Nairobi 9 - Diwali here

Another week in Nairobi and more interactions later still fascinated about this place. Two Rivers - a recently come up largest mall in the city was our place of visit on the eve of Diwali. After a very detailed security check we were let into the mall. This gives ample options to shop (with offers), dine and for entertainment. The huge super market is stocked with items across the world. Highlights being - huge refrigerators with frozen large pizzas, live counters of meat and fish, varieties of honey in glass pots, all types of Indian pickles and plus size bread packets. You will never miss any item that you have left back in India; was happy to see Medimix products, which we know since our childhood days.

After we go around the shops in the mall we pushed out to the ground floor open area were numerous stalls were put up, mostly in Indian flavor. These stalls were either selling Indian clothes and decorative article for Diwali occasion or food items. While window shopping on the stalls, the evening fire works started. It was out of the world display and we were luckily enough to witness it. The ariel view with burst of colors was just amazing. Following this many kids came on to the make shift stage and danced to Bollywood numbers. The atmosphere was electric and you never felt like being in a foreign land. Every group there, be it the young kids or elders had atleast one member belonging to the Indian race. They are simply together with no iota of difference; display of "One world".

In Tamil we have the phrases - 'Thirai kadal odiyum thiraviyam thedu', 'Yaadum oore yaavarum kelir', you are in a better position to appreciate these lines only when you are out of your land. Within the confines and comfort-ability of ours we may never understand this. Having said that, living and and earning in a foreign land is not everybody's cup of tea. Indians have traveled across the world since olden times and have established themselves well too financially in this part of the world. Many successful organisations here are run by them and are the back bone of the country's economic stability. You can find Indian stamps at every nuke and corner - Dwarka and Lakshmi are names of apartments, farsan and chaats available through out while local shopkeepers talk about Mumbai. Kenyans also relish Indian cuisine and patronize them. This is a well knit co-existence between communities here.

Having seen Indians here, one is not privy to Kenyan lifestyle as well. In today's competitive world they are striving to work hard and establish themselves. The Nairobi university has a large campus within the city and offers good education. Once kids are out of the school, which is almost 12 years, they get into the university studies. The current generation though facing tough challenges at a cosmopolitan work place, seems to be doing well. Others who did not have the privilege of higher education do other jobs and quiet smart at it too, the Kenyan cook at our apartment does Indian cuisine with ease. The manual labor here is of very high quality. Be it domestic work or hand work they give their full dedication.

There has been lot of observations, many learning and take away in this Nairobi trip, recorded some above while others just couldn't be worded and will stay inside for a long long time to come..