Midnight, Bush House and Camp, Nairobi
I'm admitting to a little bit of anxiety, anger, frustration and fear since arriving in Nairobi. Leaving the airport we were faced with the first sign that we'll need to be smarter and a bit more aware of the locals- men came up and forced our luggage out of our hands while offering their assistance and then requested tips ... this is how they work at the airport. It would have been alright had I been expecting it but we didn't exchange our bills to smaller ones yet because the exchange rate was bad at the airport. We found out quickly that there is not a common tip percentage either, you tip what you want for whatever somebody does for you, so without knowing what is customary you can easily give way too much to one person and way too little to another. The driver of our hotel van shooed them away and off we went, feeling a bit guilt-ridden for not preparing ourselves better.
We're here now in our hostel with comfortable beds, good security, breakfast in the morning, and an entire day of sightseeing... and yet I'm finding it very hard to relax. I ask God to work in my heart and my mind to keep my anxiety down. I think having little control over the situation and sharing space with so many others who are just as out of sorts as I am is making it hard to feel comfortable. I'm so worried about asking or saying the wrong thing so I'm finding it difficult to converse with the locals. But it's going to be better tomorrow after a good nights sleep and the start of a new day... I'm in Kenya!!
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