Life in Rongai

I just hit the ten-week mark in Kenya, and I finally feel a little stable and settled.  I know where I live and how to get the things I need, which feels like an accomplishment.   For the past month I have been living in my room in the dorm-apartment building-hostel in Rongai, which is about 13 km from Nairobi, but feels more like 100 miles due to the difficulty of getting into the city.  For the most part I hang out in Rongai and nearby Karen, which offer everything I need.  When I feel up for an adventure or a trip to visit Sonia, I head into Nairobi, which can take 45 minutes or 3 hours.

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Rongai itself can be kind of depressing to look at, but I like it here.  One blog I found called it a “slum,” (not remotely true) and my roommates said it is the dirtiest suburb of Nairobi.  Maybe this is true.  There are a lot of smells and dust.  Technically, I live in a place called Olekasasi, but most people just call it Rongai.  I am down the street from a private University, and they call it the “Rongai campus,”  so I feel comfortable going with that.   Down the street the other direction are some little shops where you can get basic things and snacks, but I mostly head into the heart of Rongai for groceries, etc.

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To get into the middle of Rongai, you can get in a tuk-tuk or a shared car and rode for about ten minutes down into town.  This costs about 40 shillings, or 50 cents.  Once you get to the matatu stage, you are a ten minute walk from Uchumi, which is sort of like a Walgreens with more groceries, or a Tumaini, which is sort of like a Walgreens with more groceries.  You can also take a 10 shilling bus ride to Tusky’s, which is like a Walgreens with more groceries.  My current favorite is Tusky’s because it is the biggest and has a variety of strange things.  I recently got a rabbit-shaped soap dish for 100 shillings and ginger beer.   Rongai also has places to buy clothes, shoes, and other important items, as well as a variety of food options.  A recent find was this tiny place that sells super fresh and delicious yoghurt for 60 shillings per half liter in many tasty flavors.  Smoothies! Sort of.

ke.geoview.info

If I want to venture a bit further I can go to Galleria mall, which is about ½ hour away  To get there (or here, I am currently using some free wifi), you get on a matatu (bus) in Rongai and ride towards the suburb of Karen for about 40 shillings.  At first I found the busses very intimidating, but they are actually really nice.  They are nothing like Guatemala’s chicken busses, Mexico City’s crazy public transit, or even Chile’s sometimes crammed busses.  They never overfill them, so everyone gets a seat.  You tell the conductor where you are going and they charge you based on the distance and peak hours, then they stop the bus where you asked.  The will even remind you if you ask.  You might have to hop off while the bus is moving slowly, but luckily it isn’t isn’t a busy area if you are going to Galleria.  From there you walk a little bit and then enter the mall, where you are greeted with all the wonders of Southdale or Rosedale (except for MAC or an equivalent).  There are nice cafes, a brewpub, Nakumatt (Target essentially), clothing stores, a place to get eyebrows threaded, etc etc.  I mean, it’s a mall and all, but it is a nice respite and place to get work done when my hostel is too loud. 

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I don’t spend all of my time at malls.  Sometimes I venture further into Karen, where there are nice places to eat, or all the way into Nairobi.   I guess this is a post about how I learned to take the bus.  Anyway, that’s a big accomplishment!  I can get myself to where I need to go when I need to, and I’m no longer rationing tea water in my room while I sleep on a bare mattress, like night 1.  Things have changed in ten weeks!

matatus are fun!