An Australian man based in Nairobi has charmed Kenyans online after sharing how he completed three major milestones in a single day: a visa extension, a yellow fever vaccination, and a new Kenyan phone number.
Writing in a post that quickly gained traction, Mark Pollard described a whirlwind day that took him from Nyayo House to City Hall, with a few unexpected hurdles along the way.
Seventeen Floors and a Stamp
His first stop was Nyayo House, the government building that handles immigration services. When he arrived, the lift to the 17th floor was out of service.
Rather than wait or find an alternative route, he simply climbed all 17 flights of stairs. At the top, a staff member at the front desk collected his passport. Around ten minutes later, the passport came back with a fresh visa extension stamp inside. “Simple,” he wrote.
From there, he headed to City Hall to receive his yellow fever vaccine. The process was slightly less straightforward.
He was directed to a separate building a short distance away and needed a friend to send him money via M-Pesa to cover the payment. Despite the small detour, he said the experience was quick and that he barely felt the injection.
By the end of the day, he was setting up a Kenyan SIM card and figuring out how M-Pesa works, jokingly inviting people to send him money as he learnt the ropes.
He also teased that his next City Hall visit would be to collect an official Kenyan name, asking followers, “That’s how it works, right?”
Kenyans Welcome Him With Open Arms
The post drew a wave of warm and humorous responses from Kenyan social media users.
Lesley Rodgers raised a flag about the vaccination, writing:
“Brother, that was not a yellow fever vaccine; that was glucose. Go to Wilson Airport or JKIA to get a genuine dose.”
Mwaniga Simiyu had a name ready for him:
“From today your name is Kamau wamunyoro, and remember everytime someone greets you just respond that’s the slogan word everywhere in Kenya.”
Secrets to win a woman’s heart predicted a permanent future in the country:
“Next we shall hear you’re looking for a plot(lot or rather land)in the Nairobi suburbs to settle temporarily, alafu temporarily will be followed with many more years life in Kenya to come, officially kenyanized… welcome and feel at home.”
