Driving

Driving is alway something I enjoy. Back home in Norway I have my driver's lincence. I enjoy it! Also here in Kenya driving has been a joyful experience. Sitting in the Matatu's. The noice is so loud that sometimes I wonder if my hearing is getting bad. But it is enjoyable. The times when the Matatu is SO crowded that if it you wouldn't move an inch if it were to stop suddently.. And the times when we have long drives and you plug in the i-pod and open the window. The lovely nature that passes by, at the same time I can't stop wondering "How fast are we really driving?!?". Also the times when visit Campus and drives Boda Boda. That is some motosyckle that drives around campus. Sitting there, feeling the wind blow in my hair and almost jumping of the seat everytime we drive over a speedbump.



But there is one thing that we have discovered here in Nakuru. A thing that really makes our trips into the city not too enjoyable. The first time I really noticed it was last sunday on our way home after a trip to one of the other campuses that we work with. I was sitting in the back of the Mat, just relaxing. We had just turned off from the high way and were on our way up to Njoro where we live.

Suddently there is a lot of movement in the Mat as everyone rushes to put on their seat belts. I tried to do the same, just to find out that in the backseat the seat belt wasn't installed. Ahead of us I saw the police. Overconfident as I was, I thought to myself "Who cares. I won't get cheked". I went back to just relaxing. Then a policeman knocks on my window. I open it and he asks "are you wearing a seat belt?". I answerd honestly that I wasn't because the one installed here wasn't working. He answered me that there was no worry and we could continue.



I felt a mixture of relief and worry as we drove on. Relief because I wasn't in trouble. But how on earth could he tells us just to keep driving. The answer was so obvious.



After that incident I always put in my seat belt the moment I enter the Mat. But the thing is that the police haven't checked us after that. They stop us, the conductor talkts to them and at the same time they slip them 100 Shilling. This happens almost everytime we travel to Nakuru. It's is safe to say that Miriam and I get quite provoked everytime they stop us. The questions is why do the people put up with this for years and years.

I read in the newspaper later that week, that if you pay 100 shillings a day in transportation, 30 shillings of the goes directly in the poket of a corrupt policeman. If you do that for one year you pay the police almost 11 000..