16 July--Nairobi
YAWN….. So what else to expect after a 19-hour trip? Got to Nairobi just fine. First leg of the trip on KLM was kind of mediocre, plane and food. However, I did get to see Robots, which I missed at the theater. Solid C. A melatonin tablet got me through Hitch, which I’d already seen.
My transfer gate in Amsterdam was right beside my arrival gate, so that couldn’t have been easier. I got out and explored the airport some so I could walk, and I got a bottle of gin at the duty-free. Tonic water and limes are available in Kenya, so we have the gin-and-tonics taken care of. (That info is so my fellow travelers can get something else there!) Changed some money so I’d have some for tips in Nairobi.
Amsterday-Nairobi was a great flight. Each chair had it’s own video, and there about 50 movies to choose from. I saw a very good Dutch film, Simon, about the friendship between a straight guy and a gay guy. I think it was Holland’s candidate for the foreign film Oscar. Very Dutch, but good – an A. Could’ve watched the Maltese Falcon or Million Dollar Baby, too, but I couldn’t stay awake. Give me KLM (Europe) any day!
It was dark when I got here to Nairobi, but I was at my hotel within an hour of landing. Things couldn’t have been easier. My driver tonight (and tomorrow) is a 67-year-old grandfather named Joseph. He took me right to the hotel through Nairobi’s dark night. The city is recovering from a really bad reputation for crime, and Joseph went to special lengths to tell me how the new government is beefing up police patrols. When we turned off lit streets and into a real dark one, two guys in combat fatigues with machine guns loomed into sight, but Joseph told me they were police going to question four guys I’d noticed as we turned. However, by the time he got that out, I was already feeling lucky that I had some money in my pack so that, when they stole it, they wouldn’t find my real stash in my money belt. Ha! However, as dark as the city is, I think it was a pretty normal fear.
Nice little hotel here in Nairobi—five acres of gardens, several outdoor restaurants, nice service. Hope the sun’s up at 6:30 am tomorrow so I can see it.
My transfer gate in Amsterdam was right beside my arrival gate, so that couldn’t have been easier. I got out and explored the airport some so I could walk, and I got a bottle of gin at the duty-free. Tonic water and limes are available in Kenya, so we have the gin-and-tonics taken care of. (That info is so my fellow travelers can get something else there!) Changed some money so I’d have some for tips in Nairobi.
Amsterday-Nairobi was a great flight. Each chair had it’s own video, and there about 50 movies to choose from. I saw a very good Dutch film, Simon, about the friendship between a straight guy and a gay guy. I think it was Holland’s candidate for the foreign film Oscar. Very Dutch, but good – an A. Could’ve watched the Maltese Falcon or Million Dollar Baby, too, but I couldn’t stay awake. Give me KLM (Europe) any day!
It was dark when I got here to Nairobi, but I was at my hotel within an hour of landing. Things couldn’t have been easier. My driver tonight (and tomorrow) is a 67-year-old grandfather named Joseph. He took me right to the hotel through Nairobi’s dark night. The city is recovering from a really bad reputation for crime, and Joseph went to special lengths to tell me how the new government is beefing up police patrols. When we turned off lit streets and into a real dark one, two guys in combat fatigues with machine guns loomed into sight, but Joseph told me they were police going to question four guys I’d noticed as we turned. However, by the time he got that out, I was already feeling lucky that I had some money in my pack so that, when they stole it, they wouldn’t find my real stash in my money belt. Ha! However, as dark as the city is, I think it was a pretty normal fear.
Nice little hotel here in Nairobi—five acres of gardens, several outdoor restaurants, nice service. Hope the sun’s up at 6:30 am tomorrow so I can see it.
posted by RogerD at 3:46 AM
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