Ending 2025 with reflections on Kenyan tourism

2025 ends with some quiet, as the big family vacation is planned in Easter. Andrea and the girls are in Germany whilst I am in Kenya wrapping up the year. As is common the last couple of the months of the year are often busy with plenty of events: Media engagements (end of year media engagements, annual media conferences and the like); AfricaCom in Cape Town (accompanying various government stakeholders to attend events, give speeches, have meetings and sometimes to get awards); Government consultations on various documents that they are working on; Industry events on cybersecurity and other areas to name just a few.

In planning for the Easter vacation, when we will have visitors come to Kenya, we have been working out various schedules and activities - from the usual that involve visiting animals in National Parks to the common like visiting coffee plantations or museums to the Child-friendly and fun activities (of which Nairobi now has a very wide range for all ages). Then there is also the question of restaurants and meals, that represents local, tasty and representative!

There is such a wide range of hotels and AirBnBs to select from, but when the group is large it helps narrow things down a little. Also a lot of places in Kenya are quite luxurious and expensive, particularly when there is wildlife involved. A lot has changed in the almost 9 years we have been here. The range of restaurants, the range of activities for kids (ziplines, quad bikes, indoor play areas, adventure parks, cycling and more), and the range of AirBnBs are quite varied now (although many of the AirBnBs have been around for decades, but we're not easy to find out about or book). 

In fact many of these properties are stunning, some were large houses from colonial times that have been converted in various ways, and many have a lot of land (including with wildlife as a privately run Conservancy). Unfortunately when it comes to the Coastal activities, there are still a lot of unexploited opportunities for more fun and interesting experiences.

We were there in the October half-term with my dad, where we did some great Scuba Diving (seeing Turtles, a Crocodile Fish and much more beisdes) and enjoyed the nice beaches (despite that there are often locals trying to sell coconuts or clothes on it - there are also opportunities to go to hotels that have some private beach before the public beach begins). My dad and I went to a UNESCO World Heritage Site, though it is one that almost no-one has heard of, and which is barely even signposted. In fact only a handful of people actually visit each day. There is a very small hut where a guide can introduce a little about the history of the area and the tribes who used to live in the forests and their beliefs. Then there is an hour or so walk through the forest to learn about it and those who used to live there before much of the forest was cut down and the residents adapted to farming lives, modern live in towns etc.

Though the hotel options are plentiful, many are a little overpriced and need investment. None-the-less, the food options are increasing along the coast, whether it is South Coast or North Coast (where I also went recently for work and visited some nice restaurants: 1 that is a floating restaurant, another that has water surrounding some of the dining areas), and the roads are getting better (there is a new road going from Mombasa Airport to the South Coast, in addition to the small airport that is at the Coast).

Summer holidays 2025 - The beach and the Isle of Wight

As the holidays began (and after I went up to Lewa for the annual Half Marathon in the Conservancy with work colleagues, and also the annual Nairobi Expressway Half Marathon the following week), the girls went to Germany for a week and then we met up in the UK.

We spent a day at the beach (in England, remember) as the weather was quite good, together with my wider family. The kids really enjoyed playing in the rock pools as well as on the sand and it was very successful, despite having to relocate our small tent for shade (which was not used, typically!) and our bags a few times as the tide came in. The beaches North-east of London in Essex won't win any awards, but it was not too far to go.

Next up though was 5 days in the Isle of Wight together with my Mum. This began with a ferry from Portsmouth, which of course initially had Leah moaning about getting up early for, but once she was on the ferry, she decided she loved ferries. So we all enjoyed sitting upstairs in the wind, seeing the military ships in the distance and a hovercraft passenger ferry overtake us.

We initially headed East and ended up at the Wight Aviation Museum, which I cannot recommend highly enough. Run by volunteers and put together in an aircraft hanger, there was a massive amount of stuff - from bits of airplanes and helicopters to uniforms, stories, sound exhibits, puzzles and all the history one would want about the World Wars. They even had a Virtual Reality activity that hooked up the goggles to the steering in a small cockpit. We spent a couple of hours on the Sandown Beach next to the run-down pier and then passed by the Arreton Barns, which has a dozen or more local craft shops next to each other. 

We stayed at the Thorness Bay Park Dean Resort in what Americans may call a trailer, but in the UK we might call a caravan or a Static Home. It was fine for eating and cooking dinners in (there was a small shop on site), and we didn't really use any of the facilities at the site, like the pool or other activities, but there were some nice views and I had some nice runs in the morning. 

On the Tuesday we went to see the Needles, walking from the car park up to the tip to seem close-up and visit the small military defences there (known as the Old Battery) which was also really interesting and fun with tunnels, underground rooms and some nice exhibits and views (and of course a nice cafe with Cream Tea). After that we drove along the spectacular Military Road that runs along the South Coast of the Isle of Wight to spend a few hours at the Carisbrooke Castle, which is also really interesting and well done. We stayed until the demonstration of the donkey in the water wheel, as that was how they used to get water from the well (nowadays the donkeys do barely a few minutes of work each day just to show the tourists).

On the Wednesday we went to Blackgang Chine, which was the country's first ever theme park, back when the reason it was called a Theme Park is because there were not really any rides, there were just different themed lands/areas to explore (like deserts, wild west, under the sea and the like). Nowadays there are a few rides (literally just a few), so it is not really much fun, but it is OK to spend half a day at, and the 2 rides (another 1 was closed) were quite fun - at least Leah really enjoyed the one that goes upside down, and we all enjoyed the other one where you sit on a ring and go down big slide. We had to have a Cream Team afterwards of course, in Godshill, a pretty village in the middle of the Island.

On the Thursday we went back to Godshill to explore the village and the shops. We also went on a nice walk to the Donkey Sanctuary, which the kids and my mum quite liked (and which also had a nice Cream Tea, of course!) On the Friday we did really wonderful walk in the Newtown National Nature Reserve. Not only was the path (partly a Boardwalk) really nice, the views were great (including of the old port that now just has a few fishing boats using it), there was a nice little bird watching hide, but the staff there also had made a great little hut with tea and water, some local exhibits and gave kids little packs with binoculars and nature treasure hunt items. Throughout the weather continued to be fantastic!

Next up was a quite cool tree climbing adventure by Apple Beach, which Leah did really well at. It was not really climbing up a tree per se, it was climbing up ropes that were tied to a massive tree, and which had some hammocks in. We finished our wonderful 5 days in the Isle of Wight at the spectacular Osborne House, which was where Queen Victoria spent a fair amount of her time (and actually where she died). Then it was time to get the ferry back to the Mainland and the drive home. In the course of the week we had covered almost everything we wanted to cover and seen most of the island (in fact many roads we went down multiple times!) It is a great place to spend a few days!

Horse Riding competition and Prom

The school term ended with a Horse Riding competition. This is a big deal in our family. Not just because the Kids go horse riding twice a week and really want to do well but because of what has happened in the past horse riding events - basically disasters, with the horses refusing to jump (possibly because the horses were not used to being in a new environment with so many other people and horses, but it could also have been because the trainers were not helping prepare the horses on site very well with warm-up and course run-through).

In preparation for this we had changed to a different stables with different horses. This time, despite the fact the kids were entered in the beginner category by mistake, the event was more successful. For Leah, she was fine with both her runs, which was great. For Hannah, something happened in the warm-up and she was thrown off the horse, but was keen to continue. In her first run, the horse didn't want to jump, but eventually did, and the first run was eventually quite successful. In the second run, everything started well but then the horse veered off and did the wrong jump (there were two jumps close to each other).

Anyway, there was not as much tears as previous years, and actually Hannah, Leah and their 2 friends (who were in a team of 4 and of which the best 3 counted) won the competition, which was great. Hannah had had a bad hip for a month or so before the horse riding and had not done much riding or exercise in general (and surely falling did not help) so she did really well considering. 

We were very relieved, after the previous disasters!

And if the stress of the horse riding competition was not enough, as Hannah was finishing Primary School, she had an end-of-term Dinner (aka Prom). The choice of dress and shoes had become an ongoing conversation for about 2 months but eventually everything was sorted out. The event itself was not so stressful - at this age there wasn't any of the boyfriend-girlfriend's thing thankfully, so Hannah was just going with her other girls. 

 

There were lots of photos and I think that after all the planning and anticipation it was a little bit disappointing for the kids, but they went and that was that. 

 

However, before the prom, there was an end-of-year assembly; and partly because some of the kids were leaving Kenya or moving to other schools in Kenya; and partly because it was the end of Primary Schools, there was a lot of tears in the assembly. It may not have helped that the whole assembly performance and songs seemed to be designed to bring out the emotions. Anyway, it is all part of growing up I suppose!

2025 begins with reflections on the political environment

We are almost half way through 2025 and it has gone by in a flash. The beginning of the year was busy with some big events at work in Kenya (and the usual trip to Spain in early March for MWC), then there was a lull and then another hectic period at work after Easter. Once June passes, it might calm down now a little until September.

Those trips took me from Western Kenya (Homa Bay) to the Rift Valley (Baringo) to the Coast with several places in between (Machakos) and a lot in Nairobi of course. The government launched a Cloud Policy and an AI Strategy, as well as a USF Strategy and is working on various other key documents to enhance the tech sector, so generally business is fine. Kenya is still doing well technology-wise.

Now the kids have their scuba diving qualification they often head to the Coast during half-terms (in Easter they also went to Germany). Over Easter we also did a few days in Central Kenya, rafting, and stayed in an old colonial-style River Lodge in Naro Moro where apart from swimming we played quite a bit of tennis as a family. Since the dual carriageway going North from Nairobi was extended last year, it is a nice and easy and generally fast drive up that way.

Hannah's swimming has taken up a bit of time, including a week in the UK for an inter-school swimming championship that was a good experience, and a school trip in Sagana rafting. Leah's also attended a few chess tournaments in Nairobi (and a hockey tournament a few hours drive away) and both kids continue to do a lot of horse riding, including winning a recent inter-school team show-jumping competition (at a fairly low level, but at least the horses generally were obedient this time, unlike the previous two events when they seemed to freeze in a new environment--next time they can do a higher level).

The environment in the country is quite interesting. Last October we had the impeachment of the Deputy President (a new worn was sworn in, and the Cabinet reshuffled substantially as part of various political deals between different political parties/factions), which had followed a few months of unrest due to protests over the Finance Bill. This has been a movement partly about the high cost of living, corruption and general feeling that the political elites were not listening to the rest of the country, or acting in their interests. It subsequently died down but has now come back again, as the new Finance Bill for the new financial year is readied, the anniversary of last year's protests (when there were deaths) nears, and due to the death of a recent blogger in Police Custody (there have been other issues over the last year of physical or online protestors being arrested).

Last week there were protests, and it is believed that later in the month there will be more again. Let's see what happens; a lot may depend on what the other political parties do or say (there is now a group of opposition parties with the former Deputy President amongst them). And, of course, how the security forces act and react, particularly related to force. The political leaders are at least proposing less new taxes in order to address the concerns over the cost of living, but many from last year still have come in--particularly for funding healthcare and housing. Unfortunately the government still has a very high debt burden they need to pay back, with the interest payments taking up something like 70% of all the government revenues (a lot of the local debt and some foreign debt is at high interest rates; whereas debt to foreign governments or development banks would be at much lower rates). 

The government still plans to keep running a deficit (i.e. having to borrow more money because revenues don't meet expenditures) which will just make the debt burden worse. It is a cycle that is not very good to say the least. And there does not seem to have been much success in improving efficiencies or reducing wastage in government.

The private sector gets affected, but in general is quite resilient and quite diversified (unlike many other countries on the continent). Not too reliant on any one industry for jobs or exports or growth overall. A wide variety of exports, a strong service industry, some manufacturing and important finance, logistics, agriculture (as long as there is no drought), and construction industries. Of course, the unpredictable international economic situation (including tarrifs by the US) doesn't help.

Talking of which, the President had spent 2 years cosying up to the US, and has now had to quickly diversify international relationships, which should be to the country's benefit. Whether it is Eastern Asia, the Middle East, Turkey, India or others, there are a lot of opportunities out there, and those countries are more stable and predictable. The relationship with Europe remains strong.

Christmas in the UK

Unusually the whole family was in the UK for all of Christmas (usually we go to Germany first), and there was thus a lot of time spent with family members, which meant a lot of eating and a lot of presents.

Some running and dog walking helped reduce the unhealthiness of the festive period to some extent. Other activities included ice skating, football watching (in the Tottenham Stadium), visiting playgrounds, shows in London and smaller theatres, seeing friends and cousins and lots of Mario Kart and Dance on the Nintendo Switch. There was some snow on our last evening before we left, but otherwise it was quite dry (sometimes cold, sometimes not too bad) which was nice.

Coming home with less suitcases than we went with was the most notable achievement of the holiday. There was some shopping but it was not as much as usual, and we seemed to have taken bulky gifts (the Christmas shopping markets in Kenya are outdoor drinking, eating and artisanal shopping affairs whilst the kids also have a small christmas gift market at school to buy from).

We went to the London Transport Museum which was worth a visit and Gullivers Theme Park (yet again), which had a decent Santa's Grotto and few visitors (but also half the rides were closed) - the younger kids especially enjoyed both. 

Work had been very busy in the few weeks leading up to the holiday so it was nice to have a good rest and break. Now to 2025! 

Ending 2024 and entering 2025

The second half of 2024 began in the aftermath of the protests - with a government promising to make changs and to listen to the issues raised by the youth. The Cabinet was removed. The proposed tax rises were dropped. There was uncertainty for sure, maybe optimism amongst some that there could be change.

Then the opposition leader joined together with the President; a new cabinet was appointed but that included some of the previous cabinet and some new faces proposed by the opposition. They may be new faces, but they are not new to politics, so a similar group of people continued to run things. 

The government regained control through the support of the opposition and by various other means of stopping others who had been protesting. Life went back to normal, the economy got back to normal. Work got back to normal. New laws were approved that brought in many of the tax rises proposed before (the government's financial position is weak and it is dependent on financing from the IMF who seem to be able to dictate tax rises to Kenya), and to top it all off, the President re-friended his former boss (the President when the current President was Deputy President) whom he had a falling out with before, and again proposes to replace some of the Cabinet members so the former President can nominate a few people.

The year ended with some social media commentators disappearing, then after a public outcry, they reappeared, though refused to say much about who was responsible. So as we enter 2025, the government seems in control, but the public are still suspicious and unhappy (particularly now with new taxes coming into effect), and the issue of technology is back in the limelight (before it was around slowing down of some social media sites) - now it is about freedom of speech online.

The election in the US might have implications for Kenya - Kenya was close to the Democrats for one thing. And the general opinion is that the MAGA movement will care less about Africa than the Democrats. Whether the implications are good or bad is too early to say. Kenya is one of many countries that benefits from an African free trade agreement with the US which may not be renewed (and the Kenyan-US Trade and Investment Partnership has not been signed yet, and thus may not be signed).

Outside of politics, there has not been any major droughts, which is good news for a change (last year there were some floods unfortunately). There have not been any major health or safety issues. The country continues to progress with strong progress in the roll-out of electric motor bikes and high demand for electric buses (more demand than the local suppliers can meet it seems), all taking advantage of the high renewable energy in Kenya's grid and the continued growth of the home and commercial solar industries. 

Digitization is all the rage still, with the latest initiative being in the health space; though it does not seem to be very clear what the initiative is, its cost effectiveness, and how well it will work. The bungled (and rushed) roll-out of a new health insurance agency and program to replace the old one left many patients and hospitals in limbo for a few weeks.

So we enter 2025 back as we began 2024 really. Nothing major has changed, progress has continued, though slowed a little. And it is a nice time to be enjoying the traditionally warm weather.

Summer in the UK

Having been unable to get away last summer, I did manage 2 weeks this Summer. Whether it was really summer or not is debatable. There were a few hot days, several mediocre days and only a couple of miserable days, thankfully. 

We had a nice 8 days in the New Forest, with daily morning runs that were spectacular; regular swims in the indoor pool, a few walks in the countryside with the horses (that roam wild) and some bike rides too (though it is fairly hilly). Sandy Balls (where we rented small cottages/caravans) has good evening entertainment, Alpacas to take for a walk, Laser Tag, and various other activities that make it a great place to go. 

We found a very sweet museum in Fordingbridge, some of which was focused on items from the 19th and 20th centuries including a wonderful doll's house, and some was focused on he role of Fordingbridge in World War 2 (and how the war affected Fordingbridge). The D-Day landings left from Southampton, nearby Fordingbridge, so the area was a staging location for much of the invasion force.

We also visited the Museum in Southampton, which had some exhibits on immigration to the UK (a lot happened over the last few hundred years coming through Southampton), and a lot of exhibits on the Titanic, which had sailed from Southampton. It was interesting exploring the design of the ship, the people who staffed and sailed on the ship, and of course, the details of the sinking (and the subsequent investigation into the cause and how to prevent similar from happening again).

The rest of our week in the UK included a few good Sunday Roasts, a couple of trips to London to see friends, attend Musicals, visit Museums, and plenty of shopping. There was of course lots of Football to watch as well in the evenings, and just plenty of time with the extended family which was great.

Protests in Kenya

5 weeks ago protests erupted in Kenya, ostentiously because of resistance to the new taxes the government planned to bring in, but primarily due to a lack of trust in the government and dissatisfaction with everything happening (from corruption to the high cost of living). The protest movement caught the government by surprise and then has become tangled up with other political movements - from members of the official opposition party joining the reconstituted Cabinet to various powerful people either encouraging the protests or just taking advantage of them for political gain, economic gain or any other reason (partly by encouraging hooligans to take advantage of the protests).

The government has been in somewhat of a bind, clearly torn between multiple forces. This was demonstrated with the original hard line response, then the concessions in the following days. The President has multiple constituencies who he needs on his side --and the protestors (aka. Citizens) may not be the most important ones if his eye remains focused on re-election in 2027 (rather than focusing on the present). There are his own MPs, the opposition MPs, his political party, his financial backers, and those who could help him get re-elected. Then there are the fianciers, mostly international, and predominantly the IMF which is lending money to Kenya but expects taxes in order to ensure repayment (other lenders, particularly international ones are likely also concerned).

All the uncertainty with weekly protests and changes in government affects the economy furthering the economic challenges. The protestors's demands evolve, and they proudly declare themselves leader less - yet want the President to stand down. Maybe there will be some movement in that arena if they can recall existing MPs and force new by-elections. It is unlikely they'll get the President to resign, and they may not want the Deputy President as an alternative. The Deputy President is, it seems, at loggerheads with the President (ironic, as the current President did something similar when he was Deputy President); whilst the security forces (both he police and the military) are dragged in to things in various ways.

International actors continue to give opinions, for what it is worth; and there have been some strange escapades - from the Deputy President's accusations against the Head of the Intelligence Services (1 month on, he is still in his post) to the President's accusations against the Ford Foundations (some of who's NGO grantees seem to be involved in the protests).

Tech has been at the heart of the protest movement with protests entirely organised online (the Internet was my seriously slowed down restricting access to social media apps at the height of the protests) and discussions on how to move forward happening in X (formerly Twitter) spaces. The President joined one to answer questions from the protestors.

Meanwhile protestors/youth in other countries have been inspired by those in Kenya and begun similar movements. No doubt the success of the protests (the shelving of the taxes, the replacement of some of the Cabinet, announcement of other new measures that might reduce corruuption, for example) has inspired them. Whether the movement will achieve any significant results in the medium-term is still in the balance. The government has had to slash budgets, since it can't raise extra taxes. But it might bring back some of the taxes at some point. The announcements related to corruption or efficiencies (such as cancelling some budget items that protestors thought unnecessary, such as the Office of the First, Second and Third Ladies) may not be fully implemented, or could be undone later one. So it is too early to say.

It is, though, an interesting time. Whether the protests can achieve anything significant or whether it is a turning point in the country is not known yet. But there is certainly optimism amongst the youth that their voices are being heard; they feel their core message about the need for change and not to have the typical businessmen/politicians always run the country (for seemingly their personal benefits) has come out clearly, as well as their unsatisfaction. 

In the meantime work has been disrupted - events postponed or cancelled; enagements with government leadership is difficult and there is often work-from-home during the protests (that can vary from twice a week to once a week). It also affected school before they broke up for the Summer holidays.

Disneyland Paris

For the kids Christmas presents, my mum, sister and I took them to France, to see Paris and to have 2 days at Disneyland Paris. They have always been somewhat obsessed with Paris; I think it is to do with the TV show Miraculous and Ladybug that is set there, so they were thrilled to see (and go up to the 2nd floor of) the Eiffel Tower as well as see the Louvre and some bridges across the River Seine that they also recognised. We had a wonderful Korean BBQ meal in Paris, and walked around a bit, but what with the queue for the Eiffel Tower (in the hope of getting a ticket to the top, which was not possible anyway) we didn't see anything else particularly cultural, though the Kids might not have gotten much out of that anyway.

With the train being so expensive, and having a full car, we decided to drive to Paris to save money. It worked out quite well. About 90 minutes to the train station, a 30 minute wait there before driving the car onto and inside the train and taking the Shuttle under the Channel, and then a further 3 hour drive (on the other side of the road, of course) in France. Our kids are quite used to long car journeys in Kenya as long as they can watch something on their tablets during the journey, and it was quite interesting for them to take the car onto the train.

We rented an Airbnb for 3 nights that was a 20 minute walk from Disneyland Paris which was very nice and did 20,000-30,000 steps each day walking around the park. I had come before it was over 25 years ago and I could not remember anything about it, though I remember the one from Hong Kong that we took Hannah to about a decade ago (and I faintly remember the Florida one as well). A Disney theme park is really impressive. Not a single stone is out of place from the theme; whilst every single light, fence, wall, sign and food place is impecable.

In each of the several themed areas, each has several rides, a show or two and various Disney characters hanging around. Some of the rides are more exciting roller-coasters, others are more themed simple boat or train rides as you look at something (usually focused on younger kids), and others are more interactive like ones where you have guns to shoot something and get a score (Spider man, Buzz Lightyear) or wear 3D glasses. A half dozen or so are really exciting (Hyperspace Mountain, Indiana Jones, Avengers, Tower of Terror, Star Tours, Thunder Mountain, Crush's Coaster etc); a dozen or so were just stunning (It's a small world, Pirates of the caribbean, ); and another bunch were fun and cute (Ratatouille, Cars. We managed to go on all the rides we wanted to at least once, and a few of the best ones we went several times just before the park closes.

Though the rides are great, the shows are where Disney really excels. There were several that are of West End quality -- with theatres holding thousands of people and casts of dozens performing on massive complicated sets, that move, and of course lots of Disney characters. We were totally impressed with Lion King an the Mickey and the Magician; the Pixar Musical and the Christmas musical were good too; whilst the kids also liked the more children-focused interactive ones like Stitch and the Dream Factory and the Street Parade of course.

It was an exhausting couple of days that on the whole was very successful and worth going to. A few tips for others going - not really that necessary to pay for the pass that skips queues if you are willing to go in the "singles" line for some rides and use the app to select rides with shorter rides (saving the ones with longer rides until first thing or last thing during the day). It is important to get to the shows in advance to get seats too. With 2 parks (Disneyland Park and Walt Disney Studios Park) you need about 1 day for each unless you can go out-of-season (we generally didn't queue more than 20 minutes for most rides with just a couple of exceptions, because we avoided longer ones in the middle of the day, but those queues do add up).

Christmas in England

Back in England over Christmas tends to be the usual things. Of course a lot of time with my sister, her husband and their two kids as well as my mum, sister and dad. That usually means lots of meals, occasionally walks to the local park, and sometimes something more ambitious like going to a play or indoor playground. Ice skating led to some injuries last time so this time we went roller skating in an indoor arena without any incidents! It is usually wet and cold, so that means some board games, or nowadays more often it means playing some more physical and fun games on the Nintendo Wii, such as dance or sports, which can also be 4 players.

We went into London once, for a very long day, with my good friend Jon accompanying along with my sister's family for a visit to the Young V&A (formerly known as the Museum of Childhood) though its hard to manage a combination of 4 kids whilst also talking to a friend and possibly seeing something of the museum. But the kids found something interesting and it was indoors and free (and they actually limited entries due to over-crowding). If anything the museum is too interactive, in that the very young kids just play with various things and don't learn much.

We had a slightly more successful visit to the Museum of London Docklands, which I had been to a few years ago, and is now even better. There is a lot of information that is also well displayed and some things to keep kids entertained whilst also trying to explain more of the history and context as the area grew over the last couple of centuries. There is a lot to cover --from the early years with its important role in maritime trade (including the slave trade), through the World War periods, past the regeneration and modernisation of the docks to the more finance driven area that it is now. It covers all sorts, from transport and accommodation developments and has a good mix of short movies, interactive exhibits, very visual displays and some more kid friendly activities.

We then went across town to the Twist museum, a privately-run, paid-for, underground museum that is not really a museum, more an interactive exhibit that explores art, design, illusions and the senses particularly focused on visual trickery, but also some that use audio and touch. Mirrors come into it a lot and as well as being a lot of fun, they try to explore the science behind the trickery and the reasons why are brain might get confused or whatever. Though lunch was McDonalds, dinner was Wagamamas after seeing some of the Oxford Street and Regent Street Christmas lights.

As a regular annual routine, it is so easy to just forget about work or the Kenyan life and slip back into a British life. It helps that work is slow over Christmas so it is easier to switch off compared to other times of the year.

Christmas in Germany

It's been a year since I was last in the UK and longer since I was last in Germany, so it was just wonderful to finally get back to what seems like a life away from life. Though it was just a few days in Germany, each day there seems to be similar - the morning run, walking the dogs with the kids (either walking, cycling or on scooters) and the lunch and dinner meals with Andrea's parents and brother. 

Of course Christmas there is the addition of presents - lots of chocolate and other small things around the Christmas Tree, and a trip to Church for some of the group. I think back to previous trips -- the Summer trips when we would go camping or to the lakes swimming, but mostly to a time when the kids were younger and Andrea's mum would always go out cycling with the kids to deliver the weekly magazine, that unfortunately was cancelled, and to when Andrea's dad was still actively farming. He'd take the kids and the dog out on the tractor, they'd walk out to the sheep's down the road to feed them, and they'd drive out to the big barn where he'd store all the grain or machines. 

I'm not sure he was every the one to outwardly smile that much, but there was no doubt the kids could spend a lot of time with him and he would enjoy having them there. I think the kids will always have those fond memories of growing up on the farm, especially when they were there for several months during COVID. Nowadays since there's no more sheep, no more tractors and no more farming due to his ill health, the kids are still able to play cards with him and Andrea's mum, but it is not quite the same. During this trip he got COVID and, like the first time, it hit him quite hard, almost like a mini-stroke, requiring an ambulance to take him to hospital. Fortunately he recovered again, and he can walk around on his own, but he doesn't go far. The doctors were quite worried, particularly with his lack of fluids that he drinks.

It might not have been a family that is full of fun and excitement during the time I have been a part of it--maybe it was different a couple of decades ago--but it is a family and there is affection underneath the routine that drives their daily lives. And the children have developed a relationship even if not that strong an attachment.  

 

The weather on this trip was quite mild, and we could go and see all the old buildings that have been abandoned on the High Street or the old industrial areas, as well as the newer houses that always spring up on the outskirts. Over Christmas, across the other side of the train tracks (the Doberlug part of Doberlug-Kirchhain), which has slightly more on its High Street, many of the shops or homes had put up a wide variety of Christmas scenes. One in particular was massive with several scenes taking up an entire room.

Sports, holidays, parties

It has been quite a while since I last blogged which is really quite a shame. Following the operation around Easter time that had also meant I couldn't go swimming during the Zanzibar Easter holiday I had also been unable to run for a few months. But by June I was back running again with the Nairobi Expressway Half marathon and then the Lewa half marathon again and regular runs since then - though maybe not as much as 5 times a week nowadays as I have decided to limit the punishment on my knees and hip and also do more alternative forms of exercise for the rest of the body (in particular I am a big fan of Ring Fit Adventure on the Nintendo Switch). Today being a public holiday and with Andrea and the kids already in Germany for the holidays I have had a relaxing day running, walking and eating in Karura Forest.

We also go walking a lot - usually on Saturday's when the kids go horse riding (which they really enjoy and are really getting good at, with cantering and small jumps too), and also with the kids together on Sundays (the kids also have to take the dog for a walk). The short rains in October and November were quite relentless which was good for the country, but they are mostly over now (at least in Nairobi) and now we are into the hottest and driest part of the year for the next few months - it really is wonderful weather.

Though I didn't go on holiday over the August break, we did go away for a few days in Half-term to Kilifi, the place with the private secluded beach that is nice and safe, whilst also having water sports activities - scuba diving, wind surfing, kayaking, and the doughnut (not much sailing this time). We also stopped by Mombasa on the way, including a trip to the Wild Waters waterpark which is pretty decent and worth a half day at, and to the wonderful Bamburi Forest Trails in Haller Park, where aside from the walking/running/cycling paths there is also a Parcours course (it is just very sweaty)!

I have also travelled around a bit for work - to Eldoret for the Devolution Conference, to Mombasa for work, and back to China (a whirlwind trip taking in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen/Dongguan in a week). It is always nice to get back and to try to find some time to pass by some landmarks, hutongs, tourist sites etc and see what is changing (or not). And going with Huawei is normally nice with some great meals and interesting visits to factories, exhibition centers, labs and the like.

Leah had her ninth birthday party, this time at Maji Magic (Maji is water in Swahili) - which is an inflatable adventure playground on a lake with slides, swings and other things. It went very well without any injuries or break downs by anyone. Leah's most exciting aspect of being 9 is that she is one year closer to being 10 when she can scuba dive in the sea. We also went up to Central Kenya with my dad for a weekend to go rafting again, this time also doing some fun mountain biking nearby (and do a "moonlight walk" that left late and was mostly in the pitch black....).

Otherwise there have been the usual activities at School (fireworks night, pantomime, Christmas fair) and this year we entered Lucy in a few competitions at the Shaggy Dog Show, though unfortunately she didn't win. The kids have continued with their piano and drums, and for Hannah, regular Chinese lessons. They're frequently coming to the office to eat in the Chinese canteen for dinner, and doing well at school (although not so well with their teeth - braces are being made).

We've invested in a pizza BBQ, but of course only used it once; finally banged a lot of nails in to hang pictures up on the walls of the apartment, and had the air conditioning fixed in the car, something that only took an hour, and should have been done years ago. But better late than never. Leah has got into a reading phase (I remember Hannah had one a few years ago too), though that doesn't mean any less interest from her or Hannah in watching TV (or for Leah in particular, playing computer games). Both (especially Hannah) are into using whatsapp to communicate with their friends a lot, but so far not too much social media (though still some youtube or instagram here and there).

Cameroon

The week before last I was in Cameroon, though only for a couple of days, and only in the capital city. I didn't see a lot, but I did not see any minibuses or motorbikes, which was strange. Apparently motorbikes are banned from the city center, and all the minibuses went bankrupt for some reason so the only form of transport is cars and taxis. This means that at least half or even two thirds of all the vehicles on the road are taxis... very old, very dented taxis. Apparently there are long-distance buses for intra-city transportation. The result is predictable: a lot of cars on roads that are usually only single carriageway (except when some cars decide they want to use the other lane, and thus force any cars that want to go against the rush hour traffic to go on the pavement. At least there were some traffic lights in some places, and a nice dual carriageway highway to the airport.

The airport itself was tiny - I only counted 4 boarding gates, and in the departures area there is one area with a few bottles of wine to buy and one cafe which has a table of some dried fruits serving as a shop of some sort. There was nothing else there - and it was quite strange for a capital city. Apparently there is a bigger airport in another city that is on the Coast.

The other thing I didn't see was any tall buildings. Even in the city center there was only a handful of buildings that were more than 5 or 6 floors, and in the suburbs almost nothing more than 3 floors. The (new-ish) conference centre was quite nice, and one wing of it is currently hosting the Parliament whilst a new one is being built. One evening there was some local entertainment, with traditional dancing and music and the like, but unfortunately i can't say i have seen or experienced much of the country.

The capital city is in French speaking Cameroon so I tried to remember my French, though not very successfully. In my mind Cameroon is West Africa, but I am told that it is usually regarded as Central Africa and that my living in East Africa just makes me think anything West of East Africa must be West Africa! On the return flight home we stopped over in Libreville in Gabon, though I won't claim to have been there, from what I saw from the airplane, it is more like a sprawling village than a city.

The Economy and Protests

Though the losing side officially accepted the loss during last year's election, they didn't actually accept it. However rather than complaining too much about that they preferred to to complain about other issues instead. There was a time earlier this year where there were protests twice a week, mostly focused on issues related to the cost of living challenges (of which there may not be any easy solution) and other political related issues. In the end some sort of deal was reached with a joint committee set-up to talk about the political issues.

Without much coming out of those discussions and frequent complaints by both sides, and then a new budget increasing a lot of taxes (and thus worsening the cost of living challenges), last week the protests returned. The Budget was already approved in Parliament, but is now in Court pending resolution of some aspects of it. The majority of Kenyans acknowledge the need for taxes because of government debt but are angry at the poor public services that they get in return along with wastage or corruption. The government doesn't seem to have much to stay about the issue of wastage or corruption (indeed last week the independent body that sets government salaries recommended a generous pay rise even if the President stated something to the effect that top government leaders would not take the pay rise; and the courts decided the government could not hire 50 very highly paid, and arguably unnecessary, people as Assistant Ministers) and just tries to focus the conversation on how it is trying to help through various programs. 

The protests last week were supposed to be more national than usual; and as usual they present an opportunity for unscrupulous people to take advantage of them and commit crimes. The police then try to deal with those people whilst allowing the peaceful protests to continue but they usually struggle with the balance. It always seems that the vehicle carrying the leader of the protests gets attacked, though it is never clear by who! Nairobi tends to be much quieter during the protests with more people working from home and others afraid to go to certain areas for fear of being caught up in the violence. Thankfully our school stays open.

One of the causes last year of the increased cost of living was the drought that affected agricultural production (and other global issues like the war in Ukraine); another has been the weakening exchange rate of the Kenya Shilling which makes imports much more expensive. Some of the causes of the exchange rate rise is out of Kenya's control, but some aspects are related to the large debts that are payable in foreign currency, and unfortunately as the exchange rate weakens the debts and their interest payments increase in a spiral that then further weakens the exchange rate.

The good news is the drought is over and the rains earlier this year were quite good. Kenya is slowly increasing its exports of some high value agricultural products which should generate more foreign currency, and there is some relief from some short-term loans from the IMF or World Bank. But the cost of importing petrol is a major issue and one that could be solved if there was a fast transition to electric vehicles. 

Though there has been some progress this year with some buses going electric and some motorbikes, changes to passenger vehicles will be hard as almost all are imported second-hand vehicles that stay in the market for a long time, and there is not a good charging infrastructure set up yet. Still if progress could be made with buses (that have planned routes making infrastructure easier, and have investment groups behind them that could invest in replacing the buses bearing in mind the savings from not buying petrol) that could be a good start. I don't think many people will be importing second hand EVs soon, but the government could at least consider removing taxes for either new or second-hand EV imports. Who knows, with petrol prices high, the free market might just surprise.

At least on the digital side, there is fast progress with 5G network roll-out (the second operator, Airtel, launched last week following Safaricom's launch last year and the competition is spurring Safaricom on), more and more companies getting into the fixed network space, progress with government digitisation, and still an active software and cloud scene in Kenya.

I am not sure what quick fixes there is to addressing the cost of living and exchange rate challenges, apart from some possible postponement of debt repayments. Maybe Kenya will have to hope for changes in the US economic environment that affects the strength of the dollar, or speed up progress to trade more in other currencies. Longer-term of course improvements in growth rates, exports, and employment will help, if government programs can achieve that, and if government taxes don't stifle growth too much! In the meantime, will the protests continue?

Back in Shenzhen

Shenzhen also didn't seem like it changed much - it had also mostly been finished several years ago, though there are a couple of new subway lines (with a nice underground tunnel connecting the Huawei campus to the subway), and more effort has been made in the various parks and forests to expand footpaths and cycling paths. Shenzhen had even more electric cars than Beijing with so many subsidies from different layers of government, difficulties getting number plates for non-electric cars and Shenzhen being the hometown of BYD, one of the world's top EV makers.

The Huawei campus has changed... a few buildings that were being built last time i was here 7 years ago were of course finished whilst other buildings had been completed knocked down and re-built. Next to our old apartment there are some new pedestrian bridges, an underpass and tighter security gates.

The slightly crazy R&D campus in Dongguan has expanded to be about double the size of before (it is full of different zones that are built in the style of various european cities) with the train line expanding accordingly (to connect the various zones; a round trip apparently takes half an hour). Another campus next door of similar style has also been built. It really is bizarre but a very nice, incredible green, working environment.

We went to visit several of Huawei's exhibition centers when we were there and toured the factory. Last time i saw the smartphone manufacturing line, this time it was part of the mobile base station equipment, and almost entirely automated, with AGVs delivering parts and taking finished products whilst cameras are checking quality throughout the process. Very impressive, as to be expected.

Huawei's service is exceptional - whether in the cafes, the exhibition centers, the minibuses, the hotels, the restaurants or anywhere else. It is a great way to impress people!

Back in Beijing

On Saturday I arrived back in Beijing for the first time in almost 5 years (which was only a day trip), arriving at Beijing's newest and biggest airport (PKX, not PEK, which is the old one for anyone who needs to know) that is far out of town and quite impressive (though also mostly domestic flights so arriving with an international flight was very fast). Arriving one doesn't see much of an airport compared to departing but it looked big!

Flying to China nowadays is very simple with just an online health form (no need for any vaccination records either) and there are no restrictions anywhere in the country any more (though many staff in restaurants or other shops still wear masks either for hygiene reasons or maybe to stop themselves catching COVID during the recent second wave that apparently infected everyone again 6 months after the first wave infected the whole country in a matter of weeks).

Over a few days I did make it around quite a lot of Beijing for various reasons, enjoying running one morning in the Olympic Park and Forest, taking some people sightseeing and seeing some friends where I could. Physically not much has changed from my point of view, and actually many others agreed with me (though other parts of China may have changed more). Beijing had already mostly developed in the 2000s and 2010s. A few more subway lines have come up, but few new buildings or roads (there was not much space for any more roads or buildings and most had already been built). The air was good (which may have been luck, but I am told it generally is quite good and has been for quite a few years).

The shared bikes are still very common (the ones that took off about a decade ago) though using any of the apps to rent them is very hard without a Chinese ID card (which is also needed to use a ticket machine for the subway, though there is a manned desk to sell tickets to foreigners). A very noticeable difference (and I had been forewarned by a friend) is the insane amount of electric cars everywhere, many of which are by companies one has never heard of (though there are a lot of Teslas and BYDs as well). I think I read somewhere that maybe a third of new car sales in China are electric nowadays.

There is a strange feeling coming back to a place that was home for so long and seeing everything still there - places like Jamaica Blue of 85 degrees coffee shops; the same hotels, shopping malls and office buildings. I don't know why I expected differently, but I did. Of course if I had come last year I would have had a different experience with the health code to go in or out of anywhere, frequent COVID testing and the like (in fact most of my friends had barely seen each other for 3 years either).

Security has always been tight in Beijing with police everywhere and lots of cameras and it didn't seem much worse on the surface, though to get close to Tiananmen Square you need to show an ID card and then to actually walk through the Square you need to book online (and it closes at 9pm), which is quite weird when cars and bikes and buses can still drive through whenever they want. 

The Internet is still very closely restricted so there is no news from Western sources, no chatting or social media from Western companies and so on. Kenyan online media is still unblocked though! Internet is very cheap, and of course speeds are amazing, even without a 5G phone. Prices don't seem to have increased much from what I can tell. Taxis, water and even food seems similar, which is a little surprising (in Kenya prices are noticeably higher nowadays than 5 years ago) but maybe should not be suprising.

And the food is still incredible. Xinjiang food, Hai Di Lai hot pot, Beijing Duck.... the service is exceptional too.

The trip was mostly for work so there was not much time to do any sightseeing. However we did try to go to Tiananmen Square, but failed. After getting through a checkpoint that wanted to see ID cards or passports we were then told we need a (free) ticket that we can get online, but that was only possible before 9pm. However, as there are several roads going across the Square, we did just get back on the bus and drive through (cyclists can also easily cycle through) and nothing looked different. We also had a chance to go to the Great Wall for an hour and a half of hiking. We only went 1km along and 1km back, but it was a particularly steep section at Juyong Pass, where there are a small gap in the mountains. The views are nice and there were very few tourists (there were a lot of CCTV cameras though).

A week in Zanzibar

Over Easter the family decided against going to Europe or the Kenyan Coast and do something half way between - going inernational, but not too far, and still somewhere different that is supposed to be interesting. So Zanzibar, a Tanzanian island, it was, and my mum came out to join us us.

We selected a small hotel with just 10 rooms split across 5 cottages with a wonderful pool, nice deck and beach area and amazing sunset views, that was quite centrally located in the island for travelling to different activities. The kitchen was quite flexible and food and drinks reasonable, though it was not a luxurious resort by any means. There was a lot of nice areas and personal touches. 

Unfortunately the hotel itself doesn't organizer's many activities and just points to others who can organizer's activities, which in Zanzibar are quite expensive. So we skipped the horse riding, for example, though Andrea and the kids did do a cycle ride near the spice farms (mum and I did a walk in the forest instead) which went surprisingly well despite the rain shower. Overall we were quite lucky with the weather, despite it being the rainy season. We only had two other half days of rain really, but the kids could still playing in the pool even in the rain.

We spent a half-day in Stone Town twice; seeing the buildings as well as the odd museum. It was a little disappointing. The museums' info were quite limited (at least the museums that are currently open) though did talk about the role of the town in slave markets and slave trade with the middle east. The buildings were mostly quite run down. There were some that had been nicely restored into hotels, residences or shops, and a bunch that had not been - with authentic and imposing doors, upper balconies, and the like. Of course all the buildings were made of stone and the whole place is a maze of small alleyways with small shops and local items for sale.

Being Ramadan, almost no restaurants were open during the daytime, and we only managed to find the odd place that sold ice cream or baked goods. Potentially the hotels in the town would have sold food. Surviving the intense heat without drinking during daylight every day for a month must be tough!

We rented a car for the week so we could easily go to and from the town (which was a half hour drive away) as well as other places. The car was fairly cheap though quite old. We got a puncture once and also had a dodgy connection on the battery to deal with. Overall we saw a lot of the countryside with a few roads in really good condition and the rest frequently with potholes in. There were police around checking speed and security, and the majority of houses looked quite solid brick and quite large.

The East Coast seems to have more of the fancy resorts and we visited there in order to go snorkeling to Mnemba island where we saw a lot of fish and played on the sandbank for a nice half-day trip (though we found out that even fancy resorts stop lunch at 2pm and there is nothing else available outside that time, whilst no other places in the villages were open). The water was crystal clear and very warm. It was a very nice experience.

We decided against seeing the dolphins off the South Coast as the reports all seemed to reveal that it is not a good experience with masses of speedboats chasing dolphins and scaring them. We did drive over to Jozani forest for a walk there seeing the Tanzania red Colobus monkeys, enjoying the very nicely done Mangrove Boardwalk and also a visit to the Zanzibar Butterfly Center who's Tourism income goes to support locals who provide the butterflies.

We also ended up skipping the slave caves (having seen something similar in Kenya) and the spice farms (we've seen elsewhere and the kids weren't keen), spending a fair amount of time just enjoying the weather and the pool. Overall a very nice trip, friendly people, and worth visiting; but somewhat disappointing due to the high cost of various activities and a feeling that a lot more could be done with Stone Town and the local history than has been done so far.

Another Christmas in the UK

Another 2 weeks in the UK has passed. This time much less eventful than 12 months ago when getting COVID disrupted our trip. Now one would not even know such a thing ever existed. There are still a few signs lying around in restaurants that need to be taken down, and there was the odd person that I saw over the two weeks wearing a mask (including some flight crew); but other than that, there was no need to always book everything in advance or even show a vaccination certificate when coming into the UK (Kenya does want to see that though).

Of course there was another inconvenience, which is that of various workers being on strike. We had to change the odd plan or two to meet people who feared they might not get trains back home, but mostly we were driving which was not affected. The weather is also an inconvenience in the Winter in the UK. I missed the snow (Andrea and the kids got some as they arrived earlier than I), but did get enough dry days to go running every other day on average, and took the dog for a walk most days - even going to some new places, which was nice. And with the kids walking as well, without complaining, which was even nicer!

Apart from all the usual family stuff (including spending time with an Uncle who's recovering from some leg issues, and a father with some other leg issues) we took the kids trampolining, ice skating, and to watch some Pantomimes. I had some fun driving some supercars as a present, watching an "immersive experience" of the Peaky Blinders, and failing to escape from an Escape Room. Christmas of course meant presents, chief of which were clothes, games, toys and a computer console. It had been quite a performance buying the gifts in Kenya with multiple trips to markets, including one that was held at the school with items costing no more than a few dollars which the kids could go to and buy things for their parents (who gave them money, but were not at the market).

It is wonderful to spend time with the family, especially as our kids grow up alongside my sister's two kids (though several years behind). We certainly overdid the Amazon buying, the food eating, and even sleeping in some days. But isn't that what the holidays are for?

Now, back to unpacking, cleaning, and enjoying thirty degrees sunshine at lunchtimes and weekends!

Work at the end of 2022 and into 2023

The end of 2022 became quite hectic, even without too many overseas business trips (though there was one planned that was cancelled last minute). Finally the Ministers and Deputy Ministers were selected, vetted and sworn in; and finally Parliament managed to sort out its various positions and Committees. So by November a lot was happening and needed to happen before the end of the year.

We had a few big events that all fell within a couple of weeks, and on the whole went very well, which was a relief. There were also some smaller ones, including a visit to the Western-most Town in Kenya in Busia County, on Lake Victoria opposite Uganda, for the Isambo Carnival. It is always nice to see new places, especially in the countryside and when there are some cultural activities taking place. In this case, aside from watching the boat racing and the hill running, there was also a more typical session of speeches. 

Technology has been a key theme of the new government, with the first public holiday themed around technology and innovation, and a lot of talk in that space, which is great. Another key theme has been the cost of living issues that have affected most of the World, but particularly many developing countries. Kenya may not have been as badly hit as other places, but the cost of some basic commodities, even those produced locally, has gone up, and the high interest rates are affecting the government's finances. The prices of some began to decline towards the end of the year, or at least stop increasing much; this might only be a temporary respite as some predictions are for worse in 2023 with China's economy growing again after it opens up, and the war in Ukraine continuing.

The government has begun to make a lot of personnel changes, as is expected, and as is its right. There have been some reforms especially around the judicial and policing systems. It has also talked a lot about action and is raising expectations, maybe beyond what it can realistically achieve, with the tough fiscal environment and external economic (and environmental, the drought has had a real impact) situation. The highly anticipated fund to support entrepreneurs became a 14-day overdraft facility, which may still be of some use (though there were other similar products available at not so dissimilar interest rates), but is not grants, nor is it significant loans that can be used for business creation. However, amongst the disappointed masses, the government has promised such products will come in the near future.

A concrete plan is being created, building on the original manifesto of the Party that won, so we will have to see what that looks like. The 2023-2024 government budget process is about to begin in earnest which will indicate where the priorities lie and give the new government a chance to really begin to implement their agenda (until now they are operating mostly on a budget put together by the previous government).

All of this does mean a lot of opportunities, a lot of work, and a lot of excitement as we begin 2023.

Leah is 8

Leah's had her eight birthday party, a fairly standard activity nowadays with an entertainer (no bouncy castle or water slide of any kind this time), though we did book a pizza person and do it over lunch this time. They bring along a special BBQ for cooking a few pizzas at a time with coal and make the dough and everything fresh, with a variety of toppings to choose from. With her current obsession with Subway sandwiches we might want to think of a party Sub next time as well!

As is common we had tried to get people to RSVP through Leah distributing invites at class, and did get some in advance, but others RSVP'd in the morning of the party (and some cancelled due to illness) whilst others just turned up without RSVPs but it doesn't really matter for Leah (Hannah is a bit more picky about needing a lot of people, and certain people, to come). Leah did have one short moment trying to manage her emotions, which is quite common generally nowadays. It was certainly to be expected during a high emotion activity and one with many people around, often several at a time wanting to be right or to get their own way.

During a night away with a few other friends last night there was another moment, though this one more unreasonable, with Leah demanding a board game to go her way rather than by following the rules, taking the turns etc. Anyway, eventually everything was fine and her friends (and sister) generally are happy enough to move on. They can happily play nicely for hours, but when there are multiple strong personalities (and often a weak personality who follows a stronger person but not another stronger person) then conflicts tend to come up.

Driving an hour and a half or so out to the airbnb last night which was on the escarpment overlooking the Great Rift Valley with great views (and dusty tracks, dry barren savannah and strong winds), we often have traffic jams caused by cows crossing roads, donkeys pulling carts slowly or the usual slow, loaded, truck.

Several years ago there was a small organic farmers market at a restaurant in a wealthy part of town; once the restaurant was forced to close down the market moved to some space at the back of the animal rescue shelter which could earn some rent from the stands. We've been a regular customer for a year or two and recently found the market mostly empty thanks to the market's organiser's dispute with the shelter on payment and thus taking most of the stalls (and customers) back to the old location (minus the restaurant, now just in the grounds). The shelter is trying to keep the market going on their own, so we will have to see over time if there is space for both or what happens. Either way it is a nice place to get some artisanal food, drink and gifts (and some organic food of course!)

Overseas business trips

With the pandemic now a distant memory and the Summer holidays over with, it is back to normal in every way, including regular international business trips. At the end of August it was a couple of days in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, and a first time visit. I won't suppose I really saw much of the country, just the roads from the airport to the conference center and hotels were impressive, there were decent traffic lights and security cameras around town, and the brand new conference centre (a gift from China) was very nice. I wouldn't say I even had much Zambian food really either unfortunately; and the people I met at the conference were from the entire continent.

Last week it was a few days in Cape Town, a place I have been to a few times; the conference center there has long been one of the best in Africa and Cape Town is a popular place to visit, despite not having many direct flights, and being very far (even from Johannesburg it is about two hours flight). Apart from moderating a few sessions, accompanying some guests at the events and having some meetings, there was time to go up Table Mountain (this time the weather was absolutely perfect compared to last time when the famous table cloth of cloud was covering the top) though not enough time to walk, so we took the cable car up and down, but did stroll around the top (actually there are several kilometres of trails along the top) which is one of the world's unique ecosystems.

There was also time to go, for the first time, to visit the penguin colony close to the Cape of Good Hope which was quite special, and also entailed passing by some quite spectacular houses on the way, whilst also being reminded again of the really good road infrastructure that South Africa has, even whilst the country has incredible social and employment challenges (it has also has legendary power challenges nowadays). The flight down stopped at Victoria Falls but I was seated on the wrong side of the plane to get a good view unfortunately, and the return flight was all messed up since there was no fuel in Cape Town airport and the flight was delayed the better part of a day with a different route.

It is nice to see colleagues from other offices face-to-face at some of these meetings rather than always talking online, and it is no longer so tricky working out all the requirements for travel during the pandemic. South Africa don't even require a vaccination nowadays, though it still requires a yellow fever certificate which is something I almost forgot was ever needed, though it was the main vaccination requested before 2020 (and fortunately i did have a copy in my bag).

The election is over and life is back to normal

The election is all over. The losing side lost on all 9 issues that the Court considered (of which technology did come up in some of them) and the losing Presidential candidate (and Vice Presidential candidate) accepted the defeat (whilst of course disagreeing with the Court's decisions) so everything passed off very smoothly.

Not having any more uncertainty or further elections is certainly good for the economy; everything back to normal and business as usual. Investors and businesses now have some clarity about the overall economic environment and will soon know who the various ministers are as well as the initial priorities of the government. They may be re-reading Ruto's manifesto, though they will be aware that reality is not likely to be kind and priorities will have to be made, particularly to address cost of living issues as well as debt and currency depreciation concerns; all of which are interlinked. His key theme has always been supporting the "little guy", the "hustler", the "farmer" in a bottom up economic approach. Let's see what that looks like, and if it can work, in practice.

As is common here, many of those who were part of the coalition that lost have switched to the other side so that they can be on the side that has power. This made the initial parliamentary arithmetic much easier when voting for key positions (originally both sides were very closely tied). Hopefully there will still be an opposition left in parliament once the dust settles, and that there will be some leadership of that opposition, presuming that Raila Odinga will now make way for some younger leaders to take on the mantle.

Hopefully there will not be any pettiness related to retribution as there were some very heated words said by different sides in the run-up to the election. There will be a smooth handover at least, with President Kenyatta (who did not support Ruto) already stating that to be his plan. The Court has shown its independence yet again, though it may have to deal with various corruption cases against the new Vice President working its way through the system.

There have been a lot of ambitious statements made, particularly related to corruption, and it will be interesting to see if anything significant happens in the next few months. Most Kenyans are quite skeptical of their politicians, regarding most of them as corrupt, no matter what side they are on, and expecting that now they have spent so much money on their campaigns they will need to find a way to get their money back. Many of those who supported the winning side will expect their rewards. Will this skepticism be warranted or will the new regime be different? Will there be some good apples amongst the local government leadership, where some of the Governors have started their new terms showing they mean business?

The inauguration is on Tuesday, bringing with it yet another Public Holiday, and shortly afterwards the process of vetting and appointing Ministers will begin so we will wait and see what happens.

The election results are announced but uncertainty continues

The election went off quite peacefully, though the waiting for the result was agony. Anyway, eventually after 6 days of an eerie atmosphere when schools were closed and few people were out (though everything was open) and which was potentially the calm before the storm, a result was announced. And the biggest violence to take place during the election took place in the actual election results center, which was only attended by politicians, diplomats and the like!

Without going into any details, we now continue waiting whilst the loser goes to court to argue their case of fraud somewhere in the process. The uncertainty is not great for the country, and it could go on for a much longer time if the court agrees and orders for a re-count, re-run or something else. Still, when the result came out there were barely any protests or violence; just a few people burning a few tires on a few streets in the entire country. That didn't stop some international media showing a photo of one of those incidents and implying it was typical and widespread.

The election uses technology in a strange way. When a voter goes to vote they prove their identity with a fingerprint in a machine (which they had already registered on previously), though as a backup they could just search the database for their ID number, which is to try to ensure people can only vote once. Then they get given a voting paper, mark it and drop it in a box. Later the papers are taken out of the boxes and counted with the numbers tallied into a form, in view of the agents of the relevant parties who (if they are there, and there are 40,000+ polling stations) could confirm that what is written on the form is correct.

Then a picture is taken of that form and sent to Nairobi, though it is a bit irrelevant since Nairobi would only use the paper form once it gets to Nairobi (potentially a few days later). Anyway, in theory it should stop anyone changing the form once it leaves the polling station and arrives in Nairobi; and also means that since the pictures are made public online, anyone can download them and count the results. There are still plenty of ways someone could intervene in the whole process to commit fraud, and this might be what we will find out during the court case. Either way, it is not likely that the use of technology will have been the issue (rather the issue could be the paper votes in the box, the counting of the paper votes, the marking of the totals on the form etc). 

In 2017 when the loser went to court and won, annulling the initial election, one of the issues the court was concerned about was the computers that collected the results (hence this time photos of the forms were sent and made public to bring more transparency to that part of the process, and the counting was all done manually based on numbers written on forms).

Meanwhile everyone is back at the office, the whole thing is a constant source of chatter alongside the parliamentary going ons (it is only the Presidential vote that is counted in Nairobi, and thus disputed, the counting of votes for parliamentary positions at local levels is sort of taken as final, I believe).

And the weather might just be starting to warm up again, marking the end of the cold, dry season!

The usual summer UK vacation

Another Summer, another holiday with the family, though this time in a slightly different part of the UK; hopefully next time we can travel to more exciting places, but still, for kids, a week in East Anglia is an easy option, especially when the weather is hot and you can go to the beach. Although from my run along the beach, from what i saw much of it was not that great apart from the tiny stretch in front of where we were staying at Pontins Pakefield. There the beach is wonderful (the sea is still quite cold though). On my morning run i saw a machine in Pakefield churning over the stones on the beach there, and I saw the little beach huts that seem to be all over the country, and the pier with a couple of shops and a statue (and a lifeboat station).

Aside from the beach, as it common across the country, there are always things you can do of varying degress of interest to different people. In this case we had a trip to the Southwold Maize Maze (i.e. a maze made out of maize, aka. corn) which was made more fun by having a sort of treasure hunt of information boards/colors to find throughout the maze, and that also had a nice playground with some jumping pillows, zip lines, sand pits, small vehicles to ride around on and of course the obligatory ice cream shop and cafe. Wonderful really, though funnily enough there seems to be a lot of maize mazes around the area, I wonder which was the first!

There was also the boat trip on the Norfolk Broads, a lowland area of rivers and canals that are a haven for wildlife. We chose to take a steam powered boat (the Falcon) from the Museum of the Broads which also included a trip around the museum, which had some activity sheets for the kids too. An hour was anough for the kids as there was not that much to see on the boat, but we did see some birds and some other boards! Nearby we also stopped off at the Barton Broads Boardwalk, which is a short 5-10 minute walk on a raised boardwalk that is quite nice for the kids.

Pontins is a sort of holiday village with fairly basic accommodation, an indoor pool, buffet/canteen style breakfast and dinner, daytime and evening entertainment for the kids, evening entertainment for the adults, crazy golf, a playground and other indoor and outdoor activities. It worked out alright, and is decent value since it is not so expensive. They do make an effort with the entertainment which is nice and the kids quite enjoyed it. It is easier for families than hotels or airbnbs with all the facilities on site and no need to cook, I suppose.

Back in North-West London we got to see our cousins for an afternoon, attend one of their birthday parties for another afternoon, go into London to see another spectacular show (101 Dalmatians) at the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre which i can't recommend highly enough, go on some walks in the woods, play and scoot at some playgrounds, and also splash around in the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain.

Throughout the trip Hannah and Leah spent a lot of time with their cousin Jake (and some time with baby Zach when he was awake), which was great whether it was on the beach, painting, baking, on scooters, at the playground or playing with toys. Though Leah had some issues when Jake and her had differing ideas of games to play with toys! We also ate way too much, especially deserts, but such are vacations....

I managed to meet up with some old friends in London, whilst Andrea and I went on a road trip up North to meet some old University friends (and some of their kids) and hike a bit in the Peak District (and have a Sunday Roast of course). One day we'll go to the Lake District, but it's just a bit far. I have such incredible memories of a trip there 20 years ago. Maybe it will be easier for the kids to come too as they get older and hopefully more willing to hike? If not we will have to be greateful to our parents for taking the kids for a weekend every now and again.

We did experience 40 degree heat in the UK whilst we were there, the highest temperatures ever recorded, and the greatest hysteria in the media about hot weather. Unfortunately it didn't work out to see any of the England Women play (and win) the European Championships live, but watching them on TV was great, and hugely impressed with the quality. And the fact they don't seem to dive or complain to the referees about every decision. Makes football much better to watch. So, until the next trip!

Election season

It is election day in Kenya, 5 years after the last election (though that election had a re-run a few months later after the first one was annulled by the court), and it is a relief that the election is finally here. It seems like campaigning began 4 years ago, as it is all the media focus on, though it did finally heat up earlier this year once the two coalitions were formalised. Kenya always has different coalitions of parties each time, and nothing really to do with policies, just different leaders from their parties deciding to work with other parties based on what they can get promised for their party if their coalition wins.

The streets are almost empty since it is a public holiday (to allow people to vote...voting takes 5-10 mins apparently, requiring putting fingerprints in a machine to prove identity or showing an identity card before filling in all six voting slips, and most people seem to enjoy queuing for hours early in the morning instead of coming later in the afternoon). In middle-class Nairobi there is the odd police officer outside the schools which serve as police stations, and cars parked along the roadside. In rural areas, people walk or take a motorbike; and in the slum areas of Nairobi there is a heavier police presence just in case.

Of course the international news tends to focus on risks of violence, because of how awful it was in 2007, but the last couple of elections have been calmer, with the police better prepared, and few Kenyans expect much violence this time... though any actual violence would come when the decisions are made (up to a week for the final decision on the president), rather than when actually voting. With both main coalitions having parties and candidates from multiple tribes/regions, there is less clearly a tribal dividing line between the two sides, which should reduce the risk for major violence. And as more Kenyans live in urban areas and marry/befriend those of other tribes it does seem that tribal preference is declining somewhat. My hairdresser says it is nice when people just use their first names rather than their family name (which would usually reveal what tribe someone is from).

Another reason for there possibly being a lack of violence is that many voters don't see a major difference between the parties (though there are some policy differences, with both sides having manifestos, the differences are more in tactics than in actual position or strategy, with both sides seeking to improve the lot of the unemployed or working class through different ways). Also many voters are somewhat skeptical of politicians in general, not expecting much to change whoever wins, and with the insane amounts of money spent on campaigns, everyone expects the winner to be corrupt in order to pay back bills or give financial backers jobs or contracts. Unfortunately parliament refused to pass a law that was proposed by the elections agency that would have limited campaign expenses. These are the same MPs that try to give themselves pay rises... and in fact the Central Bank of Kenya even believes that there are more low denomination notes in circulation during the election being used to pay for people to turn out to their rallies, or other reasons.

It is always a good sign in Africa when a sitting President retires at the end of their (two) terms, and Kenya gets commended for that, as well as a fairly orderly electoral process, a pretty free media and internet and many other things that are taken for granted in the West. So as much as there might be other issues (see previous paragraph!), there is still much that is good and if at least the tribal aspect of voting is becoming less influential and candidates actually have manifestos, that is real progress.

Another sign of progress is that one of the two main candidates has nominated a woman as his Deputy President, which really surprised many people and shook things up a bit when it was announced. She's also got quite a reputation as being a social justice campaigner and has stood up for what she stands for, apparently. Though there are also other less positive accusations against her. Still, in a society that is very male dominated (in fact there are so few women MPs that there are 47 MP positions that can only be filled by women, 1 per County, to ensure they have some representation in parliament), this could affect how women vote. I don't believe that gender has become a big issue more widely though, such as with any promises for how many of the cabinet would be women or anything, but a female Chief Justice was also appointed in the last couple of years.

Another vacation at the beach

Another month passes, another opportunity for a vacation at the beach, this time with less ambition, and less rain! Just a few days in the same hotel (Pride Inn Paradise) which has a small waterpark along with the two pools and beach, and a half-hearted kids club that is just a few hours a day (it might be better during High Season if there are more kids).

This time the only time we left the hotel was to get lunch once somewhere else (all the other meals were at the hotel) and when i went for a run at the Haller Park Forest Trails. A former quarry that was returned to nature several decades ago and is now a lush forest makes a great shady place for a run. They have some excellent children's (and with parcour, even adult's) playgrounds along with a few different marked routes from a few km up to 10km. Generally the routes are well marked though you need to keep your eyes out for the colored wooden arrows nailed to trees, as sometimes they are covered up. 

I highly recommend it as a place for running or even cycling. Not too many hills, not too many puddles/muddy patches (even when it has rained a lot), and almost no other people! It is entirely walled/fenced in, though there is a public footpath running through the middle allowing residents to cross through (and there seems to be the odd security guard at either entrances to that footpath or nearby it so it is quite safe). Nearby is an animal park/zoo though we didn't go there.

When it rained the kids were inside, occasionally watching a few minutes of youtube (if they also did some maths or reading first), sometimes playing monopoly and otherwise Hannah would knit (her new favourite pastime) and Leah would play with her toy horses (her favourite pastime for at least the last 4 years). When it was overcast or occasionally sunny we would all be in the pool, and at least no-one got sunburnt. Hannah really enjoys practising her underwater handstands, and occasionally racing me (she is really fast at breaststroke, easily beats me at backstroke and tends to be slower at front crawl - though unfortunately when she had a swimming competition two weeks ago the best she could do was around fifth). She was allowed some fantas or lemonades from the pool bar sometimes.

One of Leah's friends came over for half a day and they all played nicely in the pool and in the waterpark, whilst Andrea and I learned about the family's planned move to Uzbekistan. 

Apart from the short vacation, we had a delayed birthday meal at Inti, one of the most expensive restaurants in Nairobi that is Peruvian Japanese and at the top of a 35 storey building with wonderful views. It's not very kid friendly but the food is very good (though not sure it is worth the price). A lot of adults go there for the drinks as much as anything else.

We also saw the school play, Matilda (I think the kids have seen Matilda three times in the last year or so), performed by the 13-16 year olds with several of the actors and actresses really impressive. The school has a wonderful auditorium. There has been and continues to be lots of kids playdates, and there was a half-marathon on the new Nairobi Expressway which goes (mostly) above the city with nice views. And of course there was the end of the football season that was quite thrilling, not only for Tottenham getting into top 4, but also trying to watch 4 games at once to see the championship and relegation places decided. If every week was like that it really would be exciting!

When rain hits a vacation

Shortly after Easter there was another long vacation due to a former President's funeral, labor day and Eid, so we headed to the Coast. This was not the typical family holiday as it involved a fair amount of moving around, and was not the most successful vacation we have had, but maybe that is because we generally have been quite lucky in past vacations!

Andrea and the kid first had a wonderful 24 hours at the Serena Beach Resort near Mombasa which included lots of fun at the kids club, in the pool and a night at Fort Jesus for the Light Show. But then when they came to meet me in Diani they had a nightmare journey waiting for the ferry to cross over South from Mombasa island, with the total trip taking almost 4 hours instead of less than 2 hours. 

Eventually they reached me in time for dinner at Ali Barbour's Cave, a very picturesque restaurant in a cave (surprisingly) which is nice and romantic, though being by the Coast, has a lot of sea-food (not to Andrea's taste) and being fairly upmarket, had small portions at slightly inflated prices (again, not to Andrea's taste) and no kids menu of course. Anyway, the venue was nice, and it was a worthwhile experience on the whole.

That night was spent at Stilts, a backpacker place, where we had a cheap cottage, surrounded by forest and birds which doesn't help get a good night's sleep. It does not have a pool, but there is a very nice (and actually not too expensive) place across the road called Flamboyant that lets people come and use their nice pool and beach as long as you buy food or drink (this is quite a common arrangement along the Coast), which is what i had done whilst waiting for the girls, and what we did the next morning after breakfast.

We then wanted to visit a Boardwalk over the mangroves at Gazi further South, but as it was Sunday morning everyone was at Church, and when we finally found it, it had begun to rain, so we changed our minds and just went straight to our hotel for the next two nights, Shimoni Reef Lodge, which was booked because I thought it was the nicest place around in a village without many options (though it turns out there might have been nicer places, it was hard to tell if they were open or not).

After lunch, and playing some board games whilst it was raining, we went to the Shimoni Slave Caves, where Arab slave traders kept East African Slaves once they had been obtained inland, and until they were ready for onwards shipment. It was quite grim to think the poor slaves had to live in these caves with the bats with just drinking water and dates for weeks, but it is an interesting (if short) tour by a local. After that we rented a boat to go to Wasini Island which did have a boardwalk over the Mangroves that was open.

As we entered some other foreigners were leaving with plasters on their legs and warnings to be careful of the boards, as they had fallen through one that was rotten.... quite ominous, but anyway, we were careful, following the guide, and avoided some of the worse parts, and quite enjoyed it. The tide there is quite strong so the view of the mangroves was different by the time we left compared to when we started.

After a decent night's sleep the next day we got up early for a boat trip out to Kisite-Mpunguti Marine National Park the other side of Wasini Island. The marine park is a flat island that mostly disappears under the tide but during low tide is a beautiful beach, and at all times has amazing fish and coral all around it. The snorkeling was wonderful, and there was no real need to bother with scuba diving. It was hard to get Hannah away, she enjoyed it so much (and it was the first time she had spent a significant time snorkeling since she became such a strong swimmer).

The main point of the boat trip was to see the dolphins that are supposed to frequently pass by that area, but we didn't get any sight of any, so we are skeptical as to how often they do pass by. After a decent lunch on Wasini island we then got back to the mainland to relax at the pool and then ventured off down a track to try eating at a different place for dinner - Firefly eco retreat, which was quite dead and quite dark, but the small team there did their best to make something for us.

Early the next morning we were up to be driven into Shimba Hills, a couple of hours away. We failed to see more than 1 or 2 deer in a 2-hour safari drive through the park which was actually quite incredible. I can't imagine it is possible to see so little wildlife in a national park that is actually quite open. Anyway the day was rescued by the wonderful 45-minute hike down to a waterfall, half an hour playing at the waterfall and the 45-minute hike back up again. Even the kids made it and enjoyed it.

Next was lunch at our last hotel for the trip, the truly stunning Mandhari, near Kwale Town, and on the edge of a cliff overlooking Mwaluganje Elephant Sanctuary. Built a decade ago by some Europeans who were barely ever there, to really use it as a second home, they added a couple of additional rooms and began renting out along with the chef and manager. The property has spectacular views which you can enjoy in so many different ways, from the infinity pool to the bed on the edge of the cliff, to the bar and BBQ with bar stools literally on the edge of the cliff, to the dining table in the games room or even from a toilet built on the edge of the cliff with a door that opens up.

The three properties are also stunning in their design and views. We had the two bedroom place. The service and the food from the two staff was amazing and we had a wonderful 16 hours, including a few hours swimming in the pool when it was not raining (too much). The next morning we went down to the elephant sanctuary, drove a kilometer in, got stuck in the mud as it was raining and had been raining for hours, managed to reverse out the mud and carefully and desperately escaped from the park back onto the road for fear of missing the flight at lunchtime. All without seeing a single elephant during the short 20 minutes we ventured in and out of the park! Well we had seen some of the park's elephants from Mandhari looking down from the cliff if that counts!

Anyway, we did make it to the airport, after spending an hour in the lovely Kokkos where the kids and Andrea enjoyed playing various games with the massive World Map on the wall. Unfortunately Andrea and the girls' flight had issues and had to divert via Mombasa and wait there as Wilson airport in Nairobi was closed and their plane was borrowed for another flight. But eventually they got to Nairobi around the same time as me (despite me leaving 2 hours later on a different flight) and we managed to get home.

Quite a trip, of varied success, but it certainly could have been worse and did have some highlights, despite not seeing dolphins or elephants. One great hotel, some good snorkelling, some time by the pool, and some good family time are all positives!