jennybphotolife: Never to old...and it is the week end .....enjoy

jennybphotolife: Never to old...and it is the week end .....enjoy:     One should never be too old to play and feel light hearted as a child. Try flying a kite, dancing in the street and your fitness ...

Never to old...and it is the week end .....enjoy

 

 

One should never be too old to play and feel light hearted as a child. Try flying a kite, dancing in the street and your fitness for hopscotch. Do children even play hopscotch today? With all the stree around these activities keep one young. Can you add to the list - walking in the rain - getting your feet into some mud - ride an old bicycle and so on.... enjoy your week end.

 

 

Fish on the beach.

 

 

This lovely youngster decided that I needed to be followed and that he wanted his picture taken with his friends who had their fish of day. All full of joy and giggles. It just makes one want to join in in their joy.

Paintings

I wonder at the beautiful paintings that I pass. All drawn and painted by people who have not had a single art lesson. They are so talented. Some of the paintings with the right frame and mount would look wonderful on anyones wall.

Old scale at the market...

If you dont want to shop at the supermarkets for vegatables you head to the fruit and veg market where there is everything you need, fresh and clean. The place itself leaves nothing to be desired and one should only wear your tackies as the floor is muddy. Once you have chosen you produce it gets weighed on an old collectable scale as seen below. It has all the original weights in ounces. Nothing fancy here and they thought I was strange taking this picture after asking permission to do so....... maybe I am but I thought it quaint. Hey at the end of the day it works.

 

 

 

School Kids

I was taken out to a very rural school beyond Nairobi where there were 750 pupils. A very run down school with delapidated buildings and fields of sand and tuffts of grass. The kids were so excited to see us and before long I had a following. They jumped up and down and I thought it was just the fun and joy of it all but low and behold it was my hair they wanted to touch..... Finally they managed to get me on the ground and every child wanted to feel and stroke my head. They kept saying "soft" "white" and then giggled. It really was very touching. Of course they all wanted their photo taken. Their curosity knew no bounds for little folk who have nothing. Below are some of the pictures of my little group of followers.

 

 

 

Performance

We all know what it is like to be called out of a crowd to go up on stage and make a fool of ourselves. This poor girl was very game even though she was very embarressed, she carried herself well. I give her a thumbs up and I was very glad it was not me.

Negotiations

Here in Kenya we buy quite a bit at the local market. Once you decide what you want to purchase you then attempt to ask the price..... now the negotiations start. The first thing the shop owner asks is how many items you want to buy and then looks disappointed when you say only one. Aaah this makes a difference to his thought pattern but still no price forthcoming. You sigh and puff and ask again -" Please just tell me how much for this piece"... They then try and persuade you to buy more than one item "please please please it is better - better price" and they take out a piece of paper or old news paper and write a figure on it telling you that is their BEST price. They never say the price out loud because they don't want competion from the nearby stall. You look at them and then add what  you think you should pay for the one piece you want. This goes on back and forth with the paper till everyone is happy. By this stage you are surrounded by 10 other fellows wanting you to come to their stall in the hope that you will buy from them as well. I find that it can be very clostrophobic and you need nerves of steel and patience dulux... Actually I have a perfect system for me. I choose what I would like and decided what I am prepared to pay and then my hubby, who has the patience, steps in to negotiate. It works well for us.

Big Dreams

Everyone has dreams but I think this little guy has very big ones. Good for him. It really was a tiny home made boat but he was happy and determined to go his way.

Deportment

My mother always said that one should stand up straight and not slouch and I think it was the teaching of her mother. SO to help me she would make me walk around with a book on my head. Head up, shoulders back, tummy in kind of thing.  In those days one did as we were told. I tried to instill this theory to my daughter and she just fell about laughter and said "Oh no, not going to happen - no way!" "It is old fashioned and we dont need to do it". Of course I beg to differ when I see the sad postures of many folk who walk around. Anyway, here in Africa, it is common practise for the African women to walk around with things on their heads - not for posture but for they need there hands for other heavy work as the husband walks in front of them with nothing...... yes it still happens. But oh my, they do stand up straight and seem very proud. What they carry varies and it is amazing at what a load they can put on their heads and the shape does not seem to matter. They are also taught from an early age to carry things on their heads.

Here are some of my favourite pictures.

Side of the Road...

Nairobi is a very busy city and the traffic leaves little to be desired. One can sit for 25 minutes without moving on some days and a 17 minute trip can take 2 to 4 hours depending on the time. Yet there never seems to be 'hooting' and they say using your indicator is a sign of weakness so cutting into, around and about each other is the norm... All around and in between the traffic are Kenyans trying to sell whatever they feel one may need ..... all for the elusive dollar. A hard life for them which makes me feel very grateful for the position I am in.

 

Time to tell

Living in Kenya can be a challange but as I ride along and observe I manage to take the odd photo and would like to share this life with you... people are a mystry....

Take this lady for instance. She sits selling bananas which really can't bring in much of an income but she has a cell phone and while I watched she chatted for an age. I suppose it clears the boredom and passes the time for trade was not in site. A bunch of the bananas may pay for that call... mmmmm