Having never left the United States before this summer, I really didn’t know what to expect traveling to a country so different from the one I call home. I had heard about the MISTI program at MIT, though, and thought it would be a pretty awesome opportunity to get a great electrical engineering internship while getting paid to travel during the summer. With some research and applications, MISTI Africa became the best opportunity for the language and work experience I had. Following this, I connected with the company Semiconductor Technology Limited with the opportunity to work on semiconductor electronics in Kenya. With this opportunity available, I knew I had found my destination. I was incredibly excited to be able to explore a new part of the world, but I also wasn’t sure what the new culture, new people, and different amenities were going to be like.
After landing in Nairobi, I couldn’t help but look around and smile. It was a bit surreal finding myself in a place so far and different from where I had been only ~25 hours previously. My eyes were glued out the window on the 3 hour drive to my apartment, taking in the beautiful Kenyan landscape. Although exhausted from travel, I felt almost euphoric being in this new country.
After this initial feeling, however, I found the first week to be challenging. The eight hours of jet lag was a bit rough, and getting used to the different food my stomach wasn’t used to as well as the different amenities such as no clean water, no refrigeration, and no machine washing was a bit difficult. Additionally, I quickly realized that I stood out. In a smaller town that doesn’t typically attract tourists, I was one of the only white people, and I often caught people looking at me with curiosity and maybe a bit of confusion too. Not having any close relationships here early on made this a bit harder too, contributing to feelings of being an outsider. Looking back, these feel like small growing pains or hurdles that I think were really healthy to experience and overcome, and after, I feel a lot better about my ability to adapt to new environments and cultures. It’s amazing to me how quickly things turned up, though, where I began to really enjoy myself in a range of different areas.
The food in Kenya is quite tasty and overall really healthy! Although there were several days of upset stomachs early on, I eventually got used to it and began to really enjoy the food. Meals often consist of rice, maize, chicken, beef, lentils, various vegetables, and tea, all generally being very simple and nutrient dense items. I appreciate how fresh the food has been compared to what we typically find in the US in addition to the lower cost of it all. I can see myself in the future taking some inspiration from the food here for some of my own cooking back home.
Visiting Friends from MIT in Nairobi
The people in Kenya, particularly the students and coworkers, have been especially amazing as well. I’ve gotten to connect with several students because of my proximity to a major university here, and they have been so fun to spend time with and get to know! It’s amazing to see the similarities we share in activities and studies despite coming from such different backgrounds, and at the same time, I’ve loved to hear the ways that the students here are different from me in hearing their various stories. In the workplace, it’s been great working with others that have different backgrounds from my own. I feel like we all have different strong suits to bring to the table because of this, and I love all that I am able to learn from my coworkers. I’m sure these relationships will continue to grow as I continue through the back half of my time here in Kenya, and I’m going to miss some of these friends when I eventually return home.
Left: Learning from a visiting Professor from the University of Virginia
Right: STL at the Kenya Meat Conference
Finally, the country and culture here has been a rich experience to explore. The landscape here is truly beautiful, with some tall mountains, rolling hills, and vast savannahs. There are some incredible animals I’ve gotten to see so far, and I recently got to visit Masaai Mara with some friends to go on a Safari. The density and range of animals was absolutely incredible, and the whole adventure was for sure a once in a lifetime experience. The culture here has overall been very warm and welcoming, with people being very hospitable and willing to connect with an outsider. While this doesn’t impact the workplace as much, the concept of time in social gatherings is totally different than what I’m used to. I’d heard about this before coming here, but a local explained it to me well, in that “African Time” is where social events tend to be a bit more fluid and relationship focused rather than sticking to any sort of schedule. It’s definitely been an adjustment and led to some later nights than I anticipated, but I appreciate that when you are with other people, they are truly present with you rather than putting any thought to the time or other tasks that they need to get done.
Left: Exploring the town of Nanyuki
Right: Zebras and Wildebeests in Masaai Mara
Ok–I have to add a note about the Matatu culture here as well. Matatus are the name for minibuses in Kenya, and they pretty much define public transit in the country. While there are definitely some safety concerns with these vehicles, it is simply incredible how easy and affordable it is to get to pretty much anywhere around Kenya. You simply go to the town’s “stage,” find a Matatu with the name of the city/town you want to go to, and wait usually five to thirty minutes for it to fill up with people. And often these minibuses are described as a “party on wheels,” with loud music inside and vibrant decorations enveloping them (which I would say is sometimes but not always the case). I truly appreciate this system for how accessible and affordable it is to citizens, and I have absolutely loved it for being able to get around the country for cheap. It’s allowed me to consistently make weekend trips, and I’ve gotten to visit friends in Nairobi almost every other week because of it. While it does come with the price of a bit of discomfort, it’s not like there aren’t other options, and it is the perfect price to pay rather than money for a college student on a budget!
All this to say, I’ve both learned a lot and thoroughly enjoyed my experience in Kenya so far. I’m so thankful for this opportunity that has finally allowed me to see a new part of the world–it’s amazing! Seeing Kenya has made me realize how much more of the world I have yet to explore, and I really find that seeing more of this planet has become really important to me. Even as an engineer, I can see how limiting myself to just the United States limits the set of problems I have to solve as well as the way I go about approaching problems. I really think this experience and exploring more places will ultimately make me a better person and a better engineer. I’ve also realized how quickly I can adapt to a completely new environment, with great reward coming from during and after that transition process. I’m excited for the rest of my time here in Kenya, and I can’t wait to continue seeing other parts of the world in the future.
Sunset on the Kenyan Savannah
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