The Nairobi International Trade Fair

If you are a Kenyan living in Nairobi, you know what dominated the whole of the week past - The Nairobi International Trade Fair. All roads were leading to the show grown along Ngong road. From primary schools, secondary schools, to the prestigious tertiary institutions. All who were taking agricultural related entities were headed there.

That is not to assume that all that were in the show ground were all interested in the agricultural sector, or had a stake in the sector. Each person had their own intentions of going there. The good thing is that the gates were open for all who had that small monetary contribution to offer. Students going there for academic purposes, entertainers, parents taking there kids for a weekend out, shoppers who were looking for goods at a reduced price, business entities showcasing their wears, alcohol slaves who came for the infamous DS, and this being Nairobi, how can we forget our beloved pickpockets :-)

This year round I was tasked yet again with the responsibility of being my cousins guardian in the event. I was in charge of both security, and finance. So I woke up early, and unlike most men...I took my usual 2hrs of preparing myself(NOHOMO). Took the route from Eastlands and headed to town. Took another matatu to the Nakumatt Junction where I was to meet my uncle and my cousin. From there it was straight to the show ground. Upon arriving at the gate, I came in contact with one of my worst enemy - a queue. It took us like 40mins or more to get past the entrance and into the grounds. Once in all that my mind was occupied with was finding one cold drink capable of freezing my entire body.

So we started going round the grounds pretending to be interested with whatever they were showcasing. All that was important to me at that moment was my cousin(now that I had found a cold drink) and all that was important to him was the fun fare. So we went to the fun fare and the 1st stop was the merry-go-round. Now, for all those who are over 20 and have never taken that ride, my word of advice is "DON'T".

Intellect + possibilities + final destination kind of movies = a freaked merry-go-round rider

Wen the ride started, I curled my legs from fear of hitting the tents below(naive me thinking that the sit was that low). As speed accelerated, all I was seeing was the possibilities of the chain snapping and sweet Innocent I landing butt first...with a thunderous bang on Ngong road. As I was picturing all this, my 10yr old cousin had escaped my mind. All I was thinking of was Me, Me, Me, and some more Me. The ride started to slow down and the fear of hitting the tents came back...and like a good church boy, I curled my legs again.

After the ride...I needed something to cool me down, so a sugar rush was a best option. Cotton candy does the trick just fine. Walked around with my ball of pink cotton, pinching and eating...sharing it with my cousin. Next stop was the bumper ride. Now that was a kids affair because I don't see myself inside one of those mini rides and all other car drivers are 13 and above years younger than me. After the ride, my cousin saw this tent with the writings "Kichwa bila mwili" and being a kid that he is, he was eager to see a man hiding under the table only leaving his head above a table to give the impression of a head on a plate talking. He went in and mins later came out saying that that stupid head has a body(mhhhh...a sharp kid i see. or is it stupid headless man who cant hide his body well?? I'll never know).

We know started taking walks around the ground bumping into the thousands of people who had graced the ground too with their presence. The sight of school kids brought back memories form ages ago. A group of 4 boys....2 older, and 2 somewhat younger. The group stopped at a Farmers Choice stand and all but one boy purchased some sausages. From the looks on his face one could see the yearning and desire the boy had for some sausages too. But sad that he came to the show will a thin wallet. For a moment my cold heart melted and felt like buying the boy a sausage or two. But just as quick as the thoughts came to mind, they were as quick to exit.

We finished our walk around the ground and started heading for the exit. Through the back entrance, to Jamuhuri estate, to Ngong road, and finally Junction. As I was parting with my cousin, his last words were "I had fun. Si next year tutaenda??" And from that...all I can say is "Till next year again"