Money Talk for Kenya & Kigali

So I'm back from my mini mini mini break. There was a long weekend in Nigeria to celebrate our independence, a few people and I decided to visit Niarobi and Kigali. ( these cities are in Kenya and Rwanda respectively if your geography is dodgy- You are welcome).


A few things to note this trip, it was pretty budget not by design but it just so happened that there isn't a lot of buy from Kenya asides coffee ( In my opinion) and I also had economies of scale on my side.
Also Nairobi doesn't have a lot to do if you remain in the city. But this might be as a result of being resident in Lagos. And the fact that I arrived on a Wednesday night and left on Thursday evening.

Money talk:

My ticket cost N135,000 approx round trip for  Lagos- Nairobi- Kigali- Nairobi- Lagos.
Visa: $20 transit for Kenya and $30 for Rwanda both obtainable on arrival with a Nigerian passport.
My accomodation cost $87 for all the nights I spent with my group.
However I like to take some time out after travelling with people to recharge so I spent an extra night in Kigali and that cost me $30 and I also spent the night at the Aspire airport lounge at the Nairobi airport for $35.
Taxi rides and tourist attractions cost me approximately $50.
I spent approximately $10/meal
The exchange rate is 100KSH ( Kenyan shillings) to 1 USD.

Itineary:
My layover in Kenya was 21 hours long so I got to spend a night and go shopping the next day as well as visit the Giraffe center with the aim of kissing feeding the animals.

Rwanda
I had planned to arrive on thursday night go out, friday take a Yoga class - someone in my travel party was teaching said class, visit the Kigali Genocide center ( let this be the first/last thing you do if you decide to go, it was very emotionally stressful for me, I couldn't finish viewing because I'm a crier and I couldn't risk breaking down too badly), have lunch, visit the Belgian soldier center and friday night go out again. Saturday morning lie in and then take a 3 hour bus ride ( that really turned out being 5 but who is counting) to Gisenyi spend the night at an eco lodge and then come on sunday. Spend monday relaxing getting my life together at a spa and then heading to the airport to return to Lagos.


Top marks for whoever can guess how much of my itineary I stuck to and what I cancelled.

I think in total plus souvenirs I spent maybe $250 shopping inclusive in both countries plus incidentals.

Also like a learner I used my Gt bank Naira card to pay for a bra that was 2,000 KSH and when I got the alert in Naira I almost fainted.

So pro tip never use your Naira card to pay for anything except you want to almost have an aneurysm when your debit alert pops in.

Re group travel it's not so bad but I do not think it's something I am really a fan of because I like doing things on my own time and I really like to take my time.

New Trip- PSA X SOS

Two posts in one day.

Lets not call it a come back. It's not.

I leave for my vacation during the week and I am so so so excited.

Slightly stressed because I am doing two things I have never done before.

1- I'm traveling with only hand luggage ( I'm still packing sha) and if you read this blog by now you will have gleaned that my extra-ness filters into my packing. AKA I am that person at the airport flirting with the staff at the check in counter to waive my excess luggage.
I mean I fly from Lagos to Abuja for 48 hours and I check in luggage.

Always.



But change is here I hope.

2- I am traveling with a group of people that I do not know.
I mean, I know the person that invited me, someone from Yoga class but yeah I don't know anyone else. I'm equal parts a people person and a me person aka an ambivert, but when I asked the organizer about sleeping arrangements ( it's a group of 10), he said " Oh I'd rather that be organic"...






That was legit my reaction.

Like, huh???

Anyway this post is about packing light suggestions and dealing with a large group of travel people especially when you'd rather sleep alone.

So tips, suggestions are welcome and actively solicited.
Let me know what you think I should or shouldn't do.

Now the PSA is that I found this pretty cool checklist website that is about to become my best friend.

Here

Go on, you know you want to click on the link. :)

Yoga at Vizcaya - Miami

 My hat and my mat on which a fat cat (me) sat.

I love Miami.

Miami is one of my favorite cities in America and it's probably my best in the world.

It's sensual and chill and has beaches for miles and miles and miles and it is literally what Lagos could have been but Eko Atlantic and poor planning.

But I'm still holding out hope for the water front on the Elegushi axis. *fingers crossed*

Back to Miami.

After Cuba, I spent a week there further steeping myself in enjoyment. So the usual Liv & Story visits, and I discovered this really sweet spot called Bodega and ate taco's at 3am.

But the highlight of Miami for me was a Yoga class I took at Vizcaya.

I stumbled upon this while looking for events in Miami and I happened to be there over a bank holiday so I didn't want to do the beach or a boat trip that would mean me having to wear white and mingling with the whole world in the water and all that.

Anyway I found this and fell in love.

Vizcaya is the dream house.
 It was built as a summer home in the early 1916 by a certain James Deering and has the most delicious gardens fashioned after the Versailles gardens.

If Versailles and Lake Garda had a child and a really rich man with beautiful taste looked after the child it would be the Vizcaya mansions. It is so lovingly maintained .
The mansion was restored so perfectly and has been converted to a museum and event space.

Up the stairs to my class

Directions

Anyway enough about the space.
I'm pretty new to Yoga as a sport/ practice but I realized that I needed relaxation and calm and meditation in my life and I have flirted around with the possibility a lot. So the class seemed like the perfect union.

Class was hosted by Trio Yoga and the teacher was pretty flexible & perfect.

Showed up late and joined in and as usual class kicked my ass but I loved it.

Shiny new mat for the class

Totally wiped after the class

After the class I took the opportunity to walk around and just take in everything.

The garden is so stunning in person and the mansion now museum has bits of art installations everywhere. 

Garden

Aclove in the garden

Statue in the mansion

Hostest with the mostest my friend who joined me looking like Lady of the Mansion

Me and these light mirror frames that are pretty cool

More garden views

Walk way and garden views.

If you are in Miami you should totally spend some time at Vizcaya, it is like an oasis in the madness that is Miami- and I love the madness, but we all need to rest sometimes.

Resting

The class cost $18, if you are a Vizcaya member/ Trio Yoga member and $50 if you are a walk in.

Since I was visiting from Lagos, I called the organizers and asked if I could attend the class and pay $18 as I didn't live in Miami and couldn't be a member of either.

They agreed.

Also this was a super deal because entry to the museum is $18.

Killed all the birds with this $18 payment.

Also they offered me the option to use this same $18 as credit towards obtaining a life time membership of the Vizcaya Museum and Gardens.- Which I declined because, wetin concern agbero with overload.

When I say all the birds, I mean it.

Important to note, I was the only black person at this class and in the mansion till my friend came to join me. No racist vibes or anything just something to note if you get around to visiting Vizcaya.

My friend took this photo and I understand why everyone kept asking if I was a model. LOL

 


 Ps: I can't wait for Nigerians to discover this space and start hosting evening weddings here.
The optics will bang so hard.

Have you been to Miami?
If yes what stood out for you?
If not yet- what are you looking forward to about it?

Fight Club Friday

My last day in Havana I dragged myself out of bed and decided to do ONE fitness related thing.

I took a class at the world famous Rafael Tejo Boxing Gym aka "Gimnasio de Boxeo Rafael Tejo"

I know, I know.
If you do not have a general idea of the sort of person I am, I am the one person who believes vacations are for full enjoyment and indulgence.

Anything that might possibly be stressful issa big fat NO.

So you have to realize that taking this class was really for the culture, as opposed to the love for the sport.

I mean I love boxing  *waves at Anthony Joshua*  and I've practiced on and off for the past 6 months but in Havana this class was purely for the culture.

And it was perfect.

Walked from my casa to the Gimnasio and encountered an Santeria Church.

Santeria religion is like juju and the catholic church having a baby and that your extra aunt in your family is the one raising the child.

Imagine the extraness.

Yes.

I did not bother to explore it greatly because - I'm Nigerian.

Service was about to start and everyone was wearing while and had yellow flowers.

I just smiled and continued on my merry way.

Finally got to the gym 5 minutes later and

Mini photo shoot while waiting for the coach.

Boxing Ring

Now the boxing ring might not look like much but trust me it has so much more soul and character than a Nigerian Politician ever will.

All the Cuban greats trained and train here so you know it is ( like everything else in Cuba) very very community oriented/centered.
I mean my trainers mum showed up and suggested I move to Cuba and get a boyfriend.

 Eventually he showed up, chatted for a bit and got down to business.

Did the cardio drills, ran around in circles, did the lateral runs anti lateral runs- The whole works.

My stance is actually so much better, I was hung over from Tropicana

Also Leg definition- hellloooooo :)

Josbel - Coach

 Half way through the training in Spanish ( which I do not speak),
coach stopped me to ask " Cocaina"?
Me: huh?
He gesticulates the sniffing and back of palm rubbing gesture.
Me: Oh cocaine? No thanks
Him: Did you take cocaine?
Me: *realizing that I must have been giggling like a goat the whole time* Oh no, no cocaina for me.
He looks at me with disbelief but lets it slide

Coach's momma, trying to get me to stay in cuba.

 Also tourists kept popping in and asking to take photos, so if anyone of you see's your girl on anyone else's travel blog- Hola!

My face when my coach asked me out to drinks later that night. 

And when we tried to take a photo together, he lifts all 72kg of me- In one attempt.

I loved loved loved loved boxing in Cuba. It was so much more light hearted than the seriousness of what I have to do in Lagos (whenever I go)

The class cost CUC20.
The walk to the arena was 20 minutes
The walk back, LOL I did not walk back,
 I hopped on a bicitaxi and screamed "Mas Rapido*"

*turns out mas rapido is faster in spanish but it's not the faster you say when you want someone to hurry up, 
it's the faster you say when you are having sex. 
the driver was kind enough to explain this to me in broken spanglish and I'm like oh, my bad.

If anyone is interested I was in a hurry because the place I had breakfast was going to close in 20 minutes and I really liked eating there.

Breakfast spot and favorite waiter.

Ps: Please take a minute to pray for the people of Havana
as hurricane Irma ravages their coast line and floods their streets.
As of today, there are no reports of deaths.
 Join me in prayer that it stays that way.

Tropicanaa!

Tropicana is a world famous cabaret show hosted at "The Tropicana" in Havana and it was on my to do list.

But as with every thing in Cuba, Tropicana is not cheap.

Seat prices range from CUC75 to CUC120 dependent on seat location and whether or not dinner was going to be included.

I opted for the most affordable tickets at CUC75 because, I had researched before I left Lagos and I knew that seat location was not going to impact the experience greatly or at all.


Plus it came with a bottle of Havana club and a flower if you are female or a cigar if you are male.

I attempted to finesse my way out of a flower into a cigar but hosts were not having it and so

Me with my flower and my bottle of Rum.

It is also important to note that Tropicana has a pretty strict dress code.

Fancy dress.

But as a Nigerian whose theme is always to do the most, I was ready.

No really, I had gotten one of my trusted Dress makers something to let them know Naija no dey carry last.

Told you I came ready.

Shout out to the person who took this photo, you are a star girl.

Anyway the show started late as is expected in Cuba, but it blew my mind.

The costumes, the choreography, the ambience plus the fact that it was a hot spot region for internet in Cuba and the internet was stellar.

Side Stage

Dancer in her stunning out fit

Since it's held in an open air theater, the show was stopped when it started drizzling and we had to wait out the rain in the hotel lobby ( more time to catch up on the gram), and we got called back once the rain ended and the show was concluded.

After which the dancers came into the crowd to pull up people to dance on stage.

Selection Process

Lucky guy

And they called out countries and had the citizen dance and play songs from their countries and it was such a vibe.

A few things to note about Tropicana,

you might be the only black person there - I was, and I still enjoyed myself and I went alone.

They charge you CUC5 for taking photos.

I didn't pay because- huh?, and I still took photos.

But, just play it cool and be like  "I'm only here for the experience",
because half way through the show no one is going to come around and ask you to
1) not take photos
2)delete the photos you already took so

Its a far way out of town,
your  best bet is to get a cab that would drop you off and come back for you.
That's what I did and it worked out perfectly and cost me CUC20 "ir e venir".