Mombasa

December 15th to 19th...

Who went: Mom, Sophia, Ali, Gulnar Masi, Naguib Masa, Kiyan, Alina, Anjum Masi, Sameer, and myself.  We also picked up the Masi's mom and dad (Nanima and Nanabapa) on the way to the hotel in Mombasa.

The drive was a long 7 and a half hours until we reached the Southern Palms Beach Resort which was on the south coast (we had to cross on a ferry to the island of Mombasa). 

It was heaven, as you can see from the pics.  We took up 6 rooms which all have a perfect view of the Ocean.  This was a true vacation spot.  The pool was gigantic and the sun warmed it up to a perfect temperature to swim during the day.  I didn't get much time in the ocean (except when we went snorkeling, which will be described in another post) but I did sit on the beach and dug my legs in the gorgeous white sand.  

Arrival in Nairobi

December 13th...

I took the overnight flight from Paris straight to Nairobi so I arrived at 6:30am.  After waiting in line for a very long and hot hour to get my visa I was greeted by Anjum Masi and Sameer (aunt and cousin).  The first thing I noticed was the 'oh-so-familiar' smell (familiar because of my trip to Ghana) which is a combination of smells due to the humidity, people, animals, trees, etc.  

I was taken to Gulnar Masi's home where I was greeted by my mom, Sophia, and Ali who arrived yesterday.  I also met with Naguib Masa, Alina, and Kiyan.  Chai and breakfast was already prepared by Nancy, someone who helps out in the house.  Later I met Charles, Amy, Matunga, and a few others that worked in and around the house.  

The next morning after I finished breakfast, which was again prepared for me (and the dishes were done for me), I went back to my room and my bed was made and clothes were folded.  I could get used to this....

The weather in Nairobi is perfect - hot enough during the day but cool enough to sleep at night.  There is no need for air conditioning or heating, at least in this house, which has tons of windows so is kept pretty cool.  I will hopefully post pics soon of the house...

Darbar in Paris...

December 11th...

I was lucky enough to attend another Darbar which happened to fall within the few days I was in Paris.  It was at the Expo center by the airport.  Dadima, Salma Fui, Salim Fua, Aliyyah and Noorez (sorry if I spelled any of your names wrong) stayed at the Millenium Hotel in the Roissy plaza by the airport - as did thousands and thousands of other Ismailis!  In fact it was a bit strange to see so many of us in Paris at the same time.  Especially considering Paris has one of the smallest Jamats.  Which is why there were so many volunteers from the London Jamat.

We left early that morning and took the shuttle to the Expo center and waited for a few hours for Hazar Imam to arrive.  A half hour before his expected arrival there was an announcement that the entire Noorani family was to attend as well - Prince Amin Mohamed, Princess Zahra, Prince Rahim, Prince Hussein and his wife Princess Khalia.  

We got a seat right at the red carpet so I was lucky enough to have the entire family pass right by me.  Hazar Imam made yet another wonderful Farman of which I have memorized a few lines:

"Happiness is a gift from Allah"

"No mountain, desert, or ocean will come between the Jamat and their Imam"

The experience as a whole was incredible and I am very lucky to have it at the beginning of this long adventure...

Four Eiffels for a Euro

December 10th...

Note for pics: (1) Outside the Louvre on the way to eat lunch (2) Outside the main entrance pyramid at the Louvre (3) take a look at the pic in the background and you'll understand lol (4) Mona Lisa at her finest (5) the main square at the Louvre...waiting for Karim to arrive

This morning I packed up my stuff at the hostel and went to the internet cafe where I attempted to connect with a friend who was also in Paris.  I got the name of the street and his number and headed to the Metro station to find my way.  I made it to the street and walked around for an hour looking for him!  I finally gave up when a restaurant owner who had seen me several times walk back and forth down the street advised me to not walk alone - "Watch out for the boys in Paris".  So I gave up and sat at a cafe, ate a croissant, drank hot choco and watched the city wake up.  

An hour later after I could feel my fingers again I headed to the Louvre to meet another friend - whom I had never met before but is a friend of my cousin.  Thankfully we had a meeting spot so I was not wandering around for too long.

In 2001 when my family and I did Europe together we happened to visit the Louvre on a Tuesday - the one day of the week that it's closed!  So this time around I made sure it was the one place I would make it to.  I had to see the famous Mona Lisa.  And I did - and it was worth seeing - but it was so tiny it shocked me.  

So we walked around for a few hours and did the whole museum thing (most of the time I just looked at the paintings and tried to imagine what other people thought of them).  It was a good experience, as you may be able to tell from the pics....

Outside I picked up four Eiffel tower keychains for one euro....hence the name of the post

Paris...

When I arrived at the airport I started to laugh out loud - I was so overwhelmed with excitement. I AM IN PARIS!!!

That was until I had to take the Metro to my hostel. By the time I came out of the airport it was already dark and pretty late and three different people told me to just take a taxi. I agreed...and those of you who are from Toronto, please take a look at this map and you will understand why...

I took a taxi to the closest station to the line that I was supposed to be on...which didn't seem that far away. The driver of course would not give me a price and did not speak English and it ended up costing me 30 Euros!!! A mistake I won't repeat...

I think one of the reasons traveling is so exciting is because each time you leave one destination to get to another you're sort of holding your breath the whole way until you get there and you have a little celebration in your head - yes I'M ALIVE I'M ALIVE I'M ALIVE!! woo hooo!

Anyway, got to the hostel, quickly made friends with Laurent - A Canadian (from Quebec) - had dinner and tried to sleep. In a room of 10 people (mixed), I was hoping it wouldn't be too noisy but we had someone snoring and I couldn't sleep till 3:30 in the morning!

But as tired as I am...I'm here at the internet cafe writing this and staring out the window at the beautiful side roads...Paris is really magical

I'm off to the Louvre now...hope to write soon.

P.S. Sorry I do not know how to rotate this picture...

First Stop - London

I'm not entirely sure how to keep a blog but I will try my best...

After almost 24 hours of traveling I finally landed in London at 6:30 am on Monday the 8th. I was completely exhausted and was running on approximately 2 hours of sleep in the last 2 days.

Someone asked me once - 'so how do you pack for a 5 month trip?' - Answer is still - 'I have no idea'.

It was Eid so Dadima (Dad's mom) went to the Northwest mosque for Namaaz (hope I spelled that right). Then we ran a bunch of errands, etc. etc. etc. until finally in the evening we ended up at Nasrin Fui's house for an Eid dinner.

When we were driving around Harrow running errands, in between my naps, I had a great time just looking around at all the houses and shops. London really is very different from Toronto - it's an enormous city yet somehow everywhere you go you feel so cozy.

It was, of course, raining...

Anyway, this post will have to stay short, and a little boring. I have to run to the airport now...just wanted to test this whole blog thing out - hope you enjoyed it.

For those of you who have no idea who the people are I'm talking about in my blog - I apologize. Hopefully I'll get better at this...