The wooden panelled floor felt cool under my feet as I walked into the steamy Bikram Yoga studio.
With four mirrors reflecting the participants, I could see four reflections of myself. The early birds were already warming up and they smiled at the nervous look on my face, as I was confronted by my image on the four mirrors.
Published in Business Daily, September 20 2012
Everyone knows what a samosa is but few have thought about how ubiquitous the food form has become popular globally yet its essentials of three points remain the same.
It’s this idea which gave birth to the SAMOSA festival in Kenya. SAMOSA stands for the South Asian Mosaic of Society and the Arts. The biannual event is a celebration of Kenya’s African, Eastern and Western heritages.
Published in Business Daily, September 20 2012
Buzkashi is often compared to polo because in both games players are on horseback and propel an object towards a goal. Polo is played with a ball while Buzkashi is played with a headless goat carcass.
This might sound gruesome, but it’s Afghanistan’s national sport and paintings of Buzkashi decorate the walls of Bar.B.Q Tonight, Nairobi’s recent barbeque restaurant. With rich amber and burgundy colours, the paintings blend easily with the earthy feel of the restaurant’s wooden furniture.
Published in Business Daily, September 6 2012
As the property market grows, more Kenyans are buying and investing in houses and apartments. Those who have purchased property as an investment are quick to rent it out in the hope that the rental income will offset a mortgage.
The Landlord and Tenant Bill, 2007, applies to all residential and business premises, and is designed to protect tenants from unlawful rent increases and evictions. However, it only applies to residential premises which have a rent less than Sh15,000 per month and thus excludes the majority of upmarket properties. Rent disputes may be heard by the Rent Restriction Tribunal, under the Distress for Rent Act (cap 293) but the cost of bringing cases to tribunals discourages its use.
Published in Nairobi Business Monthly, September 2012
Matteo Guzzini’s speech is punctuated with pauses as he searches for the right words to express himself, whether it is in Italian, English or Swahili. He begins many of his sentences with Allora, a colloquial Italian word which means “well ….” And like many people new to the English language, he prefers the present tense – I arrive, I take, I go – which adds a sense of immediacy to his speech.
Published in Nairobi Business Monthly, September 2012
Published in Nairobi Business Monthly,
e-portfolio: Aamera Jiwaji 