Tag: Africa week

Every market has a mad man, and it might be you.

September 2nd, 2015

Every market has a mad man

I have heard this saying all my life, but it was only yesterday at 12:17pm that I realized how true it is.

I made my way to the largest open air market here in Kisumu, Kibuye Market, to meet a friend who wanted me to accompany her to the supermarket so she could buy the Diva Soap that I use.

When I got to the market, I called her and she said that she was still waiting for a matatu and as such would take a while before meeting me. I was bummed by this so I chose to walk around the market and check out clothes and shoes.

My first stop was a lady who was selling ladies shoes at one hundred and fifty shillings. I tried on wedges, flats, heels, until I finally settled on a pair of blue wedges. I had the right shoe so I had to look for the left…in a heap of shoes. The lady looked at me and said, “Just look for it, then you’ll pay.” See, in Nairobi at Gikomba market (there are plenty of mad men there) the sellers always help you look for the other shoe, apparently that part of customer service is not available in Kisumu. So I adjusted my bag and bent down to start my search and this woman pushed me with her butt making me land on all fours. I looked up at her and she did not even acknowledge that she had shoved me. The lady selling the shoes laughed and said, “hapa ni soko, kila mtu ana nguvu.” (This is a market and everyone is strong)

I found my shoe. Some girl was stepping on it with her right foot. I tried to pull it out, but she said…”Natafuta hii kiatu,” I am looking for this shoe.

The seller came to my rescue as I started to withdraw my hand. She told the girl that I had seen it first and she reluctantly gave her the shoe. I paid for the pair and left.

The second stop was at the guy who sells some amazing handbags. When I arrived he saw me and smiled before saying, “Customer, aki hakuna vitu poa leo.” I told him I would visit his stall next weekend for a bag and he said he’ll set aside something great for me. I could not get being shoved aside by that woman out of my head.

My friend had not yet called so I walked around the market looking at ladies blouses and skirts. Every seller was praising their goods you’d think they had the best stuff, but one man stood out. I crossed over to his heap and had to endure insults from a tuk tuk driver who almost ran into me while driving on the wrong side of the road.

There was this large heap of clothes and the man was selling dresses.

He had a red scarf covering his head, a green one around his neck and he was wearing a dress on top of his clothes. He was shouting, “Mama kaw nanga, rinda maber mondisi ma ka jaodi oneno to kata news gini gi be ok chande nikech in e good news! Rinda ondisi makata e landi mon ok nyal ting’o lew gi, nikech in high class! Neye kaka ondisa, red, green white and black kaka flag! Rinda siling’ mia!”

Now that was in Luo, but in essence he was calling all the women to buy the dresses on sale at a hundred shillings each. He was saying that a woman would look great in one of the dresses so much so that her husband would not have to watch the news on TV because she was the good news, and that other women would not gossip about her for she was better dressed.

I bought three dresses- and I am yet to see whether it turns out to be great news in my case, but I had to make my way to the main road where my friend was waiting. She had to try the Diva soap and I hope she’ll love it just as much as I do.

When we were leaving the market we came across a mad man. They call him Omondi here in Kibuye. He was hitting his head repeatedly using his right hand.
My African playlist: Ten songs I’m listening to right now.

August 19th, 2015
~~I love good music.~~

I love listening to music, and there’s nothing like a song to describe how you feel or get the kind of mood you’re in. The sound of the drums were heard in Africa, and long before our ancestors danced under the moonlight or celebrated festivals, they also blew horns to send word or used smoke and messengers to share word.

But, this is not all about the journey of music- but more about the feeling that music creates.

There have been numerous hits from the continent…I am talking about Femi Kuti, Brenda Fassie, Miriam Makeba and the list goes on, but you’ve not heard it all until you’ve listened to these ten songs!

From my favorite books to the country I would love to visit and now the ten songs by African artistes that are on my playlist, so here we go:
Nothing beats some music you can dance to…now, am off to get some ingredients for preparing Jollof Rice and will tell you all about it tomorrow, wish me luck!
Ghana: The African Country I’d love to Visit.

August 18th, 2015

This is day two of the focus on Africa.
And as #AfricaWeek continues I would have to say that the one country I would love to visit is Ghana.

Here’s why:

The Ashanti Kingdom is first because I love the history of most African countries, especially where kingdoms are concerned. (Haven’t you heard me go on about The Currents Series?)
Kumasi not just the region only but I would love to go to their market

Third, has to be their fashion and culture as evident in the Kente clothing. I love the Swahili kanga and the vibrant colors and sayings printed on them but the Kente is so bright and part of the Ghanaian culture because even their leaders wear it during functions and I would love me some.

I would not end this without talking about the food. So, I would definitely try some stew and yam.

There you have it. Yesterday was about my favorite books by African Writers, and today it’s about the African Country I’d love to visit.

Which African Country would you love to visit?

Note: All the pictures in this post are courtesy of Google Images.
5 of my favorite books by African Writers.

August 17th, 2015

It’s Africa Week here on Nilichoandika.

What’s Africa Week and what will it entail?
My Africa is beautiful and the only way I can share with you my Africa is through the posts on this blog. I have not been consistent with my posts and in my attempt to build up on this, I came up with Africa week. Everyday of this week I will be talking about something that is inspired by Africa and will conclude with sharing some of my favorite blogs by African bloggers. I am talking about culture, fashion, technology, religion, sports and creative writing.

Today, I would like to share with you the five books by African Writers that inspire me.
These are books that I have read over the years and are timeless or as we say – Classics.
Things fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Things Fall Apart was published in 1958 and it introduces the reader to Okonkwo and the beginning of colonization with the introduction of missionaries into Africa. Although it is a classic, my favorite has to be the next one which was published in 1964, called Arrow of God.

The River Between by Ngugi Wa Thiong’o

Published in 1965, “The River Between” tells of the separation of two neighboring villages due to differences in faith and customs with the Mau Mau uprising starting. It’s one of the well written books by Ngugi that have a flow that’s easier to understand and you can read at one sitting.

So Long a Letter by Mariama Ba

This has to be the longest letter to date written by a West African Woman, and though it was published in 1979, I still find the struggles of Ramatoulaye and Aissatou very relatable. I first read this book in 2003 in my second year of high school, and loved it. It was not a course text though I wished was and I remember reading it in 2007 as a freshman in campus, and reading it four more times before graduating and writing a project paper on it. It has been translated into numerous languages and I’d say if you know any woman going through some tough times or one who always exhibits such strength and faith, this book would be an ideal gift.

The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born by Ayi Kwei Armah

Ayi’s book was published in 1968 and the main theme of the book is on new African states a few months or years post independence from their colonial masters. The main protagonist known as “the man” is given a tongue lashing by his wife after he tells her that someone approached him with a bribe at the railway station he works at and he turned it down.

Maps by Nuruddin Farah

Maps tells the story of an orphan Askar who after his parents death and his adoption, he finds himself yearning for a place where he truly belongs and it’s the onset of civil war in Somalia and he finds himself caught in between the need to belong and to have and create hope for the future. It was published in 1986 and it’s the first book in a trilogy.

These are my top five books and you will notice that I slipped in an extra book as I talked of “Things Fall Apart” and that’s because I love Chinua Achebe’s writing.

There are many more classics but to mention all of them would make this blog post longer than the list of number of people who follow me on Twitter.

What are your favorite books by African Writers? Which ones would you recommend?

Tag: Africa week

Every market has a mad man, and it might be you.

My African playlist: Ten songs I’m listening to right now.

Ghana: The African Country I’d love to Visit.

5 of my favorite books by African Writers.