Mzungu / Mafrika

Jumapili 26 septemba

KiSwhili word of the day is wimbo. Song.

Back in Mombasa and I already have my ticket to Tanga. I didn’t really want to come back, but I don’t think Lamu to Tanga was possible, and I had a really great day anyway.

The bus ride was miserable but at least I prepared myself for it. I was in the VERY back and everytime we went over a pot hole I flew out of my seat almost over the chair in front of me. The guy next to me kept getting so angry at the bus driver and calling him lazy and all kinds of names. The reality was the road was in bad condition and we had shitty seats.

As soon as I arrived in Mombasa, I just wanted to walk around. I walked to Fort Jesus and was debating paying to go in when this guy started talking to me and he is a tour guide but wasn’t pushy and really knew the facts. He wanted to show me around... How much? He told me he would show me the city and I could decide after how much to pay him.

Sweet.

Fort Jesus is built on the highest part of Mombasa, 17 meters above sea level, on the coast. It is shaped like Jesus on the cross. The Portugese had a weird sense of humor. It was built in 1497 (?) and the walls are a meter thick. After Vasco de Gama was turned away from Mombasa the first time, the Portugese came back later and settled in here.

There is also an expensive club next to it. Only for people with big pockets. Like Brangelina. I asked if Brangelina had ever come. My guide, Harrison, said no, but they frequent Diani Beach (south of Mombasa) and are apparently very loud.

In the bedroom.

I would have been surprised if he had said otherwise.

Old town in Mombasa had similar architecture to Lamu, with large mahogany doors with shackles carved into them. I noted that it was weird the Arabs made such beautiful carvings to symbolize something so immoral and depressing, but Harrison responded that slavery to the Arabs WAS beautiful; it was a very lucrative business.

I also saw the old ferry port, a Mosque for Indian Muslims, and a Hindu temple. Mombasa is mostly Christian and Muslim with some Hindus and very few Rastafaris. Harrison is rastafari: one man, one woman, peace and love. They pray to Haile Sallassie because, one year, during a drought in Jamaica, Haile Sallassie came to Jamaica and as soon as the plane landed, it began to rain. When Harrison prays, he prays to "Ja". I asked him why he calls his god "Ja". It sounds cool when you're stoned.

When we were leaving the Hindu temple I saw this really cool looking night club so we went over to have a beer and just talked.

Of course he was very curious to know how many children I wanted.

Zero.

Little Chi Chi is enough for me. And I can only think about finishing school and starting my career.

School can wait! But you must have babies now to bring you blessings and happiness!

Which of course is the opposite of American/Western thinking. BABIES can wait. But Harrison already has 4 children by different baby-mamas. He says when he gets married he wants to have 14 children because his father had 10 and he must have more than his father. He asked me if I would like to make a little zebra with him. I politely declined.

We talked about birth control. He said a lot of women in Kenya used the shot (which does not protect against HIV) but said it is frowned upon if a woman does not have many children; it is like being selfish. Comments on condom use, "Why would you eat a banana with the peel still on? It can be done, but isn't better to remove the peel first?" Again I reminded him that eating it with the peel on is better than getting HIV, herpes, HPV, and other STIs but he replied that if you are sleeping with a boyfriend/girlfriend you do not have to worry.

I wanted to ask him how many times he'd been tested. My bets are on zero.

It was interesting. Also because of the amount of corruption in Kenya, the only thing that guarantees you a job is knowing someone at the top, so why bother with school? Family has much more significance in East African culture, so it is only natural that people would want to have large families and start earlier, even though it does not make sense from my cultural perspective.

Harrison also talked about he does not understand wazungu who come to East Africa and get stressed out. You are on vacation. Why are you stressed? He said that wazungu would not endure one day of what an African endures. From the moment a baby leaves its mother, everyday is a struggle to survive. But you know you can survive this day because look at how many days you have already survived this far.

I talked about how many people in the U.S. are depressed. I think part of it is we are told to work hard in school so we can get a good job and be able to afford the American lifestyle, but sooner or later many people just figure out its all just crap. Harrison said even the poorest person is able to laugh and enjoy himself no matter what because he knows what is important. He has life, family, friends. While I couldn't agree with Harrison that I should make a zebra with him immediately, I really value what he said about family.

We finished the Tuskers and parted. I gave him 500 KSH for the tour, but he told me the thing he appreciated most was just having the beer with me.

Beautiful.