Scenes of Nairobi, Kenya

Nairobi, like many other large cities in third world countries, is a city of profound contrasts. There is wealth next to abject poverty, illustrated ever so ironically as with the presidential palace located within a mere few hundred yards of Kibera, the largest slum in all of Africa.

Skyline of Nairobi

Office buildings and people going to work

A shopping mall, not much different than our own Lloyd Center

Modern buildings...

...Traffic snarls (notice which side of the street we drive on here?)

...and a less affluent area

This is an edge of Kibera, home to more than a million people. From here it is a rusty sea of corrugated metal roofs. Our driver advised us that it really wasn't safe for us to go in there...needless to say we didn't.

The pollution was terrible, with black smoke belched out by buses mixed with the thousands of charcoal fires used for cooking. Auna covers her mouth with a sweater.

A sea of humanity. This is where all the buses come and go, for those who travel elsewhere in Kenya, and beyond. In addition to those travelling, there are a multitude of vendors (and pickpockets)

A typical roadside market selling fruits and vegetables

In the parking lot of a smaller shopping mall, the Masai Market is set up once a week. This is where we picked up any last minute souvenirs...and be prepared to bargain!! I have never had higher pressure sales pitches than here.

Jim negotiating with a vendor. He was actually pretty good at it.