Farewell Kenya

As I have just hopped on a bus from Nakuru to the Ugandan town of Jinja, I thought I would take a minute to compose a blog post on my phone while I still have access to the fantastic wireless data service offered by Safaricom. I believe Nancy has previously mentioned Safaricom, but just for frame of referwnce, it costs me around 3 cents per minute to call Canada and about 20 cents a day for 25mb of data per day, with fantastic coverage around the country.

I have found that having a data enabled smartphone has developed into an almost indispensable travel tool. For example, while waiting for the bus to Jinja, I was able to Google hostels to stay upon arrival, phone them, and book accommodation in about ten minutes. In previous travels, this sort of thing meant a trip to an internet cafe, a tenuous internet connection, possibly a successful Skype call, but more likely an email that would only tenuously solicit a response.

Also, having accurate maps with my position plotted by GPS has been very useful for navigating highways, parks, and towns. When you are traveling in unknown territory, knowledge is power, and for example, exactly how many kilometers away the next town is is very useful for fare-bargaining purposes and general safety and awareness.

I was at first apprehensive about traveling with a fairly fancy phone. However, especially in Nairobi, I found that practically everyone was toting an android phone, and that mine was only slightly better. Then again, I bought my phone from the US just before departure and it was at the time better than what was available in Canada. Also, walking down the street looking at one's phone for directions is much less conspicuous that thumbing through the lonely planet or unfolding a tourist map and attracts less unwanted attention.

While I will certainly miss the wireless service in Kenya, it certainly won't be my most unforgettable experience from the country. Experiencing Kibera was definitely what will stick with me most (that and sharing a room with Steve for a month straight). Having a bunch of kids from the slum utter the term "cash flow positive" when describing a company with a pretty good idea of what that meant was something I will always remember. One or two of the personal mission statements that the students composed and recited for the whole group was moving. One of the students, 'Nice' Nazri, displayed the essence of his nickname and made for Phoebe, martina, and myself customized, name-inscribed, Kenya bracelets. Nazri proudly declared that they were "authentic original, not photocopy!" Mine was a struggle to get on and I think it will remain with me for quite a while. It really was eperiences like this that made the trip so memorable and meaningful. I feel as though the average tourist on safari is getting very poor bang for his buck relative to us.

That being said, I have just come from Naivasha and Nakuru, where I spent a day cycling with giraffes and gorge-exploring with Steve, and a morning spotting game at lake Nakuru. In Jinja, I will go whitewater rafting on the Nile, and then proceed to Kampala where I will depart on a gorilla viewing trek in southern Uganda. All that in the next two weeks before flying straight to Rotterdam for the final fall term of my MBA on exchange.

The road is now too bumpy to type on my phone so I must bid adieu. Many thanks to Nancy, Martina, Steve, Julie, Phoebe, for such an amazing experience. Also a special thanks to everyone who contributed financially to the program. I think in all the hustle and bustle we don't emphasize how much of a learning experience the sauder students receive in the pursuit of passing knowledge to those less fortunate than ourselves.

So long,

Ben

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