I have been to three sides of Kenya and can comfortably say there are people who take salaams seriously.
Luhyaland…everyone stands to shake your hand. Actually they came in numbers early morning where I had visited…naskiko Kuna wakeni Mamake Lenin? To them borrowing is a norm. By the time I left I had all manner of request even for story books for Naliaka who is going to class eight.
Loita deep in the maa…before I knew what they wanted many young kids had suffered silently. Tens would run to me bow and I give them sweets. Little did I know they just wanted to be touched on the head. For the elderly something called Romon was required. Romon is something akin to when two saved say to one another when they meet.
Giriama land…this is the land of greetings. As you walk be prepared to use marahaba hundreds of times…for the aged wakisema wasindaze…you say sinda maana then maana sinda which is replied with close to five sindas.
So different from where I come from…no much things…kuhana atia,uga githee,muriega nyina wa maina,wimwega etc is enough.
Funny you say that; A Tanzanian friend of mine was going out with a Kikuyu chick (from mashinani Murang`a) and he asked me on a very Serious Note,Deeply concerned kind of way ati…“Kabuda,Ngai ni Nani? Unamjua jamaa yeyote anitwa Ngai? …Maanake kila nikiwa namtia Njambi anamwita Ngai!..”
Nilicheka karibu nianguke,this fucker thought Njambi was screaming out the name of some other jamaa everytime he shagged Njambi…
Talk about “Lost in Translation”…