Why blogging about Africa is tough

Many of you have been asking me to blog more about my trip to Africa. As you can see, that hasn't happened.

Sure, I've been busy catching up on work. I was out of town again this week too. It's not that I don't want to blog. It's not even that I don't have time to do it.

It would in theory be very simple for me to treat this as any other assignment, look through my notes from each day's visits, select a few explanatory pictures, and put together a short text on what we saw and learned.

But it's so much more than just that. It was an experience. It wasn't so much a cultural shock, at least, it wasn't different than I expected it to be. But the mounds of information we absorbed in the little amount of time we had to absorb it... I know I've said this before, but I haven't sorted it all out yet.

I want to make sure that my blogs are truly reflective of this experience. I want to share the best anecdotes with you, from the personal and the professional sides of this trip. I want to show you the most beautiful or tearful pictures so you can better understand what I mean. I want you to feel like you were right there in Kenya with me.

And until I figure out how to share all of this with all of you, I'd prefer not to post lame little textbook-style descriptions of the projects we visited in Nairobi and Mombasa. I'm not trying to be selfish. I just want to be true to myself, to my fellow tripgoers, to AKFC, and most importantly, to the efforts of all the thousands of people involved in each and every one of those projects, from start to finish.

I hope you can understand... Until then, stay tuned!

Flashbacks

Ah, the things traveling will do to you! It's a different environment, a different way of life... sometimes a different language and in this case, a different continent and a different worldview!

Coming home from Africa was quite an eye-opener, and I don't mean all the time I spent in the plane or waiting in airports!

The trip as a whole didn't impact me too much while I was there. It was when I came back and compared the reality I was just in with my everyday reality that I realized how fortunate we really are. Then again, there is also poverty here in North America... it's just not as painstakingly obvious.

Here are some of the flashbacks that I noted during my first two days back from Kenya. These are things that happened exactly like in the movies... Someone said something or I saw something that brought me back to my Kenyan experience.

* First and foremost, how weird is it to wake up in your own room, in your own bed, and not knowing where you are? It's very confusing, trust me. It took a good while to remember that I was home... and this didn't happen to me in any of the hotels I stayed in, or ever before!

* When I first brushed my teeth, I felt like something was missing... Water. Or more specifically, a water bottle. In Kenya, as per the travel clinic's orders, I used a water bottle to wet my toothbrush as well as to rinse my mouth after cleaning my teeth.

* More water woes... I'm so used to taking a sip or two of water when I was my face or in the shower. It was very hard for me to remember NOT to do that while I was in Kenya. Again, the travel clinic instilled fears of getting sick from the tap water deep down into my core. Good job!

* What about water pressure? There are places here where your water pressure isn't that great... namely cheap hotels or apartments. Luckily, the hotel was pretty good about strong shower streams, though there were times when the water would randomly stop, and sometimes you had to turn the tap completely to get a decent flow. Some places, even that didn't solve the problem. It made me wonder how people feel clean, especially when you have to wash that red Nairobi soil off the soles of your feet.

* Hey, guess what! I can plug my laptop directly into the wall! Yes, after 2 weeks of using adapters "African-style", as someone put it, it came as a bit of a surprise to me to be able to just plug it in. The "African-style" comment came after the porter helped us with my so-called universal adapter. Unfortunately, all the plugs at the hotel were UK, and my adapter was stuck on Europe. Cheap plastic! After trying to find us a spare adapter somewhere in the hotel, he took one look at mine, grabbed a pen cap, and pressed down the trigger in the top hole before inserting my European adapter into the UK plug. Fantastic! Only in Africa...

* My mom and I were lounging in the backyard when she said something about one of her plant attracting bees. I flashed back to the bee-keeping project we visited in rural Mombasa... I promise to tell you all about it later.

* I went for a drive a couple of days after I got back, or possibly even the day after I got back. I was at a stop sign and trying to figure out what the car opposite to me was going to do: go straight or turn. You know Montreal drivers. They rarely signal, especially on suburban streets! I tried to make eye contact with the driver and it took a few seconds before I understood why I wasn't reading any signals... I was staring at the passenger! Note to self: Drivers sit on the right in North America, not on the left.

I'm sure there were other moments that reminded me of life in Africa, but these are the fun that I noted. Spending time away from your reality also makes you realize what's important to you and what's not. Sorry, Perez. You didn't make the cut!

It's all coming back to me now

I had been meaning to blog more about Africa earlier, but working Rogers Cup tennis for 7 straight days basically took up all my time. It was eat, work, sleep, and lots of transit. But, I did manage to make some professional gains. It was my first gig as a bug operator for CBC, which means I was responsible for putting the scoreboard and stats in... and updating it too! This means I really needed to understand tennis, and after 4 days of actively watching it, I managed to figure it out :)

But back to the topic of the day: Africa.


I've already given you an overview of the trip, and I do plan on going into more details about some of our visits, but I think it's also important to understand how different the worldview is, or, as it turns out, how similar life in Kenya is to life in Canada.


Things that are the same... but not

* Slowpoke! *

Ya know how when you're driving, and the car in front of you is driving at a snail's pace and you just wish they'd change lanes and let you pass? You're gonna flash your high beams, aren't you? Well, in Kenya, they do that too! It's not a big realization, but it definitely showed me that some things we believe apply only to our culture are actually more universal than we think! And in East Africa, you don't get deer or moose crossings, but cow crossings. One time, our matatu nearly hit a cow to try to get it to cross faster. It wasn't impressed. It moo-ed at us and hit back!

* The stars *

Well, they're not the same because we're in different hemispheres, but they are just as beautiful. The difference is that in North America, you see stars lower on the horizon, while in Kenya, you really have to look straight up. I had a blast hanging out at the outdoor lounge at the Serena Mombasa, lying back and watch these natural gems sparkle. One night, three of us even saw a shooting star! My first confirmed sighting, and what a sight it was!

* Media *

During our visit of the Nation Media Group facilities, I came to a startling realization. The more I listened and looked around, the more I was certain that while the media values, facilities and equipment are the same in Kenya as in North America, the East African newsrooms are evolving at a quicker pace. I believe that's because they're learning from our mistakes and successes. Basically, they're skipping the middle step, the trials and errors we made trying to achieve better quality and smoother content. Kenya is going digital this year. They're not in HD yet, but that's the next step. While here in Canada, we're struggling with upgrading from analog to digital because of the cost of the equipment, East Africans are at a natural equipment-replacement point and are able to purchase high end HD equipment as part of the renewal process. We tried to do it all too fast... We're in HD, but not true HD: True HD means that shooting equipment is HD, Audio is 5.1, transmission is HD, cables/transmitters are HD-capable, receivers and watching equipment are HD... If even one element is in standard definition, it's not HD. In Africa, they love gadgets. It won't be a problem to get people to buy HD TV sets, especially given that most people would probably be getting them as their first sets.

*Gender balance*

Most of the Frigoken factory workers in Nairobi were female. However, this was done by choice, not because of gender bias. Sure, women are detail-oriented and good with veggies, but does that mean they should be the ones assigned to snap the tips off green beans? The reason Frigoken employs mostly women is because this job allows them to provide a secondary income to their families. In some cases, it is the only decent job a woman with relatively little education can get in the city. And they make it easy too... The plant offers a drop-off daycare service in one of the adjoining buildings, and if I understood correctly, it's free! How many North American plants can boast the same? Also, many of the farmers in the village were women, although their husbands may own the plots.


Things that really are different

*The buses*

You've already heard the stories... The matatus run on a completely different system than our North American transit. It's more of a taxi-like system, regulated by the government to some extent in that drivers have to register their vehicles and pay some sort of fee. It's also like taxis because the drivers are absolutely insane. That's where the similarities end, though. Matatus are little white Toyota minivans/SUVs, often covered in all kinds of slogans and celebrity names. The most popular ones? Tupac and Obama buses. The slogans sometimes don't make sense... Why would an East African matatu driver decorate his bus to the theme of the Minnesota Wolverines? (No, not Michigan) Or "The Game"? Matatus decide to patrol specific routes, but pick people up and drop them off anywhere along that road or in that neighbourhood... And at the rate that these buses pass, you can probably get anywhere on time! Sometimes, you could see multiple matatus pulled over alongside the highway, trying to get people on board for the 2 Kenyan Shillings fair, which more or less converts to 2 cents.

*What time is it?*

In Kenya, you really can set your clock to the sun. Every day, without fail, the sun rises between 6:30 and 6:45 and sets between 6:30 and 6:45. It's absolutely amazing! You figure that's how villagers go by their day... So very impressive.

Nairobi vs. Mombasa

*Nairobi*

Nairobi is like any other metropolis: busy, constantly moving, full of people crowding the streets. In fact, it reminded me a bit of NYC. The only difference, of course, is the predominant skin colour on the downtown streets. But they're all in suits and briefcases, going about their day.

*Mombasa*

Mombasa, on the other hand, is totally a beach resort... Until you get to the main part of the town. There, you can definitely see the different levels of poverty, which are much more obvious than in the Nairobi outskirts. It's not just the shantytowns... From the moment you leave the Mombasa airport and until you reach the touristy beach resort, you can see the true face of East African poverty.


Those are just some general observations about my trip to Kenya. Next post? Coming home, and realizing how different life truly is from one end to the world to another.

Stay tuned...

Welcome, 2009!

While I did want to write a blog post about my crazy weekend in Tremblant with a few friends, the time has come for a recap of 2008 post.

(For the record, the Tremblant story included setting off the house alarm, being stuck in the driveway because of freezing rain and slippery roads, having no food and sending two of our folk out to the grocery store in a taxi - then the taxis stopped running and they had to beg a good Samaritan for a lift most of the way home. Oh, and the spa jets spewing everywhere because it wasn't full - or warm - enough.)

< /2008>

2008 was a year full of endings and new beginnings. Some of my bittersweet endings include finishing school and temporarily losing my HNIC job. But endings are simply the door to new beginnings, and those were simply awesome.

There was working the playoffs for HNIC in Toronto and making a bunch of new friends in the process, then the week in Calgary for National ISTAR, which also included being part of a documentary on Stampede and caveing in Canmore. In August, I worked on the Beijing Olympics, which was a great experience work-wise and for my personal life. I earned a lot of confidence on and off the job thanks to this stint in Toronto. I made and strengthened friendships, some of which will last a lifetime. I also learned a lot about myself, and grew emotionally - though not always due to positive events.

August was also the impeding doom month, health-wise. On 06/08/08, I broke a tooth biting into soft pastry. On 08.08.08, aka, Opening Ceremonies, I had an acid attack and wound up in the hospital. I had additional dental issues throughout the year, but nothing too crazy - just expensive!

The Fall was odd for me because I didn't go back to school. Instead, I travelled to Kingston to visit Ryan, worked at HNIC for the beginning of the Habs Centennial season, went to Toronto for the Golden Jubilee Darbar, then back to Kingston for Ryan's graduation. I also went to NYC for Labour Day week(end), visiting my cousin at school.

I also made it to Ottawa earlier this week for the World Junior Hockey Championship, seeing Team USA vs. Kazakhstan at Scotiabank Place. It was the second time I made it to Ottawa in 2008 (or was that 3 times?), since I met up with a bunch of Habs fans in the Capital City for Habs @ Sens for Hockey Day in Canada.

This past year was also a good year for boys. And that's all I'll say on that topic ;)

So much happened in 2008, and as you can tell, I can't remember most of it - especially the early stuff.

But what I do know is this: 2008 was a year of change and growth, whether professionally or personally, emotionally or rationally.

Overall, there were a lot more positives in this past year than negatives, and I hope that 2009 will continue this upward trend... despite being faced with a series of depressing events in late 2008.

So, 2009, I welcome you with open arms. Maybe this will be the year I accomplish my destiny!

<2009>

Running through my head (no scissors involved)

* I can't believe I've had a computer since 1993. I was 8. I've been using the Internet since 1994. All my decision-making life, I've had access to computers and the Internet. Crazy.

* I wish I lived in Western Canada so I could go to country music shows. Why, oh why must country stars shun the great East? Some stars don't even play in Toronto or Ottawa, places I could justify traveling to for a show.

* I am completely, totally, extremely excited about the Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert tonight. It's snowing, and while that means dangerous roads, it's the perfect setting for tonight's show. TSO brings the snow. Most importantly, I'm very excited about spending the night with some very special people in my life. Also, I like that I can actually get work done during the show... I need to screen all of TSO's hits to choose one for our newscast.

* Hot tubs might be gross because of all that random dead skin floating around, but the gym is grosser. Can you imagine getting other peoples' sweat, germs, and phlegm all over you? That's why I work out at home. That's also why I don't work out so much. PS: Doing groceries is pretty gross too.

* I will not change for a boy. At least, not a lot. I won't change my habits to meet a boy. I won't go out of my way to get a boy to like me. If you can't appreciate me as is, then you won't appreciate me if I change. All women should follow this creed, and the cretins would die out... Hopefully.

Today, I woke up with a smile

OMG!!!!!

I was in bed.... since about 8:30, tossing and turning... then around 9 I decided I needed to get up...

I could hear the frost and snow and frozen rain coming down, and really didn't feel like getting up... But finally, at 9:30, I forced myself up. Enough, I thought, I need to get up before my shoulder gets any more painful...

And I go to the washroom, as usual. I'm walking back into my room to turn on the computer, wondering if I should go get the newspaper, when the doorbell rings.

In a second, I wonder if I'm decent in my PJs, if my mom is back for lunch REALLY early, if someone's car broke down and needs help, or if my brother is expecting a package.

I head downstairs and can see a delivery guy and the box out of the windows alongside the door.

I answer, and he asks if I'm Naila Jinnah. Of course, that's me.

Now I'm wondering if I ordered something I forgot about... and why it's arriving by Fed Ex.

Most of the stuff I order is UPS or DHL, but I haven't really ever used FedEx.

The guy has forgotten his special pen in the truck. Meanwhile, I bring in the grocery pamphlets. The package is in my hands, but for some reason, I'm not looking at it yet.

I sign my name, thank him, and lock the door.

Then I start looking for any indication of the origin of the package.

I finally find the sender's name and address.

Stephanie Boutin. I recognize that name, but I'm not sure from where.
The next line says, "Boutique Souvenir".
I think, did I order something from the Habs? Unknowingly? Is someone sending me an early Xmas gift?

Of course, the address seals the deal. St-Antoine. It's definitely the Bell Centre.

Now I'm excited. I'm curious. I want to know.

I grab a knife and cut the box open, fighting with the stupid tape.

And it's filled with brown paper.

I think, "oh. Okay."

I dig through the paper and see bubbly paper... and within it, this circular black object.

It's a puck.

Then it comes flooding back.

The FedEx practice puck contest!!!!

I have won a puck from the Nov. 19th warmups.

I am so excited!!! I can see the scratches and marks and stick lines. There's even a cut on one side! The puck bears the NHL insignia and the slogan, "official practice puck", half erased by play. The rim states that the puck is official and made in Canada.
What joy! They still use Canadian-made pucks!
The puck comes with a souvenir box and stand, printed with a Montreal Canadiens and FedEx logo. I also get a certificate of authenticity.

I almost feel like reverting back to my teen days and getting it autographed.

And now, I can't stop smiling!

MASH

Okay. Remember this game? Mansion, Apartment, Shack House.
Awesome. Used to play it for ages in class (and in the hallways), with random names - often celebrities - and even though we really didn't care what the results were. And we knew how it worked, but were surprised anyway!

Well, I found it randomly online. Today's options are confusing though... Were there always more than one result?
Still, apparently I'm going to be news or sports producer, drive a Versa or a motorcycle that is blue, green or yellow. Live in an mansion, shack or house in Tampa, Montreal, or Finland... See why this is confusing?

Then there's another site that randomizes the results. They tell me I'll be a news producer, drive a Versa, marry Ryan and live in Montreal. Somehow, I don't expect that to happen!

Get me a pen and paper. I'm doing this the old fashioned way!