Finally Pizza! (Well, sort of.)

After my five mile run this morning I thought I would take a quick shower and head to breakfast as I do every other morning. Except today, there was a slight problem—no water. Normally this wouldn’t have really mattered because I would have just gone without showering, but having just come from a run, not showering was not an option. I tried the hot water and of course that worked. Unless I wanted to completely burn my skin, I’d have to find another way of washing off. I went to the reception area at the Guest House and told the lady in charge, Ruth, about the problem. She looked at me in shock and asked if I had turned the knob. Really? I’m a student at a research institute for the summer. I said, “Of course.” Ruth still must not have believed me because she sent some guy to check. Sure enough, still no water. Before long, calls were coming to the reception area. I wasn’t the only one having trouble. They gave me another room to shower in for the morning. With my big pile of toiletries and clean clothes, I walked through the compound to the new room. Before long, I was showered and cleaned, ready to begin my day just as the water began to work again.

In the morning I worked on organizing my research report. With Lindar still sick, the insect identification I could provide wouldn’t be very helpful. I also attended a seminar by a professor from China. His seminar was about gathering the genomes of all species. There’s some new method he is using to expedite the process. Sometimes at these seminars I can only get the gist of what the speaker is talking about. Beyond a thick accent to try to understand through, the science is usually past my level. I learn what I can, though. My afternoon was spent doing more work on my research report.

Arriving late to Friday Tea, we didn’t receive any sodas. Sweets were available, however, and the lightly glazed chocolate donut I had tasted good. As everyone went to gather their belongings, Mercy and I waited. Mercy told me how much she hates how people are always late. I don’t know how she can live in Kenya, because I have yet to meet a person who always arrives on time. We rode to town and hurried through the busy streets of Nairobi to Debonairs, a pizza place. Sarah and Mercy came with me and knew just how excited I was for pizza. I had been constantly talking about it and reminding people of it all week. With the Friday offer the restaurant had, we ordered two large pizzas. Large pizzas in Kenya are still fairly small compared to what one would expect in the States. I told Mercy and Sarah I would eat a whole pizza alone, and I was serious. The restaurant was crowded. It was obvious this was the “cool” high school hang out place. When the pizza came, I devoured it. Yep, the whole thing. Even though this pizza wasn’t nearly as good as any pizza in America, it was the closest I’ve come since I’ve been here. The pizza was thin, with no tomato sauce, and very little cheese. There were tomato sauce dispensers around the restaurant, but the tomato sauce was more like ketchup. I tried it on half of my pizza. I didn’t really taste a difference. The pizza was sweeter than pizza back home. Sarah and Mercy laughed as I was silent the entire meal and finished off an entire pizza. I think after eating that pizza, I was the fullest I had been since I arrived in Kenya. They told me Debonairs had good milkshakes as well and I couldn’t pass up the chance. I ordered a chocolate one to go. Sadly, it tasted more like chocolate milk than a milk shake. Restaurants in Kenya never seem to have the right amount of change and when paying for my milkshake I had to wait a long while for them to find some coins to give me. 

The streets of Nairobi never fail to give me a bit of chill at night. Even at eight, the streets are packed. Of course, being the only mzungu I attract anyone begging for money. It’s like I become a magnet or something. Having to shake my head no at children never becomes easy. One lady even followed us for at least a block begging for money. Eventually, Sarah told her to leave, and she disappeared into the darkness.

Mercy took me back to icipe. On our way we say a large fire in the middle of the street. I inquired about it, and Mercy told me that was the way people disposed of trash. The flames were large and looked dangerous. When passing by it, I could feel the heat radiating from the large fire, even from within the car. These fires must only add to the already increasing pollution.