also miss being able to just go online and request a book, a music CD, or a DVD from the library and get tons of stuff waiting for me to pick up and browse through at the library. Reading for pleasure isn't really something encouraged here in Kenya, people read to pass exams, reading for pleasure I was told is even looked upon as a waste of time. As a result, reading is a bit of an "upper class" privilege; not only is the book selection limited, all the books are sealed...I'm not much of an avid reader, but having the physical access to these things is still something I deeply appreciate and miss.
8. My Kitchen Tools: having worked for a kitchenware company I was blessed with a ton of awesome kitchen tools that made cooking/baking much more fun. My flat came with a knife that's pretty dull and a peeler that doesn't really peel...I'm also missing the measuring tools for baking...may have to try eyeballing it, not sure how it'll work when it comes to baking...
7. Being Middle Class: it's a very odd feeling to be an "elite" and have everyone seeing you as a wealthy muzungu (i.e. gringo or foreigner)...having been brought up middle class, I've always feel awkward owning expensive items or spending money on something extravagant/showy. There's almost some comfort in the ability to blend in and being just another an "average joe"...but here, even though I do not wear flashy clothing, by the very nature of my skin color people think that I'm wealthy, which I suppose is relatively true considering the GDP here, and there's nothing I can do to change people's opinion about me...being someone who's very much interested in being "one of them", and having somewhat mastered the skill to "blend in" in the many moves I've had in the past, this is truly the first time I'll just have to be comfortable being different and find a way to leverage it.
6. Good Bread and Pastry from a Decent Bakery: no need for the Pierre Hermes or
5. A Proper Map where the roads on the map actually exists...there's not really a good system here, so giving direction is mostly based on landmarks...the one map of Nairobi I got has roads that no longer exist and does not have roads that's pretty important, so it took me several hours to roughly guess where I live and where everything else is relative to where I live
4. Big selection of junk food...I loved browsing through the grocery store and finding new things...while there are giant supermarkets here, the variety of packaged food offering is relatively blend and unimaginative...
3. Discovering things off the beaten path: Nairobi is not a very walkable city for a single foreign girl like me...so every time I go out, it's always pre-planned, so I do miss walking in the city center, and discovering this boutique shop in this hidden street, or that bakery in that corner...
2. Friends I can just call up for a walk in the middle of the night: what I missed the most from college days to Minneapolis were friends who lived nearby that can just be called up in minutes notice to take a walk around the lake...obviously, walking in the middle of the night probably wouldn't be wise in Nairobi, I suppose I can always chat my heart out with my night guard, but it's just not the same
1. Freedom to go anywhere I want, whenever I want with either my own car or easily accessible public transportation:
10 Thing I am Digging about Nairobi...
10. There's a Service for Everything! for a price, you can get service from laundry to taxi to whatever you wish, there are plenty of people looking for work, now the quality may not be the greatest, but there will be someone who's willing to do it for you
9. Getting Out of Nairobi...there's lots of towns nearby to go hike, going to hike the Menengai Crater soon, so very excited about that...hopefully I can take a few weekend trips to Lamu + Taita Hill...etc. soon
8. How people say "nice" all the time: people smiles here! a lot! Everyone is very polite, I've never seen anyone fight, and everything is "nice"..."I suggest you go there, that's a nice way to get out of this traffic jam" "this is a very nice coffee shop" "she's a very nice lady" "you have a very nice purse" "oh, don't do that, that's not so nice"...etc.... and the way Kenya say the word "nice" makes it especially "nice", there's this calm, charming tone to it, imagine someone say the word nice with a smile deep into their heart...it sounds kind of like that...I later found out that in Swahili, all the nice things are expressed by "mzuri", there's not really a lot of difference in expression when it comes to that unlike in english, you would say amazing, beautiful, awesome...etc. So I guess the direct translation into English really is just ..."nice"
7. Proper Greeting: not only do people smile a lot here, people actually take time to greet you properly here, ask you how you are, talk about the weather before getting into the business...somehow these "small talks" felt a bit different from the US, people seems to genuinely be interested in knowing how you are vs. asking something without really wanting to hear the answers...it's refreshing!
6. Getting all the different TV channels around the world...more than what I've ever had in the States
5. British English...it helps that I'm working with 2 british bosses + kenyan/nigerians...so British English is used almost daily... I started to "sort out" things instead of "figuring out things", and take "holidays" instead of "vacations"...maybe at the end of this I will be able to actually fake a British accent
4. Being Called and Treated like a Lady... guys actually comes outside to open your car door for you, or walk you to your door when taking you home...and always being addressed as "Ms. Arlin" or "Ms. Tao"...feel so proper this way
3. Diversity...all the different tribes have their own language and traditions, and everyone seems to be getting along, there isn't a lot of discrimination as far as I can tell, people from different religions get along with each other, and politics doesn't seems to get people too fired up, either.
2. African Time...while this can be frustrating when trying to get things done/fixed, I'm actually quite enjoying this coming from several years of stress from "I need this done yesterday"...when someone say he's 10 minutes away, that may really mean 1 hours depending on who is saying it and traffic...when someone says, I'll fix this "now", there's no real way to gauge if he means "now now" or "tomorrow now"...so if I can actually get someone to show up on time or actually having a meeting at a previously agreed meeting time, it feels like a huge triumph! There are a lot of little things that can make my days in Nairobi!
1. My coworkers + friends... I'm really enjoying working with them and getting to know them, I've got a nice mix of Western and African culture in the office, so bouncing back and forth provides a nice variety...there's always a lot of jokes going around in the office, and I feel super comfortable expressing my thoughts since day 1, so "mzuri sana" (very nice).
It's neat to learn about another culture through your post
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