Crime in Nairobi!

This is one of the sensitive issue in here, in small circles everybody knows but never likes to talk about, basically ignores and change the subject. People around me even say, crime is everywhere! not only in here! What an excuse to make yourself feel comfortable, right?!

 I totally do not agree, and am being very open about it when people ask me.

Before we moved to Nairobi, I read many articles about the crime in the city, even heard the term 'Nairobbery'! And found it, do not know, may be little awkward or overboard. Unfortunately, what I ve witnessed myself in first hand, it is Nairobbery!

Open one of the local newspapers, horid stories start right away, from the front page until to the back. At some point, you feel like this is too much? may be not true? how can it be? But from my conversation with locals, that is only the tip of the iceberg! Lately, I have been hearing from the expat community, all the compounds around us burglarized a few times. And there are people moving between compounds because they have been robbed already many times, and please let me point out, supposedly, these are gated secured compunds! What I learned is, most of these are inside jobs, these people know your movements, where you are, what time you go to sleep, or if you are on a Holiday! It tends to happen mostly in single houses, but lately lots of burglaries in compounds as well. I hear some people say, there are crimes in every major city.  I can agree with that argument a little but not much. Worst thing is, when something happens to you even in daylight, people do not move, they just stare at you, like they are in the circus, and they are there to watch this (Believe me, it happened to us!) And further, there are neither cops nor police stations you can call up to, or there are no patrolling cars on the roads, because vast majority of the police force do not have cars! Can you see the big picture now? I am not writing this to scare people or write bad things about Nairobi, but it is what it is. If you live here, or planning to move here make sure to do your research diligently.