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Nairobi

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Gregor Martynus edited this page Sep 23, 2013 · 5 revisions

The Lonely Planets for East Africa and Kenya (including some maps) are here: https://www.dropbox.com/home/AfricaHackTrip%20-%20Lonely%20Planet%20Chapters

AfricaHackTrip Intel

  • We stay at: Kiloranhouse Cottage | 3rd Rt Kitale Lane
  • Our host is called Adriel | Cell: +254 73 624 1771 | Email: [email protected]
  • iHub's address is: 4th floor, Bishop Magua Centre, Ngong Road
  • Here is a map of the way from our house to iHub and back: http://goo.gl/maps/Lw3rX
  • Between our house and iHub is a shopping center called Yaya, which seems to be well stocked (including pharmacy) http://www.yaya-centre.com/
  • A driver that was recommended to us is: Charles | +254 72 136 2305
  • Alternative Drivers Gregor know's: Patrick +254 721165501, Kim: +254 725575709
  • General Rules on Taxis: Check whether the car and the driver are in good condition. Rely on your intuition, if you're not comfortable, there's probably a reason. Agree on the price before you get into the car. Keep your window closed in the city (to avoid smash & grab). If you find a taxi driver you like, get his number and call him when you need a taxi.

Little bits on Nairobi - mostly history, politics and economy

Waso nairobi means "cold water" in Maasai. The city was established in the 1890s, when the East African Railway was built to connect Mombasa and Kampala. The British had big plans to open up the interior to white settlers, and because of its favorable climate and environment, the city grew quickly and became the commercial centre of eastern Africa and in 1907, the capital of Kenya. Tourists (mostly hunters, at first) loved the fact that there were animals within the city, so the grand hotels were built for them, and the animals were allowed in the city - hence, the story of Richard Turere, which Mark Kamau likes to tell as an intro: http://www.ted.com/talks/richard_turere_a_peace_treaty_with_the_lions.html. The National Park was established in 1946, that's very early.

In 1963, Kenya achieved independence. Nairobi grew very quickly afterwards, which has been putting lots of pressure on its infrastructure: Water shortage and power cuts still remain problems, especially in the shanty towns and slums, and traffic is very hectic.

In 1998 (exactly 15 years before the airport burned down), there was an attack on the US embassy, for which a group associated with al-Qaeda claimed responsibility. On 27 December 2007, Mwai Kibaki (a Kikuyu) "won" the presidential elections - apparently, they were a fraud. Serious riots all over the country and also in Nairobi followed, partly ethnical, partly political, during which about 1,500 people were killed and over 600,000 were internally displaced. In Nairobi, most of the riots took place in Kibera and other slums - the terrible violence lead to the development of Ushahidi..

This year in March, the next presidential elections took place, with almost no violence. Uhuru Kenyatta is now president. He is the son of Jomo Kenyatta, Kenya's first president, and apparently also the richest man in Kenya - and there is a trial at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, because he supposedly orchestrated the post-election violence of 2008. It's quite the mafia story, this NYT timeline is interesting: http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/k/uhuru_kenyatta/index.html

The economy is booming, but most of the people don't benefit from the grwoth. Unemployment is at 40%, and 50% of Kenyans live below the poverty line. Thanks to Deutsche Bank & Co, food prices are terribly high. The gap between rich and poor is enormous, and Kenya ranks 143 out of 187 on the Human Development Index. The government's Vision 2030 plan (http://www.vision2030.go.ke/) is widely considered to be a pretty good one - among other things, it puts an emphasis on IT :)

And Kenya is at war with Somalia. Or more precisely: Fighting al-Shabaab across the borders after attacks and kidnappings. This started in 2011, I don't know how that really feels on the ground in Nairobi, i seems like the capital is not really affected - here are some articles: http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2013/feb/20/kenya-combats-shabaab-security-livelihoods and http://www.dw.de/kenias-kampf-gegen-al-shabaab/a-15953578 (German) Bumi and Basti, please take care on the coast..

On Saturday, Sep 20th around noon an attack started on the Westgate mall, hostages are taken, 68 people reported that as of now (Monday noon). There are a lots of wrong rumors spreading and fake twitter accounts, so be cautious, as even the media reports this things without confirming it. Accounts to follow: KenyaRedCross, UKenyatta, InteriorKE, PoliceKE, kdfinfo. See also the list at http://blog.ushahidi.com/2013/09/23/a-westgate-update-from-the-kenya-ushahidi-team

Things to do - a very subjective list

  • National Museum: http://www.museums.or.ke/content/blogcategory/11/17/ | If you're into museums, this apparently is not to be missed. Ethnological exhibition on the peoples of Kenya, stuffed birds, stuffed mammals, a cradle of humankind exhibition, a huge collection of hominid skulls, and a history department. (KSh 800 / near city centre)
  • National Park within the city, so there will be wild animals and skyscrapers on the same photos: http://www.kws.org/parks/parks_reserves/NANP.html (USD 40)
  • Elephant Orphanage: http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/ | feeding time: 11am | Founded by David and Daphne Sheldrick in the 1950s, became a trust in 1977. They raise orphaned black rhinos and elephants and reintroduce them into the wild (in Tsavo NP) | If you go there by bus (125 or 126 from Moi Ave, get off at KWS central workshop), you WALK through the National Park for a bit. Among lions. So awesome :) Apparently, the lions know that they are not allowed on the footpaths. (KSh 500)
  • Giraffe Center: http://giraffecenter.org/ | "kiss a giraffe" is an option | Another couple, this one called Jock and Betty Leslie-Melville, raised a baby giraffe in their home in 1979. Namely, a Rothchild giraffe - the ones without patterning below the knee - of which there were only 120 left at the time, and those were all endangered by habitat loss. They founded the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife (AFEW), which raises and releases giraffes. Now, there are 300 giraffe in different National Parks. There's apparently quite a lot of information on conservation at the center. (KSh 700 / in/near Karen)
  • Karen Blixen Museum: http://www.museums.or.ke/content/blogcategory/13/19/ | For those who love "Out of Africa" - and/or wrote a thesis on it ;) Very briefly: Karen Blixen was Danish, married to a Swedish baron, they were the first to grow coffee so high up. Apart from that, the husband was quite the ass, and Karen was quite the bohemian (and maybe feminist). She had an affair with Denys Finch Hatton, British aristocrat who apparently really took a gramophone and Mozart on Safari, flew with Amelia Earhart and was one of the first people to be concerned about hunting elephants for ivory. Among others, Karen wrote a book about her time in Africa ("Out of Africa"), which was made into a movie by Sydney Pollack in 1985 and won a couple of oscars. The area "Karen" was named that after Karen Blixen. (KSh 800 / in Karen)

Eating, Drinking, Dancing, Shopping

There's always the Lonely Planet to check, but I prefer relying on local advice :)

Nairobbery

Don't know if it's true, but usually a city deserves its nickname. Just be vigilant. Someone bumping into you is probably not an accident ;) There are a couple of scams - refugee, university student who just lost funding, "police" that tell you you might be in trouble. I don't know how to avoid these, the Book says you should just walk away.

Real bad crime seems to be happening mostly in the shanty towns and slums - not where we will be staying and working. the Central Business District (CBD) seems to be hectic and apparently there is comparably much pickpocketing going on there. "Walk with confidence, keep a hand on your wallet ad avoid wearing anything too flashy".

Precautions:

  • Only carry money in your wallet - keep your credit card somewhere else.
  • Use the safe for your passport and valuables.
  • If you do get mugged, NEVER EVER resist. Just give them everything you have and be safe.

Emergency

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