Nairobi

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I left the hustle and bustle of Kampala on the night coach to Nairobi to avoid paying a night's accommodation - forever the stinge! Fortunately I was sat next to a really interesting man who was a Bishop in southern Sudan. Sudan has always been somewhere which i've been keen to find out more about because Dad was born out there but currently not the best place to visit. The North and South are very divided in so many aspects, language, religion, landscape, resources and the South are all looking forward to January when they hope that the referendum will be passed to split the country in two. The South will then be able to lead a life free from war, something most Sudanese people have never experienced since civil war broke out in 1955.

The bus trip was fairly painless, i managed to get a seat in the aisle in the event that i got sat next to a large fat African man who would just push me into the side of the coach trying to get more space! We made it to the border smoothly but once in Kenya the bus must have broken down 3 times. we were sat on the side of road (asleep in the bus) for a good hour waiting for someone to come and fix it the first time, fortunately the second and third times help was much nearer!

Downtown Nairobi has a very Western city feel, traffic is orderly, streets are clean, streets are named, pedestrians cross at crossings, there is a good bus system and there are no bodas. People are dressed in western clothes, the majority of women in trousers or jeans and there are many big shopping centres around. There are also many many western style restaurants and harder to find the local chapatti and beans. I treated myself to a pizza which was delicious and then even had hot not luke warm water in the shower!

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