halfway home
decided to bite the bullet and pay the 6 pounds it costs to use internet for 90 minutes in this airport. oh how i look forward to the day when wireless internet is free everywhere.
i am not even close to the first person to say this, but the whole airport security process is really excessive and often humiliating. on the way to Nairobi via Heathrow, i didn't pull all my 'liquids' out of my bags because I had no problem going through Dulles with everything inside, and then was held up for approximately 1/2 hour while they searched about 5 bags ahead of mine before they could look into mine. Today i was smart and pulled it all out into one little plastic baggie and got through Heathrow security in about 30 seconds flat. Nairobi was actually the most redundant security system of all - they scan all your bags before you even walk into the airport, then you go through immigration (which is much faster leaving than coming in, obviously), they have you put your carry on luggage through the machine to get into the waiting area, then again to get from the waiting area to the gate, then AGAIN before you actually walk through the gate - the security guy explained that when going through the gate, the first round is Nairobi airport officials and the second is British Airways, but seriously? I walked 10 feet. What could I have possibly put in my bag as I walked that distance? And I can't drink my water while I eat my sandwich. I understand the 'better safe than sorry' concept but it's such a hassle, especially late at night or early in the morning.
Rant over. It was really a relatively painless process overall.
So now I have about 4 hours until my next flight takes off, and another 7 or so until I land in DC. One of the women who works at our office in Nairobi, Pam, arranged for us to use the company's typical driver, Joseph, to explore some parts of the city for my last day there. Part of my day was spent like this:
Can you tell how uncomfortable I am having the giraffe lick my hand?? It was pretty amazing getting that close to such a large creature, though. After the Giraffe Center, we went to the Mamba Village, where they want to charge $10 for you to see some crocodiles (which is apparently what 'mamba' means) and only have buffet style lunch, so we ended up just getting water/soda and headed to Village Market for lunch instead. Village Market is basically a large-ish outdoor mall with a good food court, a movie theater, and stores like Mango and Woolworths that I was surprised to see in Africa. Pam and I decided to see a movie to pass some time, and headed downtown to another theater. We ended up seeing a Kenyan movie called 'From a Whisper' (still can't figure out why it's called that) that is about the bombing of the US Embassy in Nairobi ten years ago. It was overdramatic and the music was too loud, but it was good to understand a little more of how that all happened, and indeed a great way to pass time. Then Joseph dropped me off at the airport, I went through the security process described above, sat in a cafe briefly with a guy who works for the UN who was flying back to Paris (where he's from) on business, sat in a too-small waiting area, and managed to sleep through the majority of the flight. Hoping I sleep just enough on this next leg to make it to about 10pm tonight. I've had offers from various friends to help me stay awake, which is nice.
I'm ready to be back in DC for a decent stretch of time! I'm heading to NC for a wedding on Columbus Day weekend but until then I think I'll be in town the whole time. This last month has been a whirlwind. I still can't believe I just spent two weeks in Africa!
Or maybe I can.
i am not even close to the first person to say this, but the whole airport security process is really excessive and often humiliating. on the way to Nairobi via Heathrow, i didn't pull all my 'liquids' out of my bags because I had no problem going through Dulles with everything inside, and then was held up for approximately 1/2 hour while they searched about 5 bags ahead of mine before they could look into mine. Today i was smart and pulled it all out into one little plastic baggie and got through Heathrow security in about 30 seconds flat. Nairobi was actually the most redundant security system of all - they scan all your bags before you even walk into the airport, then you go through immigration (which is much faster leaving than coming in, obviously), they have you put your carry on luggage through the machine to get into the waiting area, then again to get from the waiting area to the gate, then AGAIN before you actually walk through the gate - the security guy explained that when going through the gate, the first round is Nairobi airport officials and the second is British Airways, but seriously? I walked 10 feet. What could I have possibly put in my bag as I walked that distance? And I can't drink my water while I eat my sandwich. I understand the 'better safe than sorry' concept but it's such a hassle, especially late at night or early in the morning.
Rant over. It was really a relatively painless process overall.
So now I have about 4 hours until my next flight takes off, and another 7 or so until I land in DC. One of the women who works at our office in Nairobi, Pam, arranged for us to use the company's typical driver, Joseph, to explore some parts of the city for my last day there. Part of my day was spent like this:
Can you tell how uncomfortable I am having the giraffe lick my hand?? It was pretty amazing getting that close to such a large creature, though. After the Giraffe Center, we went to the Mamba Village, where they want to charge $10 for you to see some crocodiles (which is apparently what 'mamba' means) and only have buffet style lunch, so we ended up just getting water/soda and headed to Village Market for lunch instead. Village Market is basically a large-ish outdoor mall with a good food court, a movie theater, and stores like Mango and Woolworths that I was surprised to see in Africa. Pam and I decided to see a movie to pass some time, and headed downtown to another theater. We ended up seeing a Kenyan movie called 'From a Whisper' (still can't figure out why it's called that) that is about the bombing of the US Embassy in Nairobi ten years ago. It was overdramatic and the music was too loud, but it was good to understand a little more of how that all happened, and indeed a great way to pass time. Then Joseph dropped me off at the airport, I went through the security process described above, sat in a cafe briefly with a guy who works for the UN who was flying back to Paris (where he's from) on business, sat in a too-small waiting area, and managed to sleep through the majority of the flight. Hoping I sleep just enough on this next leg to make it to about 10pm tonight. I've had offers from various friends to help me stay awake, which is nice.
I'm ready to be back in DC for a decent stretch of time! I'm heading to NC for a wedding on Columbus Day weekend but until then I think I'll be in town the whole time. This last month has been a whirlwind. I still can't believe I just spent two weeks in Africa!
Or maybe I can.
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