September 1st
2:11 PM
2:11 PM
Stockholm after dark
August 22nd
1:22 PM
1:22 PM
Elephants at Maasai Mara National Reserve
August 20th
1:25 PM
1:25 PM
Wildebeest at sunrise over Maasai Mara
August 17th
1:16 PM
1:16 PM
Charcoal
Nairobi, Kenya
August 16th
1:07 PM
1:07 PM
Mistaken Identity
- Scene: Lauren is in downtown Nairobi waiting for a friend. They planned to meet in front of a landmark office building that also happens to have high security protection. Lauren's friend is running late, so she is sitting and waiting on the ledge of the gate surrounding the building. A security guard approaches her.
- Guard: "Hello madam."
- Lauren: "Hello."
- (Lauren immediately senses that the guard is going to ask her to move, and really doesn't feel like moving, so she turns on the charm.)
- Lauren: "Sir, I'm waiting for a friend who is running late. He is supposed to meet me right at this spot. Is it okay if I wait here?"
- (Lauren glances at him with sympathetic bedroom eyes. The guard melts on contact and shifts purpose.)
- Guard: "Oh yes, that's okay. You can stay right here. Welcome."
- (Lauren smiles at him again with outward gratitude and inward smug satisfaction.)
- Lauren: "Thank you sir."
- (The guard walks away.)
- ----15 minutes pass----
- (The guard returns.)
- Guard: "Madam, is that you friend over there?"
- (The guard points to the crowd of people walking down the street. Lauren's friend is a young Kenyan man about her age.)
- Lauren: "No, I don't see him."
- Guard: "Are you sure?"
- (The guard points again at the LONE white girl walking the street. Lauren raises her eyebrows at the guard's statement.)
- Lauren: "Ha, no. My friend is a he, and he's Kenyan."
- Guard: "Ah..."
- (The guard's response is dripping with skepticism. Lauren gets the feeling that the guard thinks all white people must know each other. Again, someone is mislabeling her as the mzungu white girl.)
- Lauren: "Trust me....that's not who I'm waiting for."
- Guard: "Sawa (okay)..."
- (The guard walks away with a look on his face like the joke is on Lauren.)
August 15th
1:15 PM
1:15 PM
Only in America: Part III
My time in Kenya is quickly coming to an end. I miss America and I miss home. For all the things that America does wrong, there are many things that she does right. There is a quality of life, efficiency and creativity that I can’t wait to be a part of again.
August 14th
1:08 PM
1:08 PM
Kibera water pipe
August 12th
1:13 PM
1:13 PM
Kibera: Part III
Kibera is located in a very favorable area for development. It is close enough to downtown Nairobi that it offers a short commute, but far enough to allow for space for development. A few residents shared their perspective on the development that is taking place.
August 10th
1:55 PM
1:55 PM
Kibera: Part I
Kibera is the second largest slum in Africa. I visited with a friend who was raised there, and continues to make his home there today.
The estimates of the population of Kibera range from close to 200,000 up to 2,000,000. Disputes over the population aside, Kibera is HUGE. You look out over the neighborhood and it just seems to stretch on and on.
I have heard many different things about the community and its people, so I wanted to visit and see for myself. Here are the bits and pieces that I have brought together about Kibera.
August 9th
3:13 PM
3:13 PM
Unauthorized Liquids
- Scene: Lauren is in a restaurant and has just placed an order for lunch. She takes out her water bottle and starts drinking. The server comes back over to her table.
- Server: "Excuse me madam we don't allow drinks from outside in the restaurant."
- (Lauren takes a sip.)
- Lauren: "Oh? I mean, it's water. It's not like I opened a bottle of wine..."
- Server: "Yes, that is our policy - it says no outside drinks. So if you want I can bring you a soda or you can order something off the drink menu."
- Lauren: "No, that's okay, I'm fine with just water. I don't really drink soda."
- (Lauren takes another sip. The server isn't sure what to do, so Lauren offers clarification.)
- Lauren: "You know, where I come from, when you go to a restaurant, you get tap water on the table for free."
- Server: "FREE?!?"
- Lauren: "Yup, for free. But at home I always carry around a bottle, like this one."
- (Lauren takes a swig and nods the bottle towards the server.)
- Server: "Where are you from?"
- Lauren: "America."
- Server: "Oh."
- Lauren: "So the point I'm trying to make is that I will not be buying another bottle of water when I already have a perfectly good one right here. And you know, I've been in Kenya for months, and taken my water to many restaurants in different cities, and I've never had a problem."
- Server: "But our policy says...."
- (Lauren takes another sip. Usually, she is very interested in water policy, just not this kind of water policy. After spending a summer working with national malaria policy, this kind of policy seems trivial and annoying.)
- Lauren: "Maybe it's best to not worry about the policy for today. Okay?"
- (Lauren takes another sip. Defeated, the server nods in agreement. The bottle is almost empty.)
- Lauren: "And you know what else? In a Chinese restaurant in America, you get free water AND free rice with your meal. Here it is separate, and you said it would cost me extra. How are you supposed to eat Chinese food with no rice???"
- (For this reason, Lauren ordered noodles.)
- Server: "You mean you always get the rice for FREE?!?!"