Flight to Kenya

My route to Kenya was St. Louis-Chicago-Brussels-Burundi-Nairobi which took just over 25 hours. Each flight had more and more Africans on it which was great because they were extremely warm and friendly which is helpful for such a long journey.

On the Chicago-Brussels flight I sat next to a girl from Ethiopia and a guy from Sierra Leone. Both live in the United States and were traveling back to visit family.  When I ask the guy what surprised him the most when he moved to the United States he said it surprised him how individualistic the culture is and that everyone does things alone. And he was introduced to personal space. He said he was like “what do you mean there is this imaginary space around you that is yours? In Africa we are always doing things together and are all up on each other. Now I have to keep out of this personal space…. Ok….”.

He was also surprised about music preference. “They tell you what music you are supposed to listen to. Back home we listen to Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton on Sundays and romance songs. When I got to US my new friends were like “a black guy can’t listen to that”. I have to say I was surprised the first few times I heard Kenny and Dolly music playing in Kenya but it is always fun to hear a reminder of my own childhood.

On the Burundi-Nairobi flight I sat by a Kenyan that has been living in Grand Rapids (my most recent place of residence) for the past 17 years. I had a window seat and he was across the aisle. The seat next to me was empty and my new friend moved over to that seat so we could talk- true Kenyan style. We had a great conversation and I’m glad I hadn’t considered the empty seat my personal space.

When the plane landed, many of the African passengers cheered because happy to be home. I am also glad I am back! J