AMERICA!!

For the past five days, six of my friends and I have been living the Kenyan high life. We were on what is known as ISP Prep for our independent study projects that we will be beginning in about two weeks. For this, we decided it would be a great idea to live in a nice luxurious apartment with such amazing things as wi-fi, a TV, hot running water, and a kitchen in which we can cook what we want when we want it. This mostly means we went to the market and bought multiple huge bags of vegetables to consume incessantly for a few days.

What we were not ready for was the large amount of culture shock that would be put back into our lives whenever we left the building or the ‘wazungu zone’. Although the days were nice, the re-assimilation into homestay culture is a big joke. We were really smart about needing to re-assimilate ourselves. Sometimes I forget about the trash-covered dirt roads with ditches of crap on the outsides. No, really, I do love Kenya, but things get a little intense at times.

Needless to say, we, a group of pretty liberal beings with either impartial or negative feelings towards America, may have found our love for the country. On one particularly rough day involving one of my friends, Molly, stepping into an unforeseen pile of excrement and spending a while scrubbing it off her feet and shoes, we celebrated our allegiance to the beloved country we miss and call home. This celebration may have involved singing at the top of our lungs to any song that either says ‘America’ or which we associate with the country. There may have been some brief tears, exclamation of memories, and shouts of regret. All that was missing was a flag and some PBR.

However, we were continually snapped back into reality with the results of what we now call the ‘Nairobi Shuffle/Hustle”. It mostly revolves around the fact that Africa likes to really make its way through Americans. Just imagine: a white person hunched over, clenching his or her stomach while walking/slightly jogging down the street in hopes of making it back to the bathroom fast enough, with the other hand clutching whatever items the mzungu cherishes so as to avoid any attempts at mugging. Point two: during this alleged shuffle is probably when the mzungu will get hit on by the most Kenyan men. Who would have thunk it? Part C: This person may or may not also be looking for some bushes in case they vomit before they get anywhere.

Moral of the story: God Bless America. Kenya always has something new to throw at you. Embrace the Nairobi Shuffle.