I didn't make it to the beach in the end as a couple of people I'd been trying to make contact with suggested doing things over the weekend, so I thought it would be wise to stay in Yaoundé. This included a couple of beers with a French guy, who took me to a weird cabaret style bar, and dinner at a Spanish restaurant with a real expat crowd. They're mostly older than me with more official jobs and all drive around in big cars, have nice houses and spend lots of money on western-style food. On my wage I can't afford that too often. I had plans to for the big game too - Cameroon-Egypt in the final of the Cup of Nations - but they didn't work out. It didn't matter too much in the end, Cameroon lost and suddenly everything was back to normal. People seem generally to have taken the defeat on the chin and there is a general acknowledgement that Egypt were the better side and that there's a fair element of chance in knockout tournaments, which is refreshing when I think back to reactions to some of England's defeats over the years.
I also went up to Hotel Mont Fébé, which is more or less the poshest hotel in Cameroon, to relax by their pool. The Cameroon football team was there, fresh from their final defeat, and so there was a fair old circus of hangers on. I ate lunch a few tables away from Samuel Eto'o, which was pretty cool, and Joseph Desire-Job was on the next table, which I couldn't really have cared less about but it was interesting to see the sheer hassle even he got from fans. It was weird actually to think that this guy earns in the region of a couple of million a year just to play football, and in Eto'o's case, more like £5m. I was surprised how physically slight he is, TV really must add some pounds.
Later in the week one of the people who I'd contacted on Facebook the previous week invited me to his house for dinner. I had a really pleasant evening with him, his wife and his children. One of the things he mentioned to me during the evening was that at one point many years ago he tried to make a living importing Cameroonian art to the States for wholesale, but he got conned and lost a fair bit of money. It was interesting that he'd had no problems conducting smooth business at this end, but got completely screwed over at the American end by a professional con-artist and a company that never paid up.
As I was leaving after dinner I asked if they know anyone who plays or teaches djembe, as it's something I'd like to do while I'm out here. My question prompted a whoop, clap, laugh and semi-jig from his wife... yes she knows a djembe teacher, he'll be here tomorrow and he'll be playing while she and some others dance, I should drop by and check it out. At best I'd hoped they might have a friend of a friend who played or something, but this was literally the perfect answer to my question. So the next day after work I stopped by their house again, which is actually on my way home. There was the drummer, about 3 or 4 Cameroonian women, a few young American girls over here on some exchange programme, a dancing guy, the drummer, me and the kids. We drummed, they danced. It was brilliant. I hope I'll be able to do it again. I'm also looking into getting private lessons with the teacher, which would be great if it works out.
Thursday was all about work. It was the first day I really felt engaged and productive, and it was a good – if tiring – feeling. The whole day was busy, in a really good way. In the morning the Country Director told me about some funding that we might be able to access to provide some relief (food, clothes, water) to some of the refugees in the far north of the country who have recently come in from Chad. We had to get a mini-proposal in by the end of the day, which I was to write. So I had to take a quick crash course in the situation, get in touch with UNHCR, MSF and whoever else I could think of, and work out how to make a plausible proposal out of the limited information at my disposal. It was a difficult but important task, as a good job could result in these people getting assistance that they wouldn't otherwise get.
In the evening, tired and in need of some relaxation, I got in touch with some people who have a regular poker game. The game was actually held at the house of the person to whom we'd submitted the proposal just minutes before I got there, but we didn't talk shop. He was hospitality personified, and after some pizza, beer, whiskey and a successful night on the poker table whereby my £11 had grown to £28, I left feeling well looked-after and a wee bit lucky.
I hope the luck continues and this project comes through; it's a relatively small amount of money, but I'm sure it is worth doing.
Friday, 15 February 2008
Friday, 8 February 2008
08/02/08
This morning I tidied up my dead roaches for the day, deposited them in the nearest heap of rubbish and walked to work. On the way I saw a guy eating out of a dustbin, which was a little bit sobering, and then a few minutes later I was stopped by a woman who I thought was going to ask the time or directions. She asked if I had any cleaning or babysitting that needed doing, as things were very hard for her at the moment. She had a slightly desperate look on her face, while nonetheless trying to be dignified. She had the look of someone who is trying to refrain from expressing their emotions; her face was trembling a little bit and her facial expressions were a little bit erratic with slightly manic smiles, although she was still quite composed. You can never be sure, but she seemed genuinely upset. Basically, I feel like I should offer her some cleaning work. Only when I'm in the house, and after I've talked to her some more and tried to find out more about her, but I think it would be a good idea. If you have an opinion let me know. The way I see it the worst that can happen is I get robbed, the best that can happen is I give an opportunity to earn some money to someone who really needs it.
Anyway, it's Friday pm and everyone has gone home except for one or two people. I'm pretty annoyed because Monday is a holiday and everyone goes home early on Fridays and no-body thought to tell me either of those things. I'm missing an opportunity to be travelling now to make the most of the long weekend, but I still might go somewhere tomorrow morning. I'm also feeling pretty lonely again as my friend-raising efforts on Facebook have so far come to naught but promises, and someone who I was kind of banking on to reply - a contact I got through VSO - hasn't got back to me. So it's no-mates-ville again tonight, and probably the best plan will be to head to the coast tomorrow so that if I am to be on my own for 3 days at least I'll have the beach.
I need to chill out with the blogging too, last night when I was watching the football there were a couple of points where I was thinking about what to say about it in my blog. Very unhealthy, so a hiatus is probably required.
If anyone can be bothered then give me a ring off Skype - +237 79604423 - 15p a minute.
And happy birthday to Carrie and DC for Sunday!
The VSO person has just got back to me - cool.
Anyway, it's Friday pm and everyone has gone home except for one or two people. I'm pretty annoyed because Monday is a holiday and everyone goes home early on Fridays and no-body thought to tell me either of those things. I'm missing an opportunity to be travelling now to make the most of the long weekend, but I still might go somewhere tomorrow morning. I'm also feeling pretty lonely again as my friend-raising efforts on Facebook have so far come to naught but promises, and someone who I was kind of banking on to reply - a contact I got through VSO - hasn't got back to me. So it's no-mates-ville again tonight, and probably the best plan will be to head to the coast tomorrow so that if I am to be on my own for 3 days at least I'll have the beach.
I need to chill out with the blogging too, last night when I was watching the football there were a couple of points where I was thinking about what to say about it in my blog. Very unhealthy, so a hiatus is probably required.
If anyone can be bothered then give me a ring off Skype - +237 79604423 - 15p a minute.
And happy birthday to Carrie and DC for Sunday!
The VSO person has just got back to me - cool.
Thursday, 7 February 2008
07/02/08
Alright, today was much better. The last couple of days I've been adjusting a little bit, more so to the insect situation than the work situation, which remains dubious. But I had a good meeting with the head of VSO in Cameroon who was very focused, clear-headed and efficient, and it was useful to have a lengthy one-to-one with my Country Director. The VSO guy gave me some useful contacts and a lot of useful information, so I have a lot more to chew on now. And it turns out I will be having some kind of formal induction in the office after all so that's good. Plus I'm starting to find cheap ways to do things – 250CFA (30p) for rice, beans, fishy sauce and bread from a guy just outside the office, 200CFA for most taxi rides in a shared taxi. It's really good to know I can get by on so little if needs be. The taxi system is great – you just shout your destination and the price you want to pay at passing taxis and wait until one of them honks at you to confirm they'll take you. It's really quit efficient, although I've been warned that it gets dodgy at night – fake taxis who'll mug you.
I've taken my friend-finding efforts to new lengths. Last night I went out looking for somewhere to watch the England game, hoping to snare some kind of company in the process. I sat at a bar called JC, coke in hand, before realising that I was much too early and the game wasn't on for an hour and a half. After sitting there, very much resembling a lemon, for about 10-15 minutes a middle-aged woman who was patently drunk and had been shouting at the bar staff came over and asked me if I was waiting for someone. Clearly she saw fear in my eyes as she quickly emphasised that she was married. That was good enough for me and I joined her and her friend, who it turned out managed the place, for some broken French, good humour, food and drink until she got bored of me about 20-odd minutes later. They were both Moroccan and very pleasant. A big step up on no company at all.
Today I really stepped it up a notch. Besides untactfully mentioning to the VSO guy that I could use some company, I went onto Facebook and searched for 'Yaounde', which yielded about 450 people. I went through, picking anyone who looked western (white) and sending them a moderately pathetic message. As I said in the message, dignity is no obstacle at this point. From 9 messages sent I've had 4 replies so far, not bad at all. I will probably meet two and I tried to meet up with a third tonight. She told me she'd be out watching the Cameroon-Ghana match tonight with friends and later called to tell me they were in an area called Essos, in a bar called Phoenix. I had no clue where that is but figured it out eventually and took a taxi there with a bit of help from a local, only to realise that no-one in Essos had a clue what or where Phoenix is. I wandered back and forth a bit in the dark, asking people, but no joy. By this point the football was in full swing, and when there was a goal and people spilled out into the streets from a multitude of roadside bars, jumping, running and dancing, I realised it was time to call off the search and get quickly into one of these bars. I chose the noisiest, rowdiest one I could see and hovered for a while, to see if I could fit in, still a bit cautious. I'd been standing at the back for a few minutes when a couple of young kids hovered towards me carrying a chair and sweetly offered it to me. Nothing could have made me feel more welcome.
When the final whistle went and Cameroon had won the whole place went mental. Many people just jumped up and ran, knocking over their chairs, jumping, whooping into the street to join others running down the street with flags, shouting and cheering. Many started to dance manically to the music that immediately began pumping out of the stereo, while the older heads gathered in the corner looking serious and presumably discussing very important matters; who Cameroon would play in the final for example. Meanwhile groups of little kids got their groove on to the music, cars honked their horns constantly, people blew whistles and horns, and everyone wore a big fat grin. I've never seen anything quite like it. At one point I was walking up the street and the group of kids and teenagers running up and down the street ran directly towards me. I stuck out my hand and got a series of high fives, big grins and shouts. Later on another teenager befriended me and took my phone number, promising to call for the final so we could watch it together. Eventually I found the bar I was looking for but my Facebook acquaintance was no longer there. It really didn't matter, and I just took a taxi home.
I've taken my friend-finding efforts to new lengths. Last night I went out looking for somewhere to watch the England game, hoping to snare some kind of company in the process. I sat at a bar called JC, coke in hand, before realising that I was much too early and the game wasn't on for an hour and a half. After sitting there, very much resembling a lemon, for about 10-15 minutes a middle-aged woman who was patently drunk and had been shouting at the bar staff came over and asked me if I was waiting for someone. Clearly she saw fear in my eyes as she quickly emphasised that she was married. That was good enough for me and I joined her and her friend, who it turned out managed the place, for some broken French, good humour, food and drink until she got bored of me about 20-odd minutes later. They were both Moroccan and very pleasant. A big step up on no company at all.
Today I really stepped it up a notch. Besides untactfully mentioning to the VSO guy that I could use some company, I went onto Facebook and searched for 'Yaounde', which yielded about 450 people. I went through, picking anyone who looked western (white) and sending them a moderately pathetic message. As I said in the message, dignity is no obstacle at this point. From 9 messages sent I've had 4 replies so far, not bad at all. I will probably meet two and I tried to meet up with a third tonight. She told me she'd be out watching the Cameroon-Ghana match tonight with friends and later called to tell me they were in an area called Essos, in a bar called Phoenix. I had no clue where that is but figured it out eventually and took a taxi there with a bit of help from a local, only to realise that no-one in Essos had a clue what or where Phoenix is. I wandered back and forth a bit in the dark, asking people, but no joy. By this point the football was in full swing, and when there was a goal and people spilled out into the streets from a multitude of roadside bars, jumping, running and dancing, I realised it was time to call off the search and get quickly into one of these bars. I chose the noisiest, rowdiest one I could see and hovered for a while, to see if I could fit in, still a bit cautious. I'd been standing at the back for a few minutes when a couple of young kids hovered towards me carrying a chair and sweetly offered it to me. Nothing could have made me feel more welcome.
When the final whistle went and Cameroon had won the whole place went mental. Many people just jumped up and ran, knocking over their chairs, jumping, whooping into the street to join others running down the street with flags, shouting and cheering. Many started to dance manically to the music that immediately began pumping out of the stereo, while the older heads gathered in the corner looking serious and presumably discussing very important matters; who Cameroon would play in the final for example. Meanwhile groups of little kids got their groove on to the music, cars honked their horns constantly, people blew whistles and horns, and everyone wore a big fat grin. I've never seen anything quite like it. At one point I was walking up the street and the group of kids and teenagers running up and down the street ran directly towards me. I stuck out my hand and got a series of high fives, big grins and shouts. Later on another teenager befriended me and took my phone number, promising to call for the final so we could watch it together. Eventually I found the bar I was looking for but my Facebook acquaintance was no longer there. It really didn't matter, and I just took a taxi home.
Tuesday, 5 February 2008
Cameroon 2
05/02/08
Well, things didn't improve, they got worse. My baggage made it back at the second time of asking, which is the good news, but a few things quickly started to get me down – or I let them get me down – whichever way you look at it. The first thing was work related (more detail when I set up a private side-blog) while the second was problems with my apartment. Admittedly I'd had my expectations unfairly raised by my colleague's apartment in Nairobi, but still I wasn't prepared to share my flat with cockroaches and mice. My Westerner Squeamishness Factor (WSF) appears to have increased at least 40-50% since my last African outing, although I'm sure that being on my own and frustrated with other things doesn't help. In any case the cumulative effect left me fairly miserable and one particularly protracted cockroach encounter, ending with me convinced it was buried in my bedsheets, left me paranoid, lonely and doubting my manhood. Not having hot water isn't ideal, but then most other people don't have it either. I hope that soon I'll appreciate how much luxury I'm in compared to those around me and be grateful for it, but for now I'm just wishing I was in one of the really plush apartments up the hill and, occasionally, wondering what the hell I'm doing here.
Anyway, I stocked up this afternoon on bug spray, bug powder and rat poison and have done a little mission round the flat poisoning them and, given the velocity of the fan that is currently pumping air and powdered poison around the flat, probably myself as well. One or more of us is going to die, and I'll back myself to outlast them.
Cameroon won last night in the football. I watched the first half on my TV that sort of works, and each time they scored I could hear massive cheers from the whole area outside the flat, it was almost like being in a stadium. These guys really love their football. Seriously love it. Much more so than the English, and it's much more joyful, less angry. I'm really glad they won because it means I get a chance to join in next time.
Besides my moans I had a few first impressions of Cameroon that I might as well record. Douala was crazy, full of ramshackle buildings and people buzzing around on motorbikes. Everyone seemed to have one and the roads were very hectic as a result. The airport was basic: when we got off the flight we were left to wander around aimlessly through what appeared to be customs and then passport control, without seeing anybody except taxi drivers, until we hit a closed door and were stuck. After a minute a guy came out and started doing the passports, and let us through to a small room with two carousels for baggage and a big pile of luggage in the corner that probably ought not to have been there. It was a pretty modest welcome from the nation's main gateway to the world. Douala is based, it seems, around the mouth of a big fat river and what vegetation there is is very tropical and lush (some might even say equatorial), but most of the urban area seems to be a dust bowl with single story wooden-walled buildings everywhere. Hand painted signs, corrugated iron roofs and sheer chaos are the orders of the day. Again, I didn't see much and it was all from an air-conditioned 4x4, but that's the best I can do. Yaounde is very different, more ordered by comparison, very hilly and with mercifully few nutters-on-motorbikes in residence. I'm looking forward to getting out and about and forming some more informed impressions of the place. Unfortunately, as I write, a cockroach has breached my defences. All bets are off at this point...
...well, I tried to spray it and it scuttled away somewhere. I'm not sure that 'out of sight out of mind' really applies in this scenario, but it'll do for now. Argh, I'm sure I just saw another one scuttle in. Nope, that was in fact the/a mouse. My fortress is crumbling under the first signs of attack. I'm not even going to look in the kitchen(ette), I don't want to know.
So that's where I'm at. Work isn't great, I've got no friends, I can't speak to the locals and I'm under attack from rodents and insects. No doubt the last part is my own fault for adopting the siege mentality and waging an unwinnable war instead of opting for peaceful coexistence. Perhaps there's a life lesson in there somewhere.
Well, things didn't improve, they got worse. My baggage made it back at the second time of asking, which is the good news, but a few things quickly started to get me down – or I let them get me down – whichever way you look at it. The first thing was work related (more detail when I set up a private side-blog) while the second was problems with my apartment. Admittedly I'd had my expectations unfairly raised by my colleague's apartment in Nairobi, but still I wasn't prepared to share my flat with cockroaches and mice. My Westerner Squeamishness Factor (WSF) appears to have increased at least 40-50% since my last African outing, although I'm sure that being on my own and frustrated with other things doesn't help. In any case the cumulative effect left me fairly miserable and one particularly protracted cockroach encounter, ending with me convinced it was buried in my bedsheets, left me paranoid, lonely and doubting my manhood. Not having hot water isn't ideal, but then most other people don't have it either. I hope that soon I'll appreciate how much luxury I'm in compared to those around me and be grateful for it, but for now I'm just wishing I was in one of the really plush apartments up the hill and, occasionally, wondering what the hell I'm doing here.
Anyway, I stocked up this afternoon on bug spray, bug powder and rat poison and have done a little mission round the flat poisoning them and, given the velocity of the fan that is currently pumping air and powdered poison around the flat, probably myself as well. One or more of us is going to die, and I'll back myself to outlast them.
Cameroon won last night in the football. I watched the first half on my TV that sort of works, and each time they scored I could hear massive cheers from the whole area outside the flat, it was almost like being in a stadium. These guys really love their football. Seriously love it. Much more so than the English, and it's much more joyful, less angry. I'm really glad they won because it means I get a chance to join in next time.
Besides my moans I had a few first impressions of Cameroon that I might as well record. Douala was crazy, full of ramshackle buildings and people buzzing around on motorbikes. Everyone seemed to have one and the roads were very hectic as a result. The airport was basic: when we got off the flight we were left to wander around aimlessly through what appeared to be customs and then passport control, without seeing anybody except taxi drivers, until we hit a closed door and were stuck. After a minute a guy came out and started doing the passports, and let us through to a small room with two carousels for baggage and a big pile of luggage in the corner that probably ought not to have been there. It was a pretty modest welcome from the nation's main gateway to the world. Douala is based, it seems, around the mouth of a big fat river and what vegetation there is is very tropical and lush (some might even say equatorial), but most of the urban area seems to be a dust bowl with single story wooden-walled buildings everywhere. Hand painted signs, corrugated iron roofs and sheer chaos are the orders of the day. Again, I didn't see much and it was all from an air-conditioned 4x4, but that's the best I can do. Yaounde is very different, more ordered by comparison, very hilly and with mercifully few nutters-on-motorbikes in residence. I'm looking forward to getting out and about and forming some more informed impressions of the place. Unfortunately, as I write, a cockroach has breached my defences. All bets are off at this point...
...well, I tried to spray it and it scuttled away somewhere. I'm not sure that 'out of sight out of mind' really applies in this scenario, but it'll do for now. Argh, I'm sure I just saw another one scuttle in. Nope, that was in fact the/a mouse. My fortress is crumbling under the first signs of attack. I'm not even going to look in the kitchen(ette), I don't want to know.
So that's where I'm at. Work isn't great, I've got no friends, I can't speak to the locals and I'm under attack from rodents and insects. No doubt the last part is my own fault for adopting the siege mentality and waging an unwinnable war instead of opting for peaceful coexistence. Perhaps there's a life lesson in there somewhere.
Sunday, 3 February 2008
Cameroon 1
03/02/08
Urgh, Cameroon. Not the best of starts. They don't seem quite such a friendly bunch as the Kenyans, the climate is stickier, and it seems more hectic, none of which features I'm particularly enamoured by. The flight I took here was en route to the Ivory Coast, and while I got off in the right place it seems that my main piece of luggage didn't. I hope it comes back as I don't have any spare clothes. It doesn't help that I'm struggling to communicate with people due to a combination of the Cameroonian accent (10%) and my crap French (90%), and that the one guy at the airport who spoke English was trying to con me. Still, I'm fed, watered and in a comfortable room with footy on the telly, so although I'm a bit tired and lonely I'm still feeling fairly chipper. Things will improve.
Urgh, Cameroon. Not the best of starts. They don't seem quite such a friendly bunch as the Kenyans, the climate is stickier, and it seems more hectic, none of which features I'm particularly enamoured by. The flight I took here was en route to the Ivory Coast, and while I got off in the right place it seems that my main piece of luggage didn't. I hope it comes back as I don't have any spare clothes. It doesn't help that I'm struggling to communicate with people due to a combination of the Cameroonian accent (10%) and my crap French (90%), and that the one guy at the airport who spoke English was trying to con me. Still, I'm fed, watered and in a comfortable room with footy on the telly, so although I'm a bit tired and lonely I'm still feeling fairly chipper. Things will improve.
Saturday, 2 February 2008
Nairobi 3
02/02/08
I'm starting to feel that whatever political 'solution', or perhaps more accurately status quo, is reached here, the violence will not simply stop at that point. Our first taxi driver's optimism that things would go back to normal after a couple of weeks is starting to seem misplaced, and it seems that it's going to take a significant effort to restore calm. Kofi Annan is making positive noises, as it's his role to do, and at least there is dialogue. However, the security situation seems simply to be deteriorating. In addition to the factors of politics, poverty, race and revenge that I described as contributing to the violence, we can add class, as described to us by someone living in an area directly affected by the violence. It is not uncommon now for people to be attacked by others of the same tribal identity but of a different social class. A situation that was at first characterised as solely political (although the extent to which this was ever true is debatable) can be seen now to encompass not just political and tribal divisions, which remain significant factors, but almost any possible grievance.
Yesterday Adam and I went to play with African animals: we went first to a sanctuary for baby elephants and watched them kick a football around, get fed and generally be entertaining, before going to see some big old giraffes. And like any good NGO worker we both pulled: apparently snogging giraffes is de rigeur and we were cajoled into doing it after being promised that their saliva is antiseptic. Is it? I hope so. At the elephant sanctuary we were part of a camera-happy group of tourists who were snapping away merrily. When a group of Kenyan schoolchildren arrived the cameras turned almost seamlessly from the elephants straight to them. It made me feel a little uncomfortable, although I felt better after imagining that perhaps the elephants were just a ruse so that the kids could come and stare at the funny westerners with their stupid clothes and unnecessarily complex cameras that they don't know how to use. Or is it just entertainment for the elephants? Either way the African animal count is starting to look a bit more reasonable as a result of the day's activities: giraffes, elephants, a rhino, some warthogs, a baboon, lots of pretty birds... Can I include Kenyan children? Anyway, the tourist industry seems to be functioning still, but barely. The staff at the sanctuary were quite anxious for us to spread the word that Kenya is still open for business, but seemed to have only just enough custom to keep them going. Likewise at the guesthouse, it's fairly empty but they're carrying on more or less as usual. However it's plain as day that if it carries on like this for too much longer people are going to lose jobs and businesses are going to fold. It's a sad thought that these kind, skilled people could soon be without a job for no good reason. For now the best I can do is to give people my business and tip generously.
It was good to get out and about a little bit and see more of the city, even though we only really saw things from the car. I was surprised by the amount of interesting architecture scattered around the city, there were many inventively designed buildings that had clearly taken a lot of effort and money to put together. The CBD was also a bit more impressive close up. The initial signs of affluence that I'd seen from the plane were, when I looked at a map, clearly identifiable as some of the wealthiest parts of town, yet nonetheless we saw a fairly significant body of well-constructed modern-ish dwellings when driving around. We also saw, from a distance, the poorest part of town – the Kibera 'slum' (I don't like pejorative aspect of the word) which is home to about half a million people. This area has been the location of much of the violence.
Today I went to the Kenya office for a few hours to use the internet. Some dedicated staff were in working on a Saturday, while others were unable to come in at all as it was too dangerous for them to be out on the roads in the areas where they live: attacks on passing drivers are not uncommon in some areas. The office's staff, nearly all of whom are Kenyan nationals, are apparently in some shock over the whole situation and some have friends or relatives who have been injured or killed. From the perspective of the west it might seem like a typical “oh Africa's fucked again” scenario, but it seems that to Kenyans this is a real shock.
As has been the case since our arrival in Kenya, we continue to be treated with an implausible degree of warmth and hospitality. People here seem genuinely kind, happy and friendly, and I hope to be able to come back one day when things are more settled. From tomorrow, however, it's Cameroon, speaking French and starting work proper, at least 2 of which I'm looking forward to. And if speaking French is the biggest of my worries then I guess I must be doing okay.
I'm starting to feel that whatever political 'solution', or perhaps more accurately status quo, is reached here, the violence will not simply stop at that point. Our first taxi driver's optimism that things would go back to normal after a couple of weeks is starting to seem misplaced, and it seems that it's going to take a significant effort to restore calm. Kofi Annan is making positive noises, as it's his role to do, and at least there is dialogue. However, the security situation seems simply to be deteriorating. In addition to the factors of politics, poverty, race and revenge that I described as contributing to the violence, we can add class, as described to us by someone living in an area directly affected by the violence. It is not uncommon now for people to be attacked by others of the same tribal identity but of a different social class. A situation that was at first characterised as solely political (although the extent to which this was ever true is debatable) can be seen now to encompass not just political and tribal divisions, which remain significant factors, but almost any possible grievance.
Yesterday Adam and I went to play with African animals: we went first to a sanctuary for baby elephants and watched them kick a football around, get fed and generally be entertaining, before going to see some big old giraffes. And like any good NGO worker we both pulled: apparently snogging giraffes is de rigeur and we were cajoled into doing it after being promised that their saliva is antiseptic. Is it? I hope so. At the elephant sanctuary we were part of a camera-happy group of tourists who were snapping away merrily. When a group of Kenyan schoolchildren arrived the cameras turned almost seamlessly from the elephants straight to them. It made me feel a little uncomfortable, although I felt better after imagining that perhaps the elephants were just a ruse so that the kids could come and stare at the funny westerners with their stupid clothes and unnecessarily complex cameras that they don't know how to use. Or is it just entertainment for the elephants? Either way the African animal count is starting to look a bit more reasonable as a result of the day's activities: giraffes, elephants, a rhino, some warthogs, a baboon, lots of pretty birds... Can I include Kenyan children? Anyway, the tourist industry seems to be functioning still, but barely. The staff at the sanctuary were quite anxious for us to spread the word that Kenya is still open for business, but seemed to have only just enough custom to keep them going. Likewise at the guesthouse, it's fairly empty but they're carrying on more or less as usual. However it's plain as day that if it carries on like this for too much longer people are going to lose jobs and businesses are going to fold. It's a sad thought that these kind, skilled people could soon be without a job for no good reason. For now the best I can do is to give people my business and tip generously.
It was good to get out and about a little bit and see more of the city, even though we only really saw things from the car. I was surprised by the amount of interesting architecture scattered around the city, there were many inventively designed buildings that had clearly taken a lot of effort and money to put together. The CBD was also a bit more impressive close up. The initial signs of affluence that I'd seen from the plane were, when I looked at a map, clearly identifiable as some of the wealthiest parts of town, yet nonetheless we saw a fairly significant body of well-constructed modern-ish dwellings when driving around. We also saw, from a distance, the poorest part of town – the Kibera 'slum' (I don't like pejorative aspect of the word) which is home to about half a million people. This area has been the location of much of the violence.
Today I went to the Kenya office for a few hours to use the internet. Some dedicated staff were in working on a Saturday, while others were unable to come in at all as it was too dangerous for them to be out on the roads in the areas where they live: attacks on passing drivers are not uncommon in some areas. The office's staff, nearly all of whom are Kenyan nationals, are apparently in some shock over the whole situation and some have friends or relatives who have been injured or killed. From the perspective of the west it might seem like a typical “oh Africa's fucked again” scenario, but it seems that to Kenyans this is a real shock.
As has been the case since our arrival in Kenya, we continue to be treated with an implausible degree of warmth and hospitality. People here seem genuinely kind, happy and friendly, and I hope to be able to come back one day when things are more settled. From tomorrow, however, it's Cameroon, speaking French and starting work proper, at least 2 of which I'm looking forward to. And if speaking French is the biggest of my worries then I guess I must be doing okay.
Friday, 1 February 2008
Nairobi 2
01/02/08
The last couple of days have been focused around security training that we, the 4 interns, received from a quite eccentric couple living in Nairobi. One is a retired Major from the British armed forces who seems to have served almost everywhere on the planet in one capacity or another and who is almost a caricature of the old-style British army general, complete with loud clipped voice, dark gallows humour, showy intellectualism and ample eccentricities. I have my suspicions that he's been involved in all sorts of shady business with secret services and the like but there is no evidence for this other than a general coyness that could be for other reasons. The other, his partner, is a security expert who was in charge of security in Iraq for the FCO (which involved living in one of Saddam's palaces for a while) and has been involved in all manner of impressive high level security operations, who is now for some unknown reason working for our organisation. Between them they really know their stuff and it was an enlightening if unusual couple of days. At first their abrasive tendencies were, well, abrasive, however once we were in their home they seemed to relax and showed us some genuine warmth, a lot of humour and some real hospitality. It was certainly appreciated and we learned a lot in a short space of time: about security in general, first and second aid in trauma situations, the range and capability of certain weapons and how to avoid being in their way, unexploded remnants of war, how to behave in a hostage situation, and lots more. The overall feeling was that there is a lot more to know or think about than I had imagined and it would be great to be able to do more. However these couple of days were a whole lot better than nothing.
The first evening after the security training we had some drinks at their massive plush house in a UN-endorsed secure compound, surrounded by trees and amazing wildlife, but had to leave a little early as the person who was to drive us home needed to get back early to avoid being in danger as there had been incidents in the area where he lived. This was another reminder that beyond the western safe-haven there are real problems affecting a lot of people. Of course, we know this, but one of the slightly shocking things about these few days for me has been how easy it is to get used to the safe and affluent bubbles that NGO and UN workers create for themselves and to some extent forget where you are.
The second evening, last night, we went to a nearby bar that had been recommended to us and had some food and beers. There was a Kenyan salsa band playing and the clientele was mostly foreigners of some description along with some affluent Kenyans. After everyone had had a few drinks it seemed to take on the air of a school disco, with people dancing quite self-consciously and in many cases obviously on the pull. It was strange to think that a lot of these people were probably fairly senior UN or NGO staff, people who if they came to lecture on my Human Rights course I probably would have looked at with some degree of deference. Yet here they were, drunk, a little bit desperate, on the pull and dancing badly. It was a scene that was in part sad in its sixth-form naivety and disparity from normal Kenyan life, yet in part also humanising of people who it's easy to see as cogs in a dull bureaucratic machine but who obviously have the same basic needs and emotions as anyone else. It's easy to criticise, but ultimately I think it's hard to begrudge this kind of thing when people are a long way from home for sustained periods of time and typically working quite hard on often very difficult issues. It's not ideal for many reasons, but at least they're here and trying.
On a more serious note, the security situation in central Nairobi doesn't seem to have improved. News came through of more problems over the past two days, including the murder of another opposition politician, and we saw military aircraft fly past a few times, presumably on their way to either attend to or cause trouble. We also saw a couple of vans with furniture strapped to the top, full of people who it is safe to assume had been displaced by the violence. The new theory going around is that this trouble was inevitable whoever had won (I find this very hard to believe) and that a possible solution now is for both Kibaki and Odinga to step down and leave the way clear for a re-run of the election. We will see.
The last couple of days have been focused around security training that we, the 4 interns, received from a quite eccentric couple living in Nairobi. One is a retired Major from the British armed forces who seems to have served almost everywhere on the planet in one capacity or another and who is almost a caricature of the old-style British army general, complete with loud clipped voice, dark gallows humour, showy intellectualism and ample eccentricities. I have my suspicions that he's been involved in all sorts of shady business with secret services and the like but there is no evidence for this other than a general coyness that could be for other reasons. The other, his partner, is a security expert who was in charge of security in Iraq for the FCO (which involved living in one of Saddam's palaces for a while) and has been involved in all manner of impressive high level security operations, who is now for some unknown reason working for our organisation. Between them they really know their stuff and it was an enlightening if unusual couple of days. At first their abrasive tendencies were, well, abrasive, however once we were in their home they seemed to relax and showed us some genuine warmth, a lot of humour and some real hospitality. It was certainly appreciated and we learned a lot in a short space of time: about security in general, first and second aid in trauma situations, the range and capability of certain weapons and how to avoid being in their way, unexploded remnants of war, how to behave in a hostage situation, and lots more. The overall feeling was that there is a lot more to know or think about than I had imagined and it would be great to be able to do more. However these couple of days were a whole lot better than nothing.
The first evening after the security training we had some drinks at their massive plush house in a UN-endorsed secure compound, surrounded by trees and amazing wildlife, but had to leave a little early as the person who was to drive us home needed to get back early to avoid being in danger as there had been incidents in the area where he lived. This was another reminder that beyond the western safe-haven there are real problems affecting a lot of people. Of course, we know this, but one of the slightly shocking things about these few days for me has been how easy it is to get used to the safe and affluent bubbles that NGO and UN workers create for themselves and to some extent forget where you are.
The second evening, last night, we went to a nearby bar that had been recommended to us and had some food and beers. There was a Kenyan salsa band playing and the clientele was mostly foreigners of some description along with some affluent Kenyans. After everyone had had a few drinks it seemed to take on the air of a school disco, with people dancing quite self-consciously and in many cases obviously on the pull. It was strange to think that a lot of these people were probably fairly senior UN or NGO staff, people who if they came to lecture on my Human Rights course I probably would have looked at with some degree of deference. Yet here they were, drunk, a little bit desperate, on the pull and dancing badly. It was a scene that was in part sad in its sixth-form naivety and disparity from normal Kenyan life, yet in part also humanising of people who it's easy to see as cogs in a dull bureaucratic machine but who obviously have the same basic needs and emotions as anyone else. It's easy to criticise, but ultimately I think it's hard to begrudge this kind of thing when people are a long way from home for sustained periods of time and typically working quite hard on often very difficult issues. It's not ideal for many reasons, but at least they're here and trying.
On a more serious note, the security situation in central Nairobi doesn't seem to have improved. News came through of more problems over the past two days, including the murder of another opposition politician, and we saw military aircraft fly past a few times, presumably on their way to either attend to or cause trouble. We also saw a couple of vans with furniture strapped to the top, full of people who it is safe to assume had been displaced by the violence. The new theory going around is that this trouble was inevitable whoever had won (I find this very hard to believe) and that a possible solution now is for both Kibaki and Odinga to step down and leave the way clear for a re-run of the election. We will see.
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