Hello from Mombasa
Dear family and friends,
I hope this email finds you in good spirits.
It has been a very long time since I last emailed you. I sincerely apologize for the
delay and will try to not keep you in suspense any longer of my experience so far of Mombasa, Kenya. Before I forget, please take note of my new email address azizbatada@gmail.com
Disclaimer: Please read the email below as previously written, with the context that I have tried to summarize my experience of Mombasa after spending approximately 2 months. Again, the summaries of my experience are through observations and first-hand encounters with the locals.
I must first admit that I have prolonged this email to you because I have had a very difficult time articulating my experience of Mombasa and secondly off course due to time constraints : ) This email is very different from my prior emails of my travel experiences as I was speaking to you from an outside point of view. However, living and working in a place is very different from traveling and visiting a place for a short amount of time. I feel well immersed into the culture here already; some of you may suggest that this is a very premature comment. But it is one that I am comfortable making. Given these complexities, I will do my best to tell you what these two months in Mombasa have been like.
Each day I ask my self am I really here in Mombasa? I can’t believe I’m so far away from home and in a developing country, wow! It’s very different from Canada. It’s SOOOO different from traveling/vacationing in a developing country. I don’t think anyone can prepare for it, just have a lot of patience and be very flexible and adaptable to the local cultures and environment. It is more of a metal struggle rather than anything else. But I am thankful for having the opportunity to visit Pakistan, in May before coming here. It gave me some insight and exposure as to some of the challenges faced by a developing country and because I spent about 6 weeks in Pakistan I was indirectly training my mind to live and adapt in a new environment; obviously, the context of Kenya is different. Each day I realize how fortunate we are in Canada.
I am really enjoying my time here since arriving on the night of August 15th. I am settling in well in the city of Mombasa. I think it was the best time in my life to be given this opportunity to work abroad. I could never have imagined this so far. The weather is just beautiful (hot and sunny everyday, approx 30oC with the exception of showers on the odd occasion, usually in the early mornings) and the people are also wonderful.
Let me share with you what it has been like for me since arrival.
I was graciously picked up at the airport by one of the staff members of the Aga Khan Education Service, Kenya (AKES, K), Fara Waliji, and taken to my temporary home in Nyali (north of the Mombasa city). The Nyali area is where most of the ex-pats live. It is the posh area of Mombasa. You’ll find everything from a gym, a shopping centre, all sorts of restaurants, night clubs, bars, cafes, a newly built movie theatre and 10-pin bowling alley, the north coast beaches and hotels, and attractive homes over looking the Indian Ocean. The home that AKES, K had made arrangements for was just beautiful. It had four bed rooms, three floors, four bathrooms with showers, and one of the most picturesque views of the Indian Ocean from each room. I was in Awh! I had to quickly get a reality check as I had to be up the next day for the week long school orientation for new and returning faculty. The orientation week was from Aug 16th – 20th and the first day of school was Monday August 23rd.
The Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa (AKAM), is managed by AKES, K which is part of the Aga Khan Education Services, an organization under the umbrella of the Aga Khan Development Network. The AKAM is the first of approx. 20 schools of excellence to be built, in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia, and the Middle-East. With this email I have attached the address made by His Highness the Aga Khan at the official opening of this school on December 20, 2003. For more information please see www.akdn.org.
The orientation week was fantastic. It was thoughtfully and thoroughly planned. We were provided with information not only about the operations of the school but also the “how to survive” in Mombasa, Kenya. That week we met all the staff and faculty of the school, received our time tables, and very quickly prepared our classrooms and began to plan for the first day of school.
The AKAM has a junior school, year one to six, and a senior school from year 7 - 12/13. With plans underway to build a nursery school and faculty and student residential buildings. The junior school is using the IB Junior Years program curriculum. The senior school is currently offering the Key stage 3 curriculum for year 7 to 9, IGCSE for year 10 and 11, and A levels for year 12 and 13. We also have the KCSE, Kenyan curriculum. Beginning next year we will be offering the IB Diploma program for years 12 and 13 after IGCSE, and phasing out the KCSE and A levels. The typical school day begins with a staff meeting at 7:30 – 7:45 am; the kids have to register in home form class by 7:45 am – 7:55 am. There are 6 periods at 55 min each per day, there is a 20 min break, and a 40 min lunch. Each day for 15 min after lunch we have a DEAR program, drop everything and read. This is to try and inculcate the importance of reading in our school.
School is very busy, considering it’s my first year of teaching at a very new school with a different curriculum. The expectations for staff and faculty are tremendous given the vision and task of providing an educational experience of the highest international standard. Each day, I realize how fortunate I am to be getting this opportunity and therefore I'm trying to maximize my time, contributing to school life. I also try and spend my Saturdays at the school to do my marking and planning, which only teachers would understand why. I have to thank OISE/UT, in particular my teachers for preparing me for the first year of teaching. The advice and learning has made the beginning part of my teaching career tolerable. I am teaching, grade 7 Science, grade 9 Chemistry, IGCSE level Chemistry (2 classes) and Biology, it’s like year 10 and ll. I am also a home form teacher to my grade 7 Science class, they’re fantastic, “Sir, Sir, Sir, Sir…” The most number of students I have in my classroom is 22. I also want to mention that the student council president is a grade seven boy from my class. He defeated about 4 or 5 senior candidates. He may be young but he does have a lot of potential and the team around him is very capable. Extracurricularly, I am coaching the Boys senior basketball team and I run a basketball club on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school. I am also trying to play badminton on Monday evenings. My day usually begins at 4:30 or 5:30 am and I leave for school by 7 am and come back home in the evening around 7 pm. Have dinner, read for a little while and in bed by 9:30 pm. I enjoy this routine, I find myself much more disciplined. I try and not go out on school nights, and on the weekends I usually watch a movie in the evenings but rarely go out. At times I do feel lonely and miss everyone at home, but here I find myself to be less distracted and be able to do the things for my own personal development. As an example, just yesterday, I came back from a 6 day trip to a outdoor leadership camp that is organized by Outward Bound Kenya, located in Loitokitok, Kenya, just on the border of Kenya and Tanzania. It is located on the base of Mount Kilimanjaro, the tallest mountain in all of Africa. It was a long and bumpy 9.5 hour drive from Mombasa to the border. It was an incredible experience for both me and the students that attended as we were able to participate in many creative and exciting activities, form new friendships, see some wildlife, visit and sleep on the Masai plains, and cross the border to Tanzania. I will write more about this later and share some breathtaking pictures.
Overall the school life is challenging, and a lot of hard work, as expected, but it is definitely enjoyable. We have a diverse student and faculty population with students from 22 different countries around the world, and faculty from 7 different countries. Most of the students are of Asian or Kenyan origin and are Muslims. I think we have about 6-7 hundred students total in the junior and senior school. I have also made very good friendships with many faculty and staff, in particular with Hussein Janmohamed (Music coordinator and teacher from Vancouver, Canada and whom I knew before), Zubair Kassam (English and History teacher from Calgary, Canada), Shezleen Vellani (Grade 2 teacher from Hamilton, Canada, whom I also knew before), Faiza Nanji (Grade 2 teacher from the London, UK) and Mr. Sher Lakhani (Head of AKES, Kenya and acting principal of our school) and his wife, Mrs. Irshad Lakhani. It has been great having these individuals here with me. Our conversations are endless, we are able to share so much with each other about our lives in Kenya, as we are all ex-pats, from the same community and trying to do our part in making this incredible vision come alive in one way or the other.
My first two weeks were tough, I was treading deep waters at school as I was trying to figure out my living situation, my way around and adjusting to the new lifestyle. I moved out of my Nyali home as I found it to be very far from school, it was not easily accessible by the matatu (local transport), it was too quite for me, away from the local peoples and culture, and more importantly the Jamatkhana (the Ismaili place of prayer and gathering) was at a distance. I wanted to be close to the community. So with Fara’s help I was able to find my own 2 bed room flat within the Tudor Ismaili community flats; it’s nice and cozy, and VERY close to Jamatkhana. This has helped me adjust very comfortably and quickly. I would like to thank AKES, K and in particular Fara, who took very good care of all the new international teachers and ensured that we were able to settle in comfortably.
My only struggle now is with food. I order food on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. For 150 Ksh (Kenyan shillings) I get a vegetable and meat dish with rice and chapaati that I have for lunch and dinner. This is very cheap (1 Cdn dollar is equivalent to about 63 Ksh, thanks to the rising dollar). On Mondays and Friday’s I buy lunch from the school cafeteria. For 100 Ksh, you get a salad, main course (meat or veg) and a dessert. The school menu is different each day, and the food is nutritious. On the weekends I end up buying nandi or eat out. Food is relatively cheap here, you can dine out for 8 – 10$ and be a stuffed potatoe. The only problem here is the EXCESSIVE amounts of oil in the food. Everything has to have oil. And people here eat a lot of meat like mishkaki, steak, chicken poussin, and they love chips (French fries). Because I am very conscience of my health and diet and I don’t eat beef very much, I have had to reduce my caloric intake and consequently have lost about 5 – 6 pounds easily. I do try and have chicken kebab rolls from time to time. My favorite places to eat so far have been Canton’s (Chinese food) and Hashmi (BBQ place). The most popular place to go shopping is Nakumat. It’s like our Wal-Mart. There are only two of them in Mombasa. But they have many more chains in Nairobi.
The life here in Mombasa is very laid back and slow. Unfortunately the students here also have the same attitude. Whenever something doesn’t happen the way I would like it, I tell myself, “welcome to Kenya”. I have quickly learned to not expect anything and just go with the flow. At many times there does not seem to be any order, people don’t like to wait in lines, there does not seem to be much law enforcement, you do as you please. There are many wealthy people, but then many, many more people who are economically poor in the city. As you drive around you will see how buildings, schools, shops are run down, people are on the streets everywhere, there is a lot of pollution and the roads are poor. It just seems that there is no one maintaining the physical structure of this place, unfortunately. But the peoples of Mombasa are very friendly and warm. People always greet each other with Jambo. There are a lot of different communities of faith here. There are some large Mandirs, Mosques, Churches, Gudwars, and Jamatkhanas. I cannot wait for Ramadhan (month when many muslims observe the fast) to begin next week. People have told me that in the evenings in old town there are many activities taking place and large gatherings of people outside. I will try and take some pictures.
I am slowly learning the local language of Kiswahili. Each week I learn various phrases from teachers and security guards of the school and then try and use it as often as possible. Many times I feel so alienated when people are talking in Kiswahili, I have NO clue what they’re talking about, as far as I know they could be making fun of me : )
I have also begun to frequently use the local bus transportation, the matatu. These mini vans are incredible. I was told that at one time there would be anywhere from 15-30 people on it at once, sitting on top, hanging out, sitting on each others laps etc. But in the last few years, the police have really began to ensure that there are no more than 12-14 people on it at once and that everyone is wearing their seatbelt. These matatus cost only 1/6 of a dollar for one way. The ride is not very pleasant as the matatu drivers use the road as a race track and there are many of them. You can catch one every 2-3 min. They go full speed and then have to make sudden stops to let people out, so the ride becomes very jerky, stop and go, give you whiplash. When they stop, they whip the door open and as you jump on or off, they start to drive, so you always lose your momentum and fall on someone if you’re getting on. They will also tail other cars, drive on the other side of the road. But that’s not all, they play VERY LOUD music. In the early morning are slow jams like boyz to men, Brian McKnight etc., but by the late morning and all day and night its Reggae, Rap and R&B, music mostly by African Americans. I love the music as a lot of it is old school. I think they play loud music to attract more riders. What is very cool about these matatus is how they are creatively decorated. All the slogans and logos we are familiar with in North America, you will find them all over these matatus. I even sat in one that had the front windshield painted in purple with the Toronto Raptors logo. The only bad experience I have had with these matatus is that by mistake I have taken the wrong one twice, and have ended up in the middle of nowhere, but managed to get back safely. Don’t worry mom and dad, nothing happened : )
I have gone clubbing once to Pirates. I couldn’t believe it but I was falling asleep. The lights even went out at the club. I thought it was hilarious as this happened during my first week in Mombasa. I knew then, I’m in a completely different world. On the weekends people will go to 2 or 3 clubs the same night, club hopping. They will make their last stop at a club at 1 am and party until about 4 or 5 am the next morning. The beauty of Mombasa is that it is on the coast of the Indian Ocean. You will find restaurants, bars, clubs, homes etc all on the beach. It’s incredible. You can go to any club in shorts and sandals. There’s a great breeze by the ocean at night.
I haven’t had time to travel much around Kenya yet, I but I did go and relax for a weekend at the South Coast, about 45 min from Mombasa. It was just amazing. I swam in the Indian Ocean for the first time, it’s VERY salty! The Hotel we stayed at, Southern Palms has been newly renovated and it is gorgeous. There were tons of European tourists. We played beach volleyball, water polo, peanut and just chillaxed. I will send pictures soon. During the trip to the south coast, I also visited a madrasa in a small village. It is a religious school for boys and girls that teach how to read and recite the Quran and some basic subjects. The students also performed a small dance for us. I will be sure to send pictures of my experiences above and the many places I have yet to visit. Stay tuned!
I have taken many pictures and have selectively chosen some (was very difficult) and put them up on a website for you to see what my school orientation was like, what the Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa, school of excellence looks like and what my two bedroom flat looks like, through my Cannon lens.
http://photos.yahoo.com/aziztraveling
Description of Pictures:
1. School Orientation of new faculty
2. Logo for AKES, Schools of Excellence
3. School Orientation of new faculty
4. Faculty and staff sitting in the cafeteria
5. Faculty and staff sitting in the cafeteria
6. Faculty and staff sitting in the cafeteria
7. School environment: Courtyard
8. Faculty and staff sitting in the cafeteria
9. Some teachers and me
10. My flat (home): installing ceiling fans
11. One of my bedrooms
12. Entrance to my flat
13. Front of Tudor Jamatkhana (Headquarters) (includes prayer space, social hall, and computer resource center for members of the Ismaili, Muslim community).
14. Tudor flats behind Jamatkhana (area of flats belonging to the Ismaili community)
15. Can’t get any closer to Jamatkhana (view of Jamatkhana from my flat entrance)
16. My messy living room and view of my fully furnished kitchen
17. Back entrance of Tudor Jamatkhana
18. Water tanks for different flats
19. My classroom
20. My classroom
21. My classroom
22. View outside of my classroom, Science, Technology and Art Block.
23. Doing some experiments with some students
24. One of the chemistry lab technicians, Steven.
25. View of senior school
26. View of senior school
27. View of Multi-purpose Hall and swimming facilities
28. Amphitheatre
29. Swimming and Diving pools
30. Playing field and track
31. Inside view of multi-purpose hall: gymnasium and stage
32. Inside view of multi-purpose hall: gymnasium and stage
33. My friend, Bakari and I. The most important person in the school, the “Key” man.
Sorry to write so much and I apologize if this email is not as detailed as you would like. But I hope the pictures will say a lot more about my experience so far. This is just some of what I have been through in the last couple of months.
More pictures of the city, people and beaches of Mombasa are yet to come, please check the website every few weeks.
Please keep in touch. I would love for you to share your thoughts on what I have written above or your comments of my pictures. Please feel free to email and ask any questions.
I will try and be much better at staying in touch with you all. I apologize to all those who I have not yet responded.
Warm regards,
Aziz
p.s. Congratulations to Canada, World Champions of Hockey!!!!!!
I hope this email finds you in good spirits.
It has been a very long time since I last emailed you. I sincerely apologize for the
delay and will try to not keep you in suspense any longer of my experience so far of Mombasa, Kenya. Before I forget, please take note of my new email address azizbatada@gmail.com
Disclaimer: Please read the email below as previously written, with the context that I have tried to summarize my experience of Mombasa after spending approximately 2 months. Again, the summaries of my experience are through observations and first-hand encounters with the locals.
I must first admit that I have prolonged this email to you because I have had a very difficult time articulating my experience of Mombasa and secondly off course due to time constraints : ) This email is very different from my prior emails of my travel experiences as I was speaking to you from an outside point of view. However, living and working in a place is very different from traveling and visiting a place for a short amount of time. I feel well immersed into the culture here already; some of you may suggest that this is a very premature comment. But it is one that I am comfortable making. Given these complexities, I will do my best to tell you what these two months in Mombasa have been like.
Each day I ask my self am I really here in Mombasa? I can’t believe I’m so far away from home and in a developing country, wow! It’s very different from Canada. It’s SOOOO different from traveling/vacationing in a developing country. I don’t think anyone can prepare for it, just have a lot of patience and be very flexible and adaptable to the local cultures and environment. It is more of a metal struggle rather than anything else. But I am thankful for having the opportunity to visit Pakistan, in May before coming here. It gave me some insight and exposure as to some of the challenges faced by a developing country and because I spent about 6 weeks in Pakistan I was indirectly training my mind to live and adapt in a new environment; obviously, the context of Kenya is different. Each day I realize how fortunate we are in Canada.
I am really enjoying my time here since arriving on the night of August 15th. I am settling in well in the city of Mombasa. I think it was the best time in my life to be given this opportunity to work abroad. I could never have imagined this so far. The weather is just beautiful (hot and sunny everyday, approx 30oC with the exception of showers on the odd occasion, usually in the early mornings) and the people are also wonderful.
Let me share with you what it has been like for me since arrival.
I was graciously picked up at the airport by one of the staff members of the Aga Khan Education Service, Kenya (AKES, K), Fara Waliji, and taken to my temporary home in Nyali (north of the Mombasa city). The Nyali area is where most of the ex-pats live. It is the posh area of Mombasa. You’ll find everything from a gym, a shopping centre, all sorts of restaurants, night clubs, bars, cafes, a newly built movie theatre and 10-pin bowling alley, the north coast beaches and hotels, and attractive homes over looking the Indian Ocean. The home that AKES, K had made arrangements for was just beautiful. It had four bed rooms, three floors, four bathrooms with showers, and one of the most picturesque views of the Indian Ocean from each room. I was in Awh! I had to quickly get a reality check as I had to be up the next day for the week long school orientation for new and returning faculty. The orientation week was from Aug 16th – 20th and the first day of school was Monday August 23rd.
The Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa (AKAM), is managed by AKES, K which is part of the Aga Khan Education Services, an organization under the umbrella of the Aga Khan Development Network. The AKAM is the first of approx. 20 schools of excellence to be built, in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia, and the Middle-East. With this email I have attached the address made by His Highness the Aga Khan at the official opening of this school on December 20, 2003. For more information please see www.akdn.org.
The orientation week was fantastic. It was thoughtfully and thoroughly planned. We were provided with information not only about the operations of the school but also the “how to survive” in Mombasa, Kenya. That week we met all the staff and faculty of the school, received our time tables, and very quickly prepared our classrooms and began to plan for the first day of school.
The AKAM has a junior school, year one to six, and a senior school from year 7 - 12/13. With plans underway to build a nursery school and faculty and student residential buildings. The junior school is using the IB Junior Years program curriculum. The senior school is currently offering the Key stage 3 curriculum for year 7 to 9, IGCSE for year 10 and 11, and A levels for year 12 and 13. We also have the KCSE, Kenyan curriculum. Beginning next year we will be offering the IB Diploma program for years 12 and 13 after IGCSE, and phasing out the KCSE and A levels. The typical school day begins with a staff meeting at 7:30 – 7:45 am; the kids have to register in home form class by 7:45 am – 7:55 am. There are 6 periods at 55 min each per day, there is a 20 min break, and a 40 min lunch. Each day for 15 min after lunch we have a DEAR program, drop everything and read. This is to try and inculcate the importance of reading in our school.
School is very busy, considering it’s my first year of teaching at a very new school with a different curriculum. The expectations for staff and faculty are tremendous given the vision and task of providing an educational experience of the highest international standard. Each day, I realize how fortunate I am to be getting this opportunity and therefore I'm trying to maximize my time, contributing to school life. I also try and spend my Saturdays at the school to do my marking and planning, which only teachers would understand why. I have to thank OISE/UT, in particular my teachers for preparing me for the first year of teaching. The advice and learning has made the beginning part of my teaching career tolerable. I am teaching, grade 7 Science, grade 9 Chemistry, IGCSE level Chemistry (2 classes) and Biology, it’s like year 10 and ll. I am also a home form teacher to my grade 7 Science class, they’re fantastic, “Sir, Sir, Sir, Sir…” The most number of students I have in my classroom is 22. I also want to mention that the student council president is a grade seven boy from my class. He defeated about 4 or 5 senior candidates. He may be young but he does have a lot of potential and the team around him is very capable. Extracurricularly, I am coaching the Boys senior basketball team and I run a basketball club on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school. I am also trying to play badminton on Monday evenings. My day usually begins at 4:30 or 5:30 am and I leave for school by 7 am and come back home in the evening around 7 pm. Have dinner, read for a little while and in bed by 9:30 pm. I enjoy this routine, I find myself much more disciplined. I try and not go out on school nights, and on the weekends I usually watch a movie in the evenings but rarely go out. At times I do feel lonely and miss everyone at home, but here I find myself to be less distracted and be able to do the things for my own personal development. As an example, just yesterday, I came back from a 6 day trip to a outdoor leadership camp that is organized by Outward Bound Kenya, located in Loitokitok, Kenya, just on the border of Kenya and Tanzania. It is located on the base of Mount Kilimanjaro, the tallest mountain in all of Africa. It was a long and bumpy 9.5 hour drive from Mombasa to the border. It was an incredible experience for both me and the students that attended as we were able to participate in many creative and exciting activities, form new friendships, see some wildlife, visit and sleep on the Masai plains, and cross the border to Tanzania. I will write more about this later and share some breathtaking pictures.
Overall the school life is challenging, and a lot of hard work, as expected, but it is definitely enjoyable. We have a diverse student and faculty population with students from 22 different countries around the world, and faculty from 7 different countries. Most of the students are of Asian or Kenyan origin and are Muslims. I think we have about 6-7 hundred students total in the junior and senior school. I have also made very good friendships with many faculty and staff, in particular with Hussein Janmohamed (Music coordinator and teacher from Vancouver, Canada and whom I knew before), Zubair Kassam (English and History teacher from Calgary, Canada), Shezleen Vellani (Grade 2 teacher from Hamilton, Canada, whom I also knew before), Faiza Nanji (Grade 2 teacher from the London, UK) and Mr. Sher Lakhani (Head of AKES, Kenya and acting principal of our school) and his wife, Mrs. Irshad Lakhani. It has been great having these individuals here with me. Our conversations are endless, we are able to share so much with each other about our lives in Kenya, as we are all ex-pats, from the same community and trying to do our part in making this incredible vision come alive in one way or the other.
My first two weeks were tough, I was treading deep waters at school as I was trying to figure out my living situation, my way around and adjusting to the new lifestyle. I moved out of my Nyali home as I found it to be very far from school, it was not easily accessible by the matatu (local transport), it was too quite for me, away from the local peoples and culture, and more importantly the Jamatkhana (the Ismaili place of prayer and gathering) was at a distance. I wanted to be close to the community. So with Fara’s help I was able to find my own 2 bed room flat within the Tudor Ismaili community flats; it’s nice and cozy, and VERY close to Jamatkhana. This has helped me adjust very comfortably and quickly. I would like to thank AKES, K and in particular Fara, who took very good care of all the new international teachers and ensured that we were able to settle in comfortably.
My only struggle now is with food. I order food on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. For 150 Ksh (Kenyan shillings) I get a vegetable and meat dish with rice and chapaati that I have for lunch and dinner. This is very cheap (1 Cdn dollar is equivalent to about 63 Ksh, thanks to the rising dollar). On Mondays and Friday’s I buy lunch from the school cafeteria. For 100 Ksh, you get a salad, main course (meat or veg) and a dessert. The school menu is different each day, and the food is nutritious. On the weekends I end up buying nandi or eat out. Food is relatively cheap here, you can dine out for 8 – 10$ and be a stuffed potatoe. The only problem here is the EXCESSIVE amounts of oil in the food. Everything has to have oil. And people here eat a lot of meat like mishkaki, steak, chicken poussin, and they love chips (French fries). Because I am very conscience of my health and diet and I don’t eat beef very much, I have had to reduce my caloric intake and consequently have lost about 5 – 6 pounds easily. I do try and have chicken kebab rolls from time to time. My favorite places to eat so far have been Canton’s (Chinese food) and Hashmi (BBQ place). The most popular place to go shopping is Nakumat. It’s like our Wal-Mart. There are only two of them in Mombasa. But they have many more chains in Nairobi.
The life here in Mombasa is very laid back and slow. Unfortunately the students here also have the same attitude. Whenever something doesn’t happen the way I would like it, I tell myself, “welcome to Kenya”. I have quickly learned to not expect anything and just go with the flow. At many times there does not seem to be any order, people don’t like to wait in lines, there does not seem to be much law enforcement, you do as you please. There are many wealthy people, but then many, many more people who are economically poor in the city. As you drive around you will see how buildings, schools, shops are run down, people are on the streets everywhere, there is a lot of pollution and the roads are poor. It just seems that there is no one maintaining the physical structure of this place, unfortunately. But the peoples of Mombasa are very friendly and warm. People always greet each other with Jambo. There are a lot of different communities of faith here. There are some large Mandirs, Mosques, Churches, Gudwars, and Jamatkhanas. I cannot wait for Ramadhan (month when many muslims observe the fast) to begin next week. People have told me that in the evenings in old town there are many activities taking place and large gatherings of people outside. I will try and take some pictures.
I am slowly learning the local language of Kiswahili. Each week I learn various phrases from teachers and security guards of the school and then try and use it as often as possible. Many times I feel so alienated when people are talking in Kiswahili, I have NO clue what they’re talking about, as far as I know they could be making fun of me : )
I have also begun to frequently use the local bus transportation, the matatu. These mini vans are incredible. I was told that at one time there would be anywhere from 15-30 people on it at once, sitting on top, hanging out, sitting on each others laps etc. But in the last few years, the police have really began to ensure that there are no more than 12-14 people on it at once and that everyone is wearing their seatbelt. These matatus cost only 1/6 of a dollar for one way. The ride is not very pleasant as the matatu drivers use the road as a race track and there are many of them. You can catch one every 2-3 min. They go full speed and then have to make sudden stops to let people out, so the ride becomes very jerky, stop and go, give you whiplash. When they stop, they whip the door open and as you jump on or off, they start to drive, so you always lose your momentum and fall on someone if you’re getting on. They will also tail other cars, drive on the other side of the road. But that’s not all, they play VERY LOUD music. In the early morning are slow jams like boyz to men, Brian McKnight etc., but by the late morning and all day and night its Reggae, Rap and R&B, music mostly by African Americans. I love the music as a lot of it is old school. I think they play loud music to attract more riders. What is very cool about these matatus is how they are creatively decorated. All the slogans and logos we are familiar with in North America, you will find them all over these matatus. I even sat in one that had the front windshield painted in purple with the Toronto Raptors logo. The only bad experience I have had with these matatus is that by mistake I have taken the wrong one twice, and have ended up in the middle of nowhere, but managed to get back safely. Don’t worry mom and dad, nothing happened : )
I have gone clubbing once to Pirates. I couldn’t believe it but I was falling asleep. The lights even went out at the club. I thought it was hilarious as this happened during my first week in Mombasa. I knew then, I’m in a completely different world. On the weekends people will go to 2 or 3 clubs the same night, club hopping. They will make their last stop at a club at 1 am and party until about 4 or 5 am the next morning. The beauty of Mombasa is that it is on the coast of the Indian Ocean. You will find restaurants, bars, clubs, homes etc all on the beach. It’s incredible. You can go to any club in shorts and sandals. There’s a great breeze by the ocean at night.
I haven’t had time to travel much around Kenya yet, I but I did go and relax for a weekend at the South Coast, about 45 min from Mombasa. It was just amazing. I swam in the Indian Ocean for the first time, it’s VERY salty! The Hotel we stayed at, Southern Palms has been newly renovated and it is gorgeous. There were tons of European tourists. We played beach volleyball, water polo, peanut and just chillaxed. I will send pictures soon. During the trip to the south coast, I also visited a madrasa in a small village. It is a religious school for boys and girls that teach how to read and recite the Quran and some basic subjects. The students also performed a small dance for us. I will be sure to send pictures of my experiences above and the many places I have yet to visit. Stay tuned!
I have taken many pictures and have selectively chosen some (was very difficult) and put them up on a website for you to see what my school orientation was like, what the Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa, school of excellence looks like and what my two bedroom flat looks like, through my Cannon lens.
http://photos.yahoo.com/aziztraveling
Description of Pictures:
1. School Orientation of new faculty
2. Logo for AKES, Schools of Excellence
3. School Orientation of new faculty
4. Faculty and staff sitting in the cafeteria
5. Faculty and staff sitting in the cafeteria
6. Faculty and staff sitting in the cafeteria
7. School environment: Courtyard
8. Faculty and staff sitting in the cafeteria
9. Some teachers and me
10. My flat (home): installing ceiling fans
11. One of my bedrooms
12. Entrance to my flat
13. Front of Tudor Jamatkhana (Headquarters) (includes prayer space, social hall, and computer resource center for members of the Ismaili, Muslim community).
14. Tudor flats behind Jamatkhana (area of flats belonging to the Ismaili community)
15. Can’t get any closer to Jamatkhana (view of Jamatkhana from my flat entrance)
16. My messy living room and view of my fully furnished kitchen
17. Back entrance of Tudor Jamatkhana
18. Water tanks for different flats
19. My classroom
20. My classroom
21. My classroom
22. View outside of my classroom, Science, Technology and Art Block.
23. Doing some experiments with some students
24. One of the chemistry lab technicians, Steven.
25. View of senior school
26. View of senior school
27. View of Multi-purpose Hall and swimming facilities
28. Amphitheatre
29. Swimming and Diving pools
30. Playing field and track
31. Inside view of multi-purpose hall: gymnasium and stage
32. Inside view of multi-purpose hall: gymnasium and stage
33. My friend, Bakari and I. The most important person in the school, the “Key” man.
Sorry to write so much and I apologize if this email is not as detailed as you would like. But I hope the pictures will say a lot more about my experience so far. This is just some of what I have been through in the last couple of months.
More pictures of the city, people and beaches of Mombasa are yet to come, please check the website every few weeks.
Please keep in touch. I would love for you to share your thoughts on what I have written above or your comments of my pictures. Please feel free to email and ask any questions.
I will try and be much better at staying in touch with you all. I apologize to all those who I have not yet responded.
Warm regards,
Aziz
p.s. Congratulations to Canada, World Champions of Hockey!!!!!!
posted by Batada's Traveling Adventures... at 7:05 AM
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