mzeiya
Elder Lister
Long life story but quite inspiring...
...to incorporate barber services. After 1 yr, it never happened & business wasn't doing great. We parted ways, I went to Pangani where my friend run a barbershop as an employee. After a while I got another offer in Nrb West..
..for selling makali( alcohol spirits). The job was great but the lady owner's husband was an alcoholic who would quarrel me out of nothing. I spent some nights in Lang'ata police cells if the police hadn't gotten their weekly cut(they rounded up every..
..one who hadn't paid up). I got enough of the quarrels and left for countryside. After 2 mnths I came back to Nrb, this time Kasarani for mjengo (construction). A friend "housed" me in Zimmerman in his rented mabati shack. After 2 mnths I moved out when I..
..got wind he was bringing his high school sweetheart to live with him
. I rented a single room with no electricity in Githurai Kimbo(progressive). I bought that thin mattress, a blanket, a stove and two sufurias. Rent was kshs 900. Bora uhai, right?..
.. I had a "constant" mjengo gig in one site in Kasarani. Crossing from "Progi" to "Kasa" was by foot, lunch kibandaski, day wage kshs 200/ weekly kshs1200 minus expenses ( chai na lunch). Life wasn't all rosy though.. mjengo gigs are not guaranteed, ..
Donga runs out of cash, inabidi uanze search upya. I used to joke to my new friends. " In this industry there's no documents required, just wake up early, jua ikupate Kasarani". And that's how we survived. Sometimes you go 3 wks without luck..
Lakini Mungu ni nani, mama wa kibandaski understands and gives you lunch on credit ( thumbs up to Njoki/nyina Mwangi). On a lucky day unaangukia "koroga" and get kshs400, but ushakula kama 120
.
My sister who worked in the city and lived in Ruaka invited me to stay with her as she got me a "job" to insurance policy selling. Ni nini hatujafanya hii Nairobi? There was no salary though.. until one sells 7 life covers. Bus fare, food.. all on my sis..
I had to leave town by 3pm to avoid high fares. After 1mnth, it was ENOUGH! The masculine in me couldn't keep up with burdening my sis yet no prospects of a salary. I quit, went back to Githurai mjengo. It wasn't so hard getting back on the grind because I had my share of bad and good days. I felt better grinding than letting my sis carry my baggage. Went back to usual mjengo days as I expanded my "network"
On Sundays I would hang out around barbershop ( Kung'usfam) for those who know 45 well. Later I got a job as a barber there. After one yr, I called quits and opened my own barbershop shack next to my employer taking my loyal customers with me..
Until the day same sister (then hair dresser Tom Mboya str) called and challenged me to apply for a scholarship to Finland. Apparently there was no tuition fee but the rest ni kujipanga my fren. I diligently obeyed ( was assisted with application since I knew ZERO about computers. My degree of choice was Tourism. The journey began; entrance exam was offered in parklands Visa Oshwal. 3k for exam was provided by my bro who lived in Kiambu. Sat for exam in April, results in June. Accepted, school starts in Aug.
Remember I don't have a passport, leave alone air ticket. Fundraiser was conducted as I continued barbing. I finally flew out in Sep a mnth after college studies had started. I caught up and the rest is history.. to be contd
@mentionscan relate.. I'm writing my book
Thread contd... In the interest of short story I know I never mentioned where we parted ways with my mjengo foreman. A scene like the one video on this TL where a guy goes wild with a shovel isn't a rare occurrence in Nbi mjengos. We had already completed..
A whole 6 storey in Kasa( Biashara plaza) from foundation to painting. At this point we were well acquainted with Nderitu the foreman, having spent almost 1/2 yr together. That meant any other gig that came his way, I was among the top 3 mtu wa mkono in his squad. Others included " NdΔ«a nyama"( Macharia) & DagΓtarΓ(Amos). This was his bomb-proof squad that could handle anything thrown at us. Things went South one day when he had a " koroga" for us, only to pay us 300 in the end, citing short time used.
Unwritten mjengo rules indicated that whether the koroga is one hour or 7 hrs, 400 is the number. Nderitu however wanted to pay 300. We lifted our shovels and I had to remind him that " tumejuana tukiwa watu wazima, na shida ndio imetujulishana" (we get acquainted as adults and poverty is the main driver otherwise we wouldn't be acquaintances). In short what I was telling"mΓΊndΓΉ wa WamΓΊyΓΊ"(son of WamΓΊyΓΊ) is that the shovels would come down on him if 400 was not the pay. I was confident my mbogi "haitaniangusha" but either way I wasn't taking anything less (In case you're wondering abt the pay, the yr was '06. Siku hizi I hear they get triple ). Anywho, Nderitu paid 400 but cut me off from the gang. Bora uhai, Nai si ya mama ya mtu.
Fast forward to scholarship. I might also skip the part where my fundraised money became a target of Nairobi wash wash just as I was printing bank statements to prove I won't be foreign govt's burden once I leave Ke...
Remember I mentioned earlier the scholarship was free? It was! NO tuition fee, No grants! The catch though, a prove of kshs600k( roughly 6000β¬ at the time) in your bank acc/ yr. It was calculated as 500β¬/ mnth( kshs 50k) for rent & upkeep. The cash was to be in my acc throughout the visa/ resident permit application process ( 1mnth/ 2month). It's this period my frens that the wash wash gang smell money. Rem I'm still a barber in 45?
I have this young well groomed customer, tiny frame soft-spoken guy. He is a regular, every Sunday afternoon. Name; Mutula. I have been collecting kshs 50s from my loyal customers since I tell everyone about my scholarship. Even Mutula contributes. We chit chat often and he works with K rep bank, Kiambu. It never occurred to me why would he not reside in Kiambu instead of using 2 matatus.. aren't bankers paid well?
. Anyway I don't delve much into customer's life, he's a regular and even tips sometimes.
On one of those Sunday kinyozi trips, Mutula tells me actually he can help me sort my money problems, niende majuu kama nishaomoka already. His uncle left millions for him because he was a connected man in Delarue. The cash is available for use only after the dyeing process is complete. Apparently, in Delarue cash is printed in stages and if one manages to snatch a bunch before the dye phase, ameomoka chini ya maji. So the catch is, Mutula needs support ( financial) to buy the dye from dye merchant
after which I'll get my cut ..
The good thing is, he already has one on standby. And if I'm a doubting Thomas, kesho tukutane tao nijionee mwenyewe. Of course I was now a regular in town 'cause of my trip preparations. On a Monday after going to Westlands (embassy), I met Mutula in town. He makes a call after a short while a G-touring pulls over. We get in. The driver is a lady, backseat a man. Mutula seats infront, as the roll towards khoja msq, then Lagos rd. The man produces a few purple colured papers tell me to check under a light.
Behold, the lion, elephant & everything on the 1k note but blurry. He sprays some liquid then blows it by mouth.. it starts drying, turning brown..a real thao.
I'm now perplexed! But deep inside I don't feel right..I bring out some ghetto in me out of the blue and ask, " kama ni rahisi hivi mbona hamjapata mtu wa kuwapa hio pesa ya dye? Ama nyinyi ni conmen? " ..
(If it's this simple, why haven't you gotten someone to lend you the money for the dye? Or are you conmen?) .. what?? Hold up! The lady pulled over fast( there's no traffic huko behind Nbi fire station) & asked, "Kwani unadhani wewe ni nani? " ...
..( "Who do think you are?"). I tried saying, "madam sina ubaya,lakini.." .. she didn't even five me a chance. "' shuka! Na uchunge sana!"..( get out, and watch your back!" .. The guy in the backseat didn't waste time, he reached for the door latch and let me out, with an additional " mbwa wewe.. chunga sana!"
That my frens, was a threat! I was shaking, looked at my guy Mutula but he said nothing! I realized that thugs don't like being called out. I alighted as the door banged closed behind me. ... The car spend and took the next left. Phew! I thought as I crossed the road! "How did I get to this? What if these guys come after me?" I hurriedly walked towards tea room where there are more people and traffic! How much info do we volunteer to strangers? ..
..Is the guy's name even Mutula? Many thoughts crossed my mind as I approached "jaba" stand opposite "tearoom"( Accra rd/ River rd junction). I bought jaba ya 30 na njugu za 5, continued past Luthuli to Racecourse rd for Githurai javs. That stretch was noisy with loud pirated music cds. One reggae tune stood out.. "lord I thank you-Tony Curtis". "..like the guiding light & it's brighten up my darks to see, though the evil may fight i know they are no threat to me Lord i thank you.."
I never told anyone about this encounter. Even my "jabaration gang". I'm sure I could have avoided all this if I hinted to them before it reached that point. Shout to "Operator" aka Maimba, RΓΉhiΓΉ aka panga aka Benso, Njamio aka Ras aka Githinji. Mutula never visited my shop the weeks that followed as my departure was imminent.
Departure came. My girl Shiro came a day before from Malindi. Fam came from Nyeri & Nbi surroundings. We gathered at my brother's in Kiambu for the "last supper"...My flight was at night. We headed to the airport later, Shiro took a night bus to Malindi. I even gave my niece my Motorola phone " because I was going to the land of Nokia". Little did I know I'll be few weeks before I get myself a Nokia 2310.
I landed Helsinki with kshs 70k(700β¬). My Nairobi friend Sharon was waiting . We went by bus to Espoo where she lived. It was around 7 pm but sun was shining
(1st culture shock?/weather shock?). After dropping to the luggage we went for groceries. Everything she picked I quickly converted to kshs.. . Few stuff ro make us dinner was about 20β¬(kshs2000??) Chesos krest! She noticed my uneasiness and said.. "we don't convert. It'll drive you crazy". We headed back & she prepared dinner.
After dinner she walked me a few blocks down where her friend Jose stayed. Here I would spend the night, Sharon will pick me in the morning. Sharon was 1 yr ahead of me having gone thru same scholarship program.
Following morning 6 am Sharon was at the door. My school was 500km away & she had to drop me to the train station,help me buy ticket before she goes for job after which she'll attend class. Who said life is nice here? Ticket was 80β¬..(700-80= 620 β¬). I landed with 700 remember? That 6000β¬ in the Nairobi acc didn't make it to my pocket for other reasons "not available on public domain" . Now I have a ticket and 620. Mind you I don't have accomodation where I'm headed..
School had advised that one books accommodation before they fly in. Student studio aptmt was 220β¬ + 220β¬ deposit= 440β¬.. that would have left me with 260β¬ even before landing. If you survived Githurai,you can survive here right?
The train took the whole day as it stops in every town. School had arranged senior students to pick new student from train station. So 2 ladies came, introduced themselves as Tourism seniors and are here " at your(my) service. Same time a taxi driver takes my luggage & ushers me in the cab. " Great place ", I tell myself. Marjo and Katri leave in a car & tell " see you soon at campus". The journey is like 5 minutes as the cab pulls over campus buildings. I recognize them from the photos..
Before letting me out, cab driver pinches some buttons and says " 16 Euro".. wait! I was paying?I thought Marjo and Katri were paying since they were " picking me up"
I pay and the ladies are already waiting outside. We drag my luggage as they update me. I'm gonna be sharing a room with a Ghanian guy, same class as mine. There are shortages of student housing but soon they'll be available. They also mentioned that I should book mine as fast as possible. Andy the Ghanian was cool. He wasn't ghetto like me, he even had a laptop
He was very friendly and welcoming. He was expecting me since all students were briefed about the apartment shortage and even asked to pledge taking someone in. Marjo brought me mattress, I had beddings. And that's how I met my soon to be 3yr roomie..
I booked my room with the help of Andy. However I rejected it once I got mail notifying me that one is available. We had a nice arrangement where I paid Andy 110β¬, he paid the rent(220β¬ ) since it was in his name.
I knew I had to get a job as fast as possible since I was running out of my "reserves. Sharon had given me a number of one Omil, a Kenyan senior in our school. She had mentioned, pigia Omil umwambie unataka job"(Call Omil,tell him you need a job)..
I diligently called and although the guy was not talkative he promised to meet me the next day and he did. He was biking, I was walking. We went to one office and after telling the lady that " this is a beast in the field,you can have my word", I was asked to sign on some paper. That my frens was my first job ughaibuni. Distribution of shopping adverts into mailboxes and apartment buildings.
My 1st pay was 70β¬. Not enough even for my 110β¬ rent. Work was 2 days a week. I couldn't survive on that. I went back to the office, this time solo. I convinced madam that I'm made for the streets, I needed more job. That meant more areas of delivery/distribution ( more adverts). She agreed. The problem was the visa was a student visa which means even employers aren't allowed to give a huge gig that will make you drop out of school. Renewal is annually and pegged on study credits. In short, the immigration needs a copy of transcript of records (rifoti fomu) when renewing the permit. To be continued...
Kwa wale mmefika hapa, mini kama Mzeiya nimechoka kufanya editing into paragraphs kikikikiiii
Cont'd... I recruited my roomie Andy to my new trade. His cash was running out & remittances from his bro in the US were diminishing. He in turn recruited Nze, a Nigerian from neighbouring block. We were becoming a community..of grinders 
Job was Wed& Sat. On Wed it was tricky. Gotta be up like 5am, do a few rounds, be home by 7am, shower , be in class at 8am. After 3pm/4pm resume the grit, complete the distribution, sometimes as late as 8pm.
Another "moneymaker" was the streets.. literally.. STREETS! Beer, soft drink cans & bottles are cash out there. Every grocery store has an automated machine where one inserts them in exchange for receipt. Inside the store the receipt converts to cash.
Each can is 0.20β¬/20cnt( kshs 20). The "bull run" starts on Wed evening to Sun early morning. Student party/ clubbing is Wed evening with lots of alcohol and littering. Streets are littered with cans and bottles. My gang came in handy. We would go biking..
..cleaning those cans off the streets. By the late of the night, one got huge sack. Cash them the next day and a week(or ) grocery shopping is covered. We nicknamed this hustle "movement". Nze, would call.. " Johnson, how u dey? Na movement time now?"..
And off we hit streets.. Nze was just one among many Nigerians. In total we were 10. Some Oga bros had cleaning job, everyone else started getting it too, one by one. Some were cleaning supermarket (evening), I got a garage/ car dealership.
4 hrs/ evening plus ile hustle ya adverts, the future looked bright. Boys started enrolling in driving lessons. Soon everyone was a driver, and sooner, a car owner. Used cars are cheap.. 600β¬ you are set. Not anything fancy but bruh.. it's a car!
I wasn't left behind. Owning a car meant more business. I would stack it to the roof with those adverts. Unachapa wera wazungu wanashidwa.. alaar ..this man didn't come to play. Fo sho I never came to play nikikumkuka vile Nai ilikua imeniona kando
Oh, I left the part where winter
pays a visit. Rewind kiasi.. I start school in Sep( it's already Autumn). Temps of about 15Β°C most. It's also rainy. Come Nov, temps drop to 5Β°C during the day, nights are -3. Before Nov ends, snow 
fall! ..
I have never seen snow, let alone touch except from far away on Mt Kenya peaks. It's here now! There is excitement which soon will be a nightmare
. This is before I even got a DL. You haven't tried biking on wet snow 
. My bike is life! It carries the bags
..full of those adverts (remember my job?). So as snow falls, temperature falls , grit isn't getting easy
Thread contd..
We grinding nevertheless. By Christmas, temps hit -26
. By this time even bike chain freezes! My locomotive! But determination my frens, nasukuma bike loaded with the papers. Remember I had requested for more job? Now it's taking toll..
..on me. What gives me going is I'm not alone. Omil my Kenyan bro anapiga hustle kama mwizi! Nikiangalia my West African bros, no one is backing down! Plus it's not like we have options
! Agenda must agend! No turning back!
Xmas is freezing, nobody on the streets. Shops closed, all Finns go upcountry.. city turns ghost town. Just when you think Dec was cold, comes Jan.. temps drop to -35! Chesos kresto! Houses are heated, outside isn't. Hustle happens outside. Man must live!
I remember coming back from those deliveries. Fingers and toes frozen white. I went straight to shower! Makosaa! You DON'T defreeze with hot/warm water! I was literally crying! Sharp pains, itchiness follow. The nerves on toes and fingers react wild!
It took over a mnth before I regained my nerves. Winter also comes with darkness. Days are very short, nights very long. At 9am it's daybreak, at 3pm it's dusk. You get to class at 8 am(dark), when leaving 3pm(dark). Finns take vitamin D tabs..
.to supplement the sun. NOBODY taught us that! We lived nevertheless.
...to incorporate barber services. After 1 yr, it never happened & business wasn't doing great. We parted ways, I went to Pangani where my friend run a barbershop as an employee. After a while I got another offer in Nrb West..
..for selling makali( alcohol spirits). The job was great but the lady owner's husband was an alcoholic who would quarrel me out of nothing. I spent some nights in Lang'ata police cells if the police hadn't gotten their weekly cut(they rounded up every..
..one who hadn't paid up). I got enough of the quarrels and left for countryside. After 2 mnths I came back to Nrb, this time Kasarani for mjengo (construction). A friend "housed" me in Zimmerman in his rented mabati shack. After 2 mnths I moved out when I..
..got wind he was bringing his high school sweetheart to live with him
. I rented a single room with no electricity in Githurai Kimbo(progressive). I bought that thin mattress, a blanket, a stove and two sufurias. Rent was kshs 900. Bora uhai, right?.... I had a "constant" mjengo gig in one site in Kasarani. Crossing from "Progi" to "Kasa" was by foot, lunch kibandaski, day wage kshs 200/ weekly kshs1200 minus expenses ( chai na lunch). Life wasn't all rosy though.. mjengo gigs are not guaranteed, ..
Donga runs out of cash, inabidi uanze search upya. I used to joke to my new friends. " In this industry there's no documents required, just wake up early, jua ikupate Kasarani"
. And that's how we survived. Sometimes you go 3 wks without luck..Lakini Mungu ni nani, mama wa kibandaski understands and gives you lunch on credit ( thumbs up to Njoki/nyina Mwangi). On a lucky day unaangukia "koroga" and get kshs400, but ushakula kama 120
.My sister who worked in the city and lived in Ruaka invited me to stay with her as she got me a "job" to insurance policy selling. Ni nini hatujafanya hii Nairobi?
There was no salary though.. until one sells 7 life covers. Bus fare, food.. all on my sis..I had to leave town by 3pm to avoid high fares. After 1mnth, it was ENOUGH! The masculine in me couldn't keep up with burdening my sis yet no prospects of a salary. I quit, went back to Githurai mjengo. It wasn't so hard getting back on the grind because I had my share of bad and good days. I felt better grinding than letting my sis carry my baggage. Went back to usual mjengo days as I expanded my "network"
On Sundays I would hang out around barbershop ( Kung'usfam) for those who know 45 well. Later I got a job as a barber there. After one yr, I called quits and opened my own barbershop shack next to my employer taking my loyal customers with me..
Until the day same sister (then hair dresser Tom Mboya str) called and challenged me to apply for a scholarship to Finland. Apparently there was no tuition fee but the rest ni kujipanga my fren. I diligently obeyed ( was assisted with application since I knew ZERO about computers. My degree of choice was Tourism. The journey began; entrance exam was offered in parklands Visa Oshwal. 3k for exam was provided by my bro who lived in Kiambu. Sat for exam in April, results in June. Accepted, school starts in Aug.
Remember I don't have a passport, leave alone air ticket. Fundraiser was conducted as I continued barbing. I finally flew out in Sep a mnth after college studies had started. I caught up and the rest is history.. to be contd
@mentionscan relate.. I'm writing my book
Thread contd... In the interest of short story I know I never mentioned where we parted ways with my mjengo foreman. A scene like the one video on this TL where a guy goes wild with a shovel isn't a rare occurrence in Nbi mjengos. We had already completed..
A whole 6 storey in Kasa( Biashara plaza) from foundation to painting. At this point we were well acquainted with Nderitu the foreman, having spent almost 1/2 yr together. That meant any other gig that came his way, I was among the top 3 mtu wa mkono in his squad. Others included " NdΔ«a nyama"( Macharia) & DagΓtarΓ(Amos). This was his bomb-proof squad that could handle anything thrown at us. Things went South one day when he had a " koroga" for us, only to pay us 300 in the end, citing short time used.
Unwritten mjengo rules indicated that whether the koroga is one hour or 7 hrs, 400 is the number. Nderitu however wanted to pay 300. We lifted our shovels and I had to remind him that " tumejuana tukiwa watu wazima, na shida ndio imetujulishana" (we get acquainted as adults and poverty is the main driver otherwise we wouldn't be acquaintances)
. In short what I was telling"mΓΊndΓΉ wa WamΓΊyΓΊ"(son of WamΓΊyΓΊ) is that the shovels would come down on him if 400 was not the pay. I was confident my mbogi "haitaniangusha" but either way I wasn't taking anything less (In case you're wondering abt the pay, the yr was '06. Siku hizi I hear they get triple ). Anywho, Nderitu paid 400 but cut me off from the gang. Bora uhai, Nai si ya mama ya mtu.Fast forward to scholarship. I might also skip the part where my fundraised money became a target of Nairobi wash wash just as I was printing bank statements to prove I won't be foreign govt's burden once I leave Ke...
Remember I mentioned earlier the scholarship was free? It was! NO tuition fee, No grants! The catch though, a prove of kshs600k( roughly 6000β¬ at the time) in your bank acc/ yr. It was calculated as 500β¬/ mnth( kshs 50k) for rent & upkeep. The cash was to be in my acc throughout the visa/ resident permit application process ( 1mnth/ 2month)
. It's this period my frens that the wash wash gang smell money. Rem I'm still a barber in 45?I have this young well groomed customer, tiny frame soft-spoken guy. He is a regular, every Sunday afternoon. Name; Mutula. I have been collecting kshs 50s from my loyal customers since I tell everyone about my scholarship. Even Mutula contributes
. We chit chat often and he works with K rep bank, Kiambu. It never occurred to me why would he not reside in Kiambu instead of using 2 matatus.. aren't bankers paid well?. Anyway I don't delve much into customer's life, he's a regular and even tips sometimes.On one of those Sunday kinyozi trips, Mutula tells me actually he can help me sort my money problems, niende majuu kama nishaomoka already. His uncle left millions for him because he was a connected man in Delarue. The cash is available for use only after the dyeing process is complete. Apparently, in Delarue cash is printed in stages and if one manages to snatch a bunch before the dye phase, ameomoka chini ya maji. So the catch is, Mutula needs support ( financial) to buy the dye from dye merchant
after which I'll get my cut ..The good thing is, he already has one on standby. And if I'm a doubting Thomas, kesho tukutane tao nijionee mwenyewe. Of course I was now a regular in town 'cause of my trip preparations. On a Monday after going to Westlands (embassy), I met Mutula in town. He makes a call after a short while a G-touring pulls over. We get in. The driver is a lady, backseat a man. Mutula seats infront, as the roll towards khoja msq, then Lagos rd. The man produces a few purple colured papers tell me to check under a light.
Behold, the lion, elephant & everything on the 1k note but blurry. He sprays some liquid then blows it by mouth.. it starts drying, turning brown..a real thao
.I'm now perplexed! But deep inside I don't feel right..I bring out some ghetto in me out of the blue and ask, " kama ni rahisi hivi mbona hamjapata mtu wa kuwapa hio pesa ya dye? Ama nyinyi ni conmen? " ..
(If it's this simple, why haven't you gotten someone to lend you the money for the dye? Or are you conmen?) .. what?? Hold up! The lady pulled over fast( there's no traffic huko behind Nbi fire station) & asked, "Kwani unadhani wewe ni nani? " ...
..( "Who do think you are?"). I tried saying, "madam sina ubaya,lakini.." .. she didn't even five me a chance. "' shuka! Na uchunge sana!"..( get out, and watch your back!" .. The guy in the backseat didn't waste time, he reached for the door latch and let me out, with an additional " mbwa wewe.. chunga sana!"
That my frens, was a threat! I was shaking, looked at my guy Mutula but he said nothing! I realized that thugs don't like being called out. I alighted as the door banged closed behind me. ..
. The car spend and took the next left. Phew! I thought as I crossed the road! "How did I get to this? What if these guys come after me?" I hurriedly walked towards tea room where there are more people and traffic! How much info do we volunteer to strangers? ....Is the guy's name even Mutula? Many thoughts crossed my mind as I approached "jaba" stand opposite "tearoom"( Accra rd/ River rd junction). I bought jaba ya 30 na njugu za 5, continued past Luthuli to Racecourse rd for Githurai javs. That stretch was noisy with loud pirated music cds. One reggae tune stood out.. "lord I thank you-Tony Curtis"
. "..like the guiding light & it's brighten up my darks to see, though the evil may fight i know they are no threat to me Lord i thank you.."I never told anyone about this encounter. Even my "jabaration gang"
. I'm sure I could have avoided all this if I hinted to them before it reached that point. Shout to "Operator" aka Maimba, RΓΉhiΓΉ aka panga aka Benso, Njamio aka Ras aka Githinji. Mutula never visited my shop the weeks that followed as my departure was imminent.Departure came. My girl Shiro came a day before from Malindi. Fam came from Nyeri & Nbi surroundings. We gathered at my brother's in Kiambu for the "last supper"
...My flight was at night. We headed to the airport later, Shiro took a night bus to Malindi. I even gave my niece my Motorola phone " because I was going to the land of Nokia". Little did I know I'll be few weeks before I get myself a Nokia 2310.I landed Helsinki with kshs 70k(700β¬). My Nairobi friend Sharon was waiting . We went by bus to Espoo where she lived. It was around 7 pm but sun was shining
(1st culture shock?/weather shock?). After dropping to the luggage we went for groceries. Everything she picked I quickly converted to kshs.. . Few stuff ro make us dinner was about 20β¬(kshs2000??) Chesos krest! She noticed my uneasiness and said.. "we don't convert. It'll drive you crazy". We headed back & she prepared dinner.After dinner she walked me a few blocks down where her friend Jose stayed. Here I would spend the night, Sharon will pick me in the morning. Sharon was 1 yr ahead of me having gone thru same scholarship program.
Following morning 6 am Sharon was at the door. My school was 500km away
& she had to drop me to the train station,help me buy ticket before she goes for job after which she'll attend class. Who said life is nice here? Ticket was 80β¬..(700-80= 620 β¬). I landed with 700 remember? That 6000β¬ in the Nairobi acc didn't make it to my pocket for other reasons "not available on public domain" . Now I have a ticket and 620. Mind you I don't have accomodation where I'm headed..School had advised that one books accommodation before they fly in. Student studio aptmt was 220β¬ + 220β¬ deposit= 440β¬.. that would have left me with 260β¬ even before landing
. If you survived Githurai,you can survive here right?The train took the whole day as it stops in every town. School had arranged senior students to pick new student from train station. So 2 ladies came, introduced themselves as Tourism seniors and are here " at your(my) service. Same time a taxi driver takes my luggage & ushers me in the cab. " Great place ", I tell myself
. Marjo and Katri leave in a car & tell " see you soon at campus". The journey is like 5 minutes as the cab pulls over campus buildings. I recognize them from the photos..Before letting me out, cab driver pinches some buttons and says " 16 Euro"
.. wait! I was paying?I thought Marjo and Katri were paying since they were " picking me up"I pay and the ladies are already waiting outside. We drag my luggage as they update me. I'm gonna be sharing a room with a Ghanian guy, same class as mine. There are shortages of student housing but soon they'll be available. They also mentioned that I should book mine as fast as possible. Andy the Ghanian was cool. He wasn't ghetto like me, he even had a laptop
He was very friendly and welcoming. He was expecting me since all students were briefed about the apartment shortage and even asked to pledge taking someone in. Marjo brought me mattress, I had beddings. And that's how I met my soon to be 3yr roomie..
I booked my room with the help of Andy. However I rejected it once I got mail notifying me that one is available. We had a nice arrangement where I paid Andy 110β¬, he paid the rent(220β¬ ) since it was in his name.
I knew I had to get a job as fast as possible since I was running out of my "reserves
. Sharon had given me a number of one Omil, a Kenyan senior in our school. She had mentioned, pigia Omil umwambie unataka job"(Call Omil,tell him you need a job)..I diligently called and although the guy was not talkative he promised to meet me the next day and he did. He was biking, I was walking. We went to one office and after telling the lady that " this is a beast in the field,you can have my word", I was asked to sign on some paper. That my frens was my first job ughaibuni. Distribution of shopping adverts into mailboxes and apartment buildings.
My 1st pay was 70β¬. Not enough even for my 110β¬ rent. Work was 2 days a week. I couldn't survive on that. I went back to the office, this time solo. I convinced madam that I'm made for the streets, I needed more job. That meant more areas of delivery/distribution ( more adverts). She agreed. The problem was the visa was a student visa which means even employers aren't allowed to give a huge gig that will make you drop out of school. Renewal is annually and pegged on study credits. In short, the immigration needs a copy of transcript of records (rifoti fomu)
when renewing the permit. To be continued...Kwa wale mmefika hapa, mini kama Mzeiya nimechoka kufanya editing into paragraphs kikikikiiii
Cont'd... I recruited my roomie Andy to my new trade
. His cash was running out & remittances from his bro in the US were diminishing. He in turn recruited Nze, a Nigerian from neighbouring block. We were becoming a community..of grinders Job was Wed& Sat. On Wed it was tricky. Gotta be up like 5am, do a few rounds, be home by 7am, shower , be in class at 8am
. After 3pm/4pm resume the grit, complete the distribution, sometimes as late as 8pm.Another "moneymaker" was the streets.. literally.. STREETS! Beer, soft drink cans & bottles are cash out there. Every grocery store has an automated machine where one inserts them in exchange for receipt. Inside the store the receipt converts to cash.
Each can is 0.20β¬/20cnt( kshs 20). The "bull run" starts on Wed evening to Sun early morning. Student party/ clubbing is Wed evening with lots of alcohol and littering. Streets are littered with cans and bottles. My gang came in handy. We would go biking..
..cleaning those cans off the streets
. By the late of the night, one got huge sack. Cash them the next day and a week(or ) grocery shopping is covered. We nicknamed this hustle "movement". Nze, would call.. " Johnson, how u dey? Na movement time now?"..And off we hit streets.
. Nze was just one among many Nigerians. In total we were 10. Some Oga bros had cleaning job, everyone else started getting it too, one by one. Some were cleaning supermarket (evening), I got a garage/ car dealership.4 hrs/ evening plus ile hustle ya adverts, the future looked bright
. Boys started enrolling in driving lessons. Soon everyone was a driver, and sooner, a car owner. Used cars are cheap.. 600β¬ you are set. Not anything fancy but bruh.. it's a car!I wasn't left behind. Owning a car meant more business. I would stack it to the roof with those adverts. Unachapa wera wazungu wanashidwa.. alaar ..this man didn't come to play. Fo sho I never came to play nikikumkuka vile Nai ilikua imeniona kando
Oh, I left the part where winter
pays a visit. Rewind kiasi.. I start school in Sep( it's already Autumn). Temps of about 15Β°C most. It's also rainy. Come Nov, temps drop to 5Β°C during the day, nights are -3. Before Nov ends, snow fall! ..I have never seen snow, let alone touch except from far away on Mt Kenya peaks. It's here now! There is excitement which soon will be a nightmare
. This is before I even got a DL. You haven't tried biking on wet snow . My bike is life! It carries the bags..full of those adverts (remember my job?). So as snow falls, temperature falls , grit isn't getting easy
Thread contd..
We grinding nevertheless. By Christmas, temps hit -26
. By this time even bike chain freezes! My locomotive! But determination my frens, nasukuma bike loaded with the papers. Remember I had requested for more job? Now it's taking toll....on me. What gives me going is I'm not alone. Omil my Kenyan bro anapiga hustle kama mwizi! Nikiangalia my West African bros, no one is backing down! Plus it's not like we have options
! Agenda must agend! No turning back!Xmas is freezing, nobody on the streets. Shops closed, all Finns go upcountry.. city turns ghost town. Just when you think Dec was cold, comes Jan.. temps drop to -35
! Chesos kresto! Houses are heated, outside isn't. Hustle happens outside. Man must live!I remember coming back from those deliveries. Fingers and toes frozen white. I went straight to shower! Makosaa! You DON'T defreeze with hot/warm water
! I was literally crying! Sharp pains, itchiness follow. The nerves on toes and fingers react wild!It took over a mnth before I regained my nerves. Winter also comes with darkness. Days are very short, nights very long. At 9am it's daybreak, at 3pm it's dusk. You get to class at 8 am(dark), when leaving 3pm(dark). Finns take vitamin D tabs..
.to supplement the sun. NOBODY taught us that!
We lived nevertheless.
