Nairobi Traffic

Hello,

Yesterday I meant to talk about the matatu (van for hire) that was in a picture along with another car. On my way home from Adam’s Arcade I got my camera out to take some pictures of the plants when a matatu comes by with a guy hanging out the door. I miss that photo, but wait for the next one. No buses or matatu come by. Then some come but everyone is secure inside. I get tired of waiting, put my camera away when a bus and a matatu come by with people hanging out. I laugh and think maybe another day. I feel so much more comfortable than I did the last time I was here even if I am working harder and not yet sleeping more than six hours. I am grateful for those six hours of deep sleep.

Again I marvel at being in a foreign country understanding most of the language I hear. It seems these people spend a lot of time talking. Chatter, chatter, and chatter all around me.

Yesterday the driver from Sarah’s work picked up Lexi and me taking us back to her office. Traffic was copious and crawling. When Sarah was finished working we set off to visit some friends. Traffic was backed up even worse in the lane that we wanted to use of this two-lane street. At times matatus drove on the sidewalk creating their own lane. It certainly helped them get ahead. There are people walking around us and on the sidewalk along with bicycles that can move a bit more freely. Sarah pulled out in front of a big truck when the cars moved a little. Odd but no cars were meeting us. After 10 minutes we got about .5 miles down the road and discovered the source of the delay. A truck had stopped on a hill and cars could not get around, explaining why we did not meet any cars, but why we had been stopped was still a mystery and would remain so. After that we could move freely.

http://picasaweb.google.com/psbradway/StreetScenesInNairobi#

Paula