Halfway done!

Today is July 9, just over a month since my arrival here in Nairobi. Can you believe it?! I realized that there is so much that I still want to do and there's so little time left to do it! I'll be traveling to Maua, capital of Meru district near the base of Mt. Kenya, on Sunday and then I'm headed to Mombasa the following week. Then I have little excursions planned to go "mountain climbing" at Mt. Logonut, to visit the Obama's father's hometown (for another engagement ceremony), and hopefully to visit Masai Mara, the world renowned game park. Aside from planning ahead - and my weekend excursions- what have I been up during the last two weeks?

After staying at work until 9:00 pm last Monday (I got to watch the football game while sorting documents ;) ), I dragged my host Achieng - who doesn't watch football - to the local nyama choma (roast meat) pub to watch Brazil vs Chile. It was a good match, and some quality housemate bonding!

Achieng's face after taking a bite of mutura, a Kenyan delicacy. 

Me trying mutura...

Me smelling the mutura as it approached my mouth...

My face after tasting the dish, which resembled sausage but is actually stuffed intestines.

Last Wednesday, after work, I treated myself to a dance show at Alliance Francias - Nairobi's major cultural center. Pamoja, a dance company for persons with disabilities, presented an eclectic modern dance show entitled "Koncrete City." As a former "dancer" myself, I really appreciated the strength of the dancers. Whether they were missing a leg, had a crippled arm, or were under 3 feet tall, the dancers demonstrated themselves as incredible artists and superior acrobats. It was inspiring! 

A man with a cripple leg, unable to stand, performances a duet with another dancer, who is a dwarf

The dance crew.

I tried to sneak some pictures during the show :) 

The director of the show with two disabled company members. 

This week, I played hookie on Tuesday do visit Kenyatta Market. In addition to fruit stands and clothing, the market is well-known for hair stylists whose shops line up next to each other, one after the other. As soon as I got off the matatu, women started approaching me to give me the "best price." I had already made an appointment ahead of time, so I just ignored the hassle. Here was the final product - after removing my old braids, washing my hair, and putting twists in. Can you believe I did all this for total cost of 1750 kshls (US$22)...and I was "overcharged." 

Then, after watching an emotional movie at the cinema on Super Tuesday, I convinced the other interns I was with to accompany me to Club Soundd for a poetry/spoken word/musical performance jam. The featured artist was Antoni from Uganda, and it was fun!!

Musical featured artist Antoni performing

Antoni performing. He was a little pitchy, but the performance was fun nonetheless

My celeb moment with Antoni

My night finished with one last celebrity moment...I was interviewed by the international TV station SuperSport, where I gave my analysis of the game Netherlands vs. Uruguay game! I don't have a TV, so I guess I'll never know what I looked like on TV...