After a 6am start and being stuck in peak hour Nairobi traffic, we finally made it to Kenyatta University where we drove to the Business and Student Service Centre to meet the guys from KU and SEMA. We were given a 2-hour lecture by various organisers/partners where we discussed the meaning of community based learning, what the term ‘community’ means, and how we can apply that to working collectively in a project with each other. The staff and students then welcomed us to have a cup of chai 🙂 which was then shortly followed by a traditional Kenyan lunch (beef stew, rice and ugali). After lunch we went back to the lecture room where we separated into the groups (audio, film and photography) and brainstormed ideas and planned a project topic.

I am in the photography group; there are eight of us in the group, both a mixture of SEMA, KU and Brighton students. Together we came up with possible topics that could get us out and involved in the community. We made a mutual agreement to focus the project on a positive and cheerful topic, one that draws away from any negative connotations associated to life of Kenyan people. So as a group we decided to focus on the topic of ‘Happiness and Joy’. Things that people enjoy, or do to make them feel happy and content. In order of achieving this project we decided as a group to take portrait photographs of people in local communities and even of students at Kenyatta University to find out what the term happiness means for these people. Tomorrow when we meet again we will divide into two groups to go around the university to find locations in the campus where students go to seek leisure and enjoyment.

We have arrived. Thank God 🙂

After such a long journey that started for me at about 0120hrs on the 17th and ended at about 2200hrs, being tired was such an understatement for me.

As we were leaving London, it just started snowing, some might say perfect timing, but the snow is my favourite. lol

We all arrived at the airport on time which was great, so no need for panic over anyone missing their flights. The flight was smooth which was perfect, because I would’ve really dreaded it if there was any turbulence.

When we arrived at Kenya it was raining :(, but I will still excited. This was the first time I’ve been to any other African country that is not Nigeria that I can remember.

I must say I was quite impressed with the airport, the toilets were extremely clean and the airport was very orderly. Thumbs up Kenya.

Our driver Rufus was already there waiting on us which was good. He is a very nice and polite man. Got to the accommodation, which is not too far from the airport. It is called the Nairobi Airport Stopover Hotel.

Was really anxious to know where I would be staying for a week, but when I saw it I was a bit disappointed, not what I expected, but after talking about it with some of my peers I realised I wasn’t alone, and they encouraged me to try it out for a night and see how I felt. By the way, one plus about the place was the WIFI. lol

The next morning I felt alright, didn’t feel as down as the night before, I guess I just had to get used to the environment.

The first official day, we went to get our phones sorted. I was pleased to have a sim card and on the go internet. Then we went for Lunch afterwards. It was good to just notice the city from the car, and see different elements. P.S There is so much traffic in Kenya. It was a nice day just discovering.

When we got back, we had a planning meeting of how the week would be. Then had some dinner. I got to see the famous Ugali.

Also there was a blackout last night.

All in all, absolute great first day. x

Last night there was a blackout which was a little scary and inconvenient as in the morning we found that none of our equipment had fully charged, luckily it was not needed as much today as we were just meeting the other students, getting into our groups and planning what we are going to do for the days ahead.

I didn’t have a very good sleep last night and we had to get up at around 6.30am to have breakfast at 7am and be on the minibus by 8am. The journey to the university was a good hour with lots of traffic but the view out of the window was very interesting and enlightening, showing much diversity in buildings and the way of life which is far from that of the western world.

When we got to Kenyatta University it was a huge, beautiful campus that looked more like a small village. We were greeted by students from the university and by a Kenyan youth group called SEMA media. We started with a ‘rock, paper, scissors’ ice breaker which went down really well and got everyone more comfortable with each other. Then peter went through a presentation with us all before we got into groups of photography, audio and video.

(Above: Fred, Peter, Lana and Fanuelle)

I went into the photography group because I felt most comfortable with this one and I don’t have much confidence so I didn’t want to bite off more than I could chew. Our group members included me, Angelica, Lana, Fanuelle, Ali, Brenda, Impessa, and Yvette. We discussed ideas and topics that were interesting and most importantly achievable in the short time we had. As we were mostly at the university we needed to incorporate shots we could get around campus, we discussed student life and portraits showing a lot of emotion because these in turn create emotion in the viewer. We decided we would like to take a positive stand and pick a topic that showed happiness and the good things in the community rather than negative issues that needed addressing and evoke sadness. We thought that it would be a good idea to catch people doing what they love; a hobby, interest etc. and write a brief caption underneath, inspired by the humans of New York stories. After we had decided we had a brief walk around the campus and went to the amphitheatre to look around.

(Above: The photography group outside the Amphitheatre)

(Above:Lana, Fanuelle and Angelica)

Today was the first day meeting KU students and I must say meeting them in person was great. Although Facebook was a great first point of contact, being face to face was much better. I found the students really bright and easy to talk to. We played an icebreaker ‘cheerleader rock paper cissors’ which everybody got into. It was the first time I initiated a icebreaker and I am  really happy for how it turned out.  

The second part of the afternoon, we got into groups so we could start working on our projects for the exhibition. I am in the audio group  which is quite exciting for me. I have very little experience doing this, but I do think that my skills :interviewing and basic editting skills will come in handy. My groups is really sweet I felt comfortable with them very quickly. Our ideas developed and we got to know each other quite well, just in the space of couple of hours. I think that working as a team towards a common goal (producing a podcast) is a really good way to get to know people. Although I enjoy the regular chitchat, of getting to know somebody, Working on a project together is a way to develop a common interest. This sets an intention to collaborate and it is a way to get to know somebody through their ideas, skills and their behaviour in a group. 

All in all, I really enjoyed the day I feel like we did some good progress, I think these next couple days will be quite intense with gathering material feigning our ideas and producing content ! Very exciting ! 

I woke up this morning feeling very happy and refreshed after a surprisingly good sleep due to a combination of a very comfy bed, my earplugs and the protection of a mosquito net.

Breakfast was a delicious section of fruit and fruit juice followed by pancakes, egg and most importantly a huge portion of Marmite on toast to keep the mozzies at bay. In the light of day we really got a chance to see how beautiful the area we were staying really was.

(Above: The view from the balcony at the guesthouse)

We decided we would check out the town and all packed into the minibus and headed off. The traffic was unbearably slow but it gave us a chance to take in the sights and sounds of the surrounding area.

(Above: Packed into the minibus)

I saw lots of street food stalls and tiny run down kiosks although degraded; colourful, unique and full of life. The locals I’ve encountered have all been very friendly, happy and smiley which gives you a great feeling and makes the whole experience even more rewarding.

We went to a local supermarket to get money and sort phones and then to a café where we had a coffee before heading back to the guesthouse to enjoy some authentic local food cooked by the staff. Peter also organised a group meeting to discuss our plans for the week ahead which set the nerves into motion and sparked us all into action.

(Above: working hard in the garden at the guesthouse)

A day of acclimatising – we set off in the morning to see what is around locally, first visiting a local supermarket for some of the crew to pick up sim cards. Moving through the city you really start to see how great the culture and people of Nairobi are. The vast difference in society and way of life is an amazing sight to see, the people of Nairobi are a such happy folk and set in their ways perfectly. The crazy thing is, the style they do it, they have swag! You never stop being amazed and the things you can see on such a diverse scale not forgetting the wildlife, just around the town and locally, bamboos just doing their thing, and herons looking the size of dinosaurs flying through the air. It really is a fascinating place to be in!

Getting a scope around the guesthouse were are staying in is charming, there are painting of various animals created by local artists on the walls surround the house; a hippopotamus, elephant, giraffe and cheetah looking stylish. The surrounding plant life is great and fruit isn’t in short supply with a mango tree perched directly above us.

The evening meeting took place where we were briefed about the happenings tomorrow at Kenyatta University (19/01/2016) as a group we need to collaborate with the students of KU to discuss topics arising in Kenya and produce a video, audio and photography production based around the topic of community. Roll on tomorrow!

Today we are planning on relaxing which is well needed after a long and slightly stressful 18+ hour journey.

I rushed straight to Heathrow from a gig in London on the Saturday night before the tubes closed, they were all running late because of a short staff problem but luckily I managed to catch the last one. I waited in Costa for 3 hours till the others arrived at 4am and when we did get on the first flight to Zurich It was delayed by an hour due to the unexpected appearance of snow in England, for which they were clearly unprepared. Luckily our second flight from Zurich waited for us and we settled in for a further 8 hour plane journey with the help of a selection of recently released films, food and alcohol and an intense game of scrabble.

When we got off the plane excitement was in the air, it was 10pm local time but still very warm. We drove to the Nairobi airport stopover guesthouse, stopping off at a garage to get some essentials. We were all very tired so after a quick tour around, we settled into our bunk-beds in our charming little yellow outhouse and had an early night excited to see Nairobi in the daylight.

(Our accommodation at the Nairobi airport stopover guesthouse)

yesterday, was a travel, day. Across the Alps, over the islands Mediterranean. I saw the desert of Sudan, and spotted a few oasis too. The plane was quite full, mixed, so many different travellers with different motivations for going to Kenya. To be honest, I never really thought of going to Kenya before this trip, and my imaginary of this land is restrained by photographs on national geographic. I imagine, beautiful woman, amazing fabrics and fresh fruit. Stepping off the plane , was quite parculiar, the air was warm and embraced my body. Not too hot, nor cold, . Just right.. We Left the airport and I love seeing smiley faces buzzing around and waiting to collect arriving guest ! I felt a warm welcome, safe and happy to be in Africa! Jambo!  

Arriving at night, all is obscured, until the next morning as sunshine reveals the surroundings. 

 We are staying in a cute little guesthouse which has a lovely courtyard dropping with mangoes and pink flowers. There is some cool graffitis of elephants, giraffes, and hippos. We had an amazing breakfast, covered ourselves with bug spray and ventured into town. We soon became part of slow moving traffic. We were able to do a bit of people watching and observe what street vendors had to sell. I made eye contact with locals to exchange a simple smile or a wave. 
We drove past the biggest slum in East Africa called Kibera, it was a very grey landscape made up of corrugated steel roofs. 1 million people live there, it a huge part of nairobie. The stigma of slum is so strong that even thinking about what the quality of life ‘in there’ gives me goosebumps. But humans, like you and me, live there. They must have families, cook food and enjoy spending time with their friends. We are the same, although the media present it as “us” and “them”. A dangerous “them”, a violent “them” a uneducated “them”, and the list goes on. 

I wish to dispel this idea I have of this imaginary of the slum with real first hand testimony of Kibera inhabitants. Reporting, documenting and learning about theses communities first hand could be a  way to dispel the myth of “Kibera ” perpetuated by the maintpstream media . 

After a very long sleepless night of travelling to Heathrow on the coach, followed by a flight to Zurich and then an additional 8-hour leg to Kenya. We finally arrived in Nairobi last night to be greeted by our guide Rufus who picked us up from the airport and took us back to our hostel (Nairobi Airport Stopover Guesthouse) about a 15-minute drive away. When we arrived to our hostel we were welcomed by the friendly staff there, who then showed us to our dorm, a very sweet little yellow out-house hidden amongst the Mango trees. For the rest of the evening we relaxed at the hostel, and got a good nights sleep in before we explored Nairobi today.

This morning we got up got, showered and had breakfast before Rufus picked us up and took us for a little drive around Nairobi City Centre where we went to the supermarket to get a few supplies and then to Galleria where we had a late lunch.  Nairobi is a very bright, busy and colourful city, with many kiosks and fruit stalls surrounding the roads. Everywhere you look there is lush greenery, enormous jurassic-looking birds and happy locals walking the streets. Tomorrow is our first day starting the workshops at Kenyatta University, so tonight I think we will have quite an early one so that are ready for a full on day tomorrow. I’m really looking forward to seeing the University and meeting the guys who we will be working with for the next 4 days. 🙂