My Nairobi

My first memory of Nairobi is of thika road. I remember being very young, we had just moved into the city from Busia. I was excited as I had never been to the big city. The roads were paved all over and there were houses with stairs. I was bubbling with energy like a soda thoroughly shaken with the top closed. I knew things were going to be different, I could just feel it.

I recall the period in which I was in primary school. Nairobi was different then. I remember the riots that university students would stage without warning and how I loved them for they meant no school. I remember the relative safety there was back then, how I could ask anyone on the street for directions home or even for bus fare if I lost mine at the age of seven. I even walked all the way home a few times (I lived on thika road and attended Nairobi Primary school). There was even a time when the Kenya bus company decided to try providing transport with double decker buses, that was the most amazing thing I had ever seen at the time. I only saw those buses on TV. The fact that I rode at the top more than once was enough reason for me to die happy. I had a potentially irrational fear then though, that I would one day be a victim of the mob justice that would take place seemingly indiscriminately then. I was rather small and had no reason to believe that I looked any different from the victims I saw. Fortunately, such actions were frowned upon and faded into history.

As a teen, I saw the introduction of medium sized buses by the Kenya bus company which I imagine was a wiser business approach than double decker buses that became almost iconic of public transport then. Metro shuttles were everywhere and affordable. I was mugged for the first time then too, at needle point if I recall correctly. A very unnerving affair conducted by a boy about my age who seemed as nervous as me and it was right in the middle of town. I was much smaller than him though so I gave him all my money then. At that age, I developed an interest in video games and they were available at yaya centre and Sarit only. Now it seems like a lifetime ago, so much has changed, for the better. There is a mobil petrol station in parklands that gained sudden popularity then among teens. They would meet and listen to loud music from their cars and party with their peers. I never got to go though, my father had no time for my trivial desire to be cool, haha.

As an adult I still see change, great change in my city. There was a time when we had one major mall, Sarit centre. Now they are many and so easily accessible with the major plague of our current Nairobi being the congestion and the incessant traffic jams. There is so much that is good in this city, the entertainment ranging from ice skating and paintball to plays and periodic concerts like blankets and wine. There is definitely something for everyone. That coupled with the road and housing construction taking place almost everywhere is a sign that we got something very right. Everyone wants to be here.

I have travelled the world and my fair share of places I have seen. I find, though, that none suits me or fits me as well as Nairobi does. I have been to Singapore, Malaysia, china, the United States and even visited our east African neighbours but none has such a mix of all the good things balanced to near perfection. A growing metropolis, a vibrant art scene, rich in different cultures but united as one people on the journey of life in a city that not only protects and houses us but also grows in response to our ever-changing needs.