The Funky Chicken Resurrected
Day 2 of the GeoNetwork training started off with an introduction to what spatial data are and what file formats these are stored in. It was very tedious because it is old news for me but since only 5 people in the group had used GIS before it was important to explain to everyone else how these things work. Once this aspect was complete we moved back onto the functionalities of the system and we finished the day at 5pm. This week is so easy compared to last week but very different too.
The regional component coordinator and I hatched a plan to go for drinks last night to a really local pub where tourists never go. So we invited everyone along and amazingly we ended up with a group of 10. I think the boredom at the hotel has finally got to everyone! We all trooped off at 7pm and met up at the hotel next to the pub and then marched off to the pub. It was drinks all round and a table full of food. We had arranged for the taxis to come back at 9pm to collect us but at 9pm we asked the taxis to come back at 10pm. At 10 pm the alcohol had taken full effect and we were talked into going to a night club called Casablanca by our facilitator who is from Nairobi. Initially some of the older people had said that they would rather go back to the hotel than spend the night on the dance floor but when push came to shove, everyone went to the club.
The club had a cover charge of KSh100 (about R10) and then we wandered through the initial bar area and came to another door where they were demanding anther KSh100 for entrance to see a show. At this point I smelt a rat and asked what type of show it was and the response came back that it was a strip show but the dance floor was also in there. Eventually we all paid up our cash because we were there to boogie and went in. Well it was just a strip show! And the girls were not particularly great looking either - cellulite hanging out all over. So we waited for a couple of our party to use the toilets and then ducked out. Turns out that the dance floor was upstairs and we need not have paid anything extra to go there - fleeced again in a foreign country!
We hightailed it up to the dance floor and found ourselves a table and a round of Tuskers for all. The first thing I noticed was that there was a very large proportion of women in the club all dressed in extremely skimpy outfits and truckloads of makeup. So I had some suspicions about the place but the music was good and we headed to the dance floor. Oh boy was it hot and eventually I had to return to my Tusker. I left behind one of the quieter guys on the dance floor and when I returned about 5 minutes later, there he was with this woman rubbing herself up and down him. The poor man looked as if he was going to die of embarrassment and he stalked off not to return to the dance floor again. On my next break from doing the funky chicken, I found out from the partner of our regional coordinator that these women are in fact prostitutes and this club is quite notorious and popular among male tourists. But prostitution is legal in Kenya so no-one pays too much attention to what goes on. It was all really quite eye-opening but I did enjoy the dancing so it was a good outing. At half past midnight we decided to call it a night and returned home to our hotel.
So there are some very tired little bunnies in the training session today but we are creating maps for display in GeoNetwork, nice easy stuff for us. Apparently we will finish early so I will be hanging about at KMFRI waiting to go to the airport while everyone else goes shopping.
This will be my last blog until most likely February next year as I return home tomorrow and have some time off from travelling. I'll finish off by wishing all my South African family and friends a good Day of Reconciliation.
Take care
XXX
The group on the left side of the room
The group on the right side of the room
James explaining data files to everyone
The regional component coordinator and I hatched a plan to go for drinks last night to a really local pub where tourists never go. So we invited everyone along and amazingly we ended up with a group of 10. I think the boredom at the hotel has finally got to everyone! We all trooped off at 7pm and met up at the hotel next to the pub and then marched off to the pub. It was drinks all round and a table full of food. We had arranged for the taxis to come back at 9pm to collect us but at 9pm we asked the taxis to come back at 10pm. At 10 pm the alcohol had taken full effect and we were talked into going to a night club called Casablanca by our facilitator who is from Nairobi. Initially some of the older people had said that they would rather go back to the hotel than spend the night on the dance floor but when push came to shove, everyone went to the club.
The club had a cover charge of KSh100 (about R10) and then we wandered through the initial bar area and came to another door where they were demanding anther KSh100 for entrance to see a show. At this point I smelt a rat and asked what type of show it was and the response came back that it was a strip show but the dance floor was also in there. Eventually we all paid up our cash because we were there to boogie and went in. Well it was just a strip show! And the girls were not particularly great looking either - cellulite hanging out all over. So we waited for a couple of our party to use the toilets and then ducked out. Turns out that the dance floor was upstairs and we need not have paid anything extra to go there - fleeced again in a foreign country!
We hightailed it up to the dance floor and found ourselves a table and a round of Tuskers for all. The first thing I noticed was that there was a very large proportion of women in the club all dressed in extremely skimpy outfits and truckloads of makeup. So I had some suspicions about the place but the music was good and we headed to the dance floor. Oh boy was it hot and eventually I had to return to my Tusker. I left behind one of the quieter guys on the dance floor and when I returned about 5 minutes later, there he was with this woman rubbing herself up and down him. The poor man looked as if he was going to die of embarrassment and he stalked off not to return to the dance floor again. On my next break from doing the funky chicken, I found out from the partner of our regional coordinator that these women are in fact prostitutes and this club is quite notorious and popular among male tourists. But prostitution is legal in Kenya so no-one pays too much attention to what goes on. It was all really quite eye-opening but I did enjoy the dancing so it was a good outing. At half past midnight we decided to call it a night and returned home to our hotel.
So there are some very tired little bunnies in the training session today but we are creating maps for display in GeoNetwork, nice easy stuff for us. Apparently we will finish early so I will be hanging about at KMFRI waiting to go to the airport while everyone else goes shopping.
This will be my last blog until most likely February next year as I return home tomorrow and have some time off from travelling. I'll finish off by wishing all my South African family and friends a good Day of Reconciliation.
Take care
XXX
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