Swahili and British Vocabulary

Right... so my Swahili vocabulary to date is:

Asante: Thank You
Matatu: The scary mini buses that pack about 25 people into a mini van
Jambo: Hello

Apparently they actually say "Akuna Matata"- as in the famous song from the "Lion King", but I haven't heard that as of yet... and when I do I can guarantee I will want to jump into a Broadway musical set :)

My British vocabulary is growing as well:

Mobile: cell phone
Cooker: Stove
Brillant: uh oh... could this substitute my extensive use of the word... GREAT?!!

I hope to take a lot of pictures this weekend to show off what a great place the city is and hopefully put some faces to names. Within this posting I have posted a picture of the place where I am staying (temporarily) as well as a pic of the Nairobi Skyline- shows how developed the city is!




For some reason I am having trouble adding a picture of the Nairobi skyline, so check it out here... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nairobi

I am still working on getting my air freight here, but I know that will take some time and hopefully the shipping agent and parties involved will figure it out for me :)

The other night I went out with a group of women who work for Doctors without Borders- we went to see a movie and then out to supper. The theatres here are GREAT! Cheap and really nice! Look just like Chinook Centre in Calgary. Most of the latest movies are playing and there appears to be an African film festival on this weekend which is exciting and I hope to check out one of the films on Sunday. As I have mentioned a number of times, the food is excellent! After the film, we went to a Mediterrean restaraunt.

Last night, Dana and her friend Jim (Kenyan) and I went out to eat at a place called "Java House". Talk about modern! Wireless internet, great coffee, nice ambience, it was really a treat. Before that I decided I would try to stop by the fancy hotel and see if I could use their gym. However, apparently all they have is a pool and it was a little chilly (seriously) so I decided to hit the bar and have a beer while I read my book before supper. The beer here is quite good- called "Tusker"- for those in Calgary, if you want to try it you can pick it up at the Kensington Wine Market. Last night was an earlier night than I have had lately, but it was good as I needed to catch up on some sleep.

Tonight after work, everyone is heading out to a pub for happy hour and supper. Should be a good time and a great way to meet other people at work that I haven't had the chance to socialise with. Saturday is the big shopping for furniture day with the landlady and then Dana, Cyril (Co worker from Ivory Coast) and I are going to check out a popular Ex Pat bar called "Casablanca". Sunday is the market day so I want to be sure to see what that is like and then maybe try out one of these films at the African Film Festival. Also... have to get packed for Kigali- all that happens on Monday.

I also had the chance to see the shopping centre (well one of the many in town). They have this great store called "Nakamat"- basically it is the Wal Mart of Kenya and absolutely amazing. It has everything that you could need. (Not sure if I talked about this already in my last post?) Anyways it is really a great place and you can buy anything from food to furniture.

Well that is Friday's update. Love getting everyone's emails!!