Today I rode to town with Jessica, our roommate, and the Pederson family, full-time missionary staff, while Howard rested from the last vestiges of jet lag. We drove on Kasarani Road again toward Mwiki. The road is a narrow two-lane road with no curbs or shoulder. Occasionally there is striping down the middle, but most often not because the asphalt has deteriorated and disappeared. There are deep potholes and whole sections where it is just dirt--bumps and holes. Remember this was a British colony, so we are also driving on the left side. If the pothole is on your side, you just drive on the wrong side of the road. And yes, there is traffic coming at you so you better get back to your own side quickly. Frequently there is a traffic jam ahead, and then drivers just create a third lane (yes, on the two-lane road!!!) to try to get through the traffic jam "faster". Cars, buses, and matatus (mini-buses) are inches away from each other. No traffic signs exist; perhaps there is no speed limit. Since there was a lot of traffic today, we moved through the village quite slowly allowing Jessica and I to fill up our eyes and brains with all the sights.
There were as many people walking alongside the road as there were vehicles. The side of the road is dirt with large rocks poking through the dirt. Some people were carrying quite heavy loads of bananas or large bottles of water. The buildings in Mwiki are constructed of gray or brown cinderblock. They range from 2-5 stories. Sometimes the upper story is open to the sky. The walls are there, but no roof or windows yet. Upper stories have balconies where laundry hangs on the banisters. The ground floor usually contains really small shops. Each of them have a signboard above their shop. Driving by, the amount of print to read is overwhelming because there are so many signs. We saw several small, portable chicken coops where you could buy a live chicken for dinner. A small herd of 5-6 goats was walking alongside the road among the parked cars.
Jessica and I both loved the trip. We would have liked to walk for a while to experience it closer.
Our destination was a shopping mall closer to Nairobi. We arrived there and got a token which somehow calculates how much you pay for parking. There is only one entrance to the three-story mall, and it is guarded by two security guards, one male and one female. We walked up to the female and she waved her wand over us and inspected the inside of our purses. The mall itself seemed very American. There was a Sony store among the clothing shops, hardware store, and grocery store. The power went out midway through our time there, so some shopping was done in the dark. Our 10 year old friend, Olivia, pointed out the potato chips to us--chicken flavored, tomato ketchup flavored, and grilled steak flavored were some of the choices.
In the late afternoon, Howard and I took a walk around the inside perimeter of the village. We watched kids play. Howard sat down and attracted a group like a magnet. They love touching his hair and his arms. The kids also love posing for photos, so I have a steady stream of photo ops wherever I go. Today, one little boy told me, "Your face is so flat!" He laughed and looked, laughed and looked. I think he couldn't figure out my round face, actually. They are so fun to talk to; the kids are friendly and ask lots of questions.
What a gift to experience this place and these people!
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