Latest in town: Wild partying

By Stevens Muendo and Crystal Okusa

A group of bikers and sporty pimped-up rides is preparing to leave Nairobi to Nakuru where the annual 10-Aside rugby tournament is taking place all weekend.

Long before they hit the highway, you can smell the wild fun ahead of this adventure.

"Forget you ever knew the word sanity. This is going to be the ultimate summer festival," exclaims a guy who introduces himself as Tom as he takes a double shot of Famous Grouse, them passes the bottle round to his mates.

The booming music from their cars and the trendy urban street dressing drew attention at the Oilibya petrol station, Westlands — where they gather before their departure to Nakuru.

Stocked in their cars was enough liquor — beer, whisky and all brandy labels, to last a few days.

And before they take off, two other groups arrive at the petrol station to fuel their cars.

These groups are on their way to Crayfish Camp in Naivasha and right there, the craze begins.

Three girls pop their heads from the open roof of one of the cars waving to the crowd blowing kisses to them. The boys get wild. "Destination Naivasha, oh yee," They start to chant. In another minute, the convoy hits the road leaving onlookers mesmerised by their ‘madness’.

Rhino Charge

Earlier that Saturday morning, another group of youth had left town for the annual Rhino Charge festivals in the bush.

"I decided to participate in the Rhino Charge because it is the wildest rally event in the region. It was a relief to be out of Nairobi. Apart from ridding, I had fun with the big crowds of Nairobians who attended the event," says Philip Ogola, who was a participant in the weekend Rhino Charge bush competition.

"Even though there were not as many celebs as last year, there were more youthful participants from Nairobi as compared to last year. Their wild support brought life to the event," he adds.

This is the same crowd that in previous years would bar hop in Nairobi clubs the whole weekend, but then, party trends have since changed.

Lately, the coolest thing is not hanging out in a posh Westlands’ club or dancing the whole weekend away in the popular hangout joint where two or three celebrities are booked to perform. That is so 1990s! Pulsers have reinvented the party scene.

From football to rugby pitches, country clubs to the beaches the youth are now spending their weekends differently.

"I don’t really care about rugby. But I love the wild parties associated with such tournaments. I go there to yell and drink and meet new friends as well," says Bernice Kioko, a 21-year-old university student who together with her 15 girlfriends had been saving to attend the 10-Aside tournament in Nakuru.

"We do club. But we have more fun hanging out around rugby tournaments bonding with guys. It’s the in thing," she adds.

And true to her statement, the atmosphere at the Nakuru Athletic Club was buzz ingas Nairobi crowds joined the teams and locals drinking and dancing after the rugby matches.

　

Party central

Every car has been converted into a club. Groups of young people gather around the cars drowning booze as others dance to the blaring music.

"Honestly, I don’t care about watching the matches. I’m here to party. Rugby matches are usually fun because of their wild after party,"

"I came here with my friends mid-morning, it’s almost nightfall and I must confess that I haven’t watched even a single game," says Tabitha Otieno, a USIU student.

But besides Tabitha, there are other groups of girls who have wild following for particular teams in such tournaments. Call them sporty groupies or something, but their wild support and usual fancy dressing does help spice up such events.

Another common phenomenon is the Kenyan rugby jersey, a must have item for the games die-hard supporters.

"Rugby fields are the coolest places to party at. Of course I support the teams that is why I am here but it’s easy to get carried away into the fun part and forget to go to watch the games or end up watching one game the whole day. My pals and I make it a must attend event, we are even going to Mombasa next weekend for Driftwood," notes Martin Kariuki.

By 6pm, half of the crowd is totally drunk but still, the crazy bit of the extravaganza was yet to kick off.

Hotels in the town had been booked to capacity days prior to the weekend and after an endless search most of the youthful visitors reasoned that they would rather worry more of partying than beds.

But then, leading Nakuru clubs such as Taidys, Summit and Dimples had strategised to cash in — bringing in popular artistes such as Jua Cali and other crowd pullers to entertain the crowds at night.

A bonfire was lit at Summit Club attracting both the Nairobi and Kisumu crowds. Not so bothered by Jua Cali’s concert delay, they drunk the night away, cracking jokes and doing all manner of craze before relocating to Taidys.

"We wait for this time of the year when 10-aside is being held here because we are sure to have the best sales for two days," expressed a waiter at the club.

"I came to Nakuru to drink and party. It’s a long weekend and who cares! I will get back to myself next week but for now nimejiwachilia," shouted a drunkard Alexi, a lawyer at a Nairobi firm.

Popular young tycoon

This was the state of most of the patrons at the three-floor Taidys Club, which was full to capacity by 11pm. And as we hit out of the club at 6am, the place was still full.

But it does not always end at a good note.

During the same event last year, two groups had a showdown over a group of girls who had travelled from Nairobi for fun.

The warring side — one led by a popular young tycoon known for his flashy lifestyle and state-of-the-art whips then tracked each other all the way from Nakuru to a Nairobi club where the girls had wanted to party to rock music that Sunday night.

And in the showdown, a fight broke up and guns were drawn leaving every one scampering for safety.

　

a little drama

The police came in and all the guys could say was that they were too intoxicated and their act was as a result of drunkardness.

Another group rammed their car on the roadside along the highway, as the driver was too high while another one lost his cash to prostitutes who had posed as university girls during the 10-Asides after-party drinking spree.

But those are just but isolated cases, which may not stop the fun from going on. Generally, parties are a major thrill, which provide bonding opportunities for the youth, helping them to kill stress and enjoy the life away from the busy Nairobi.

"This is part of domestic tourism. It is encouraging to see people leave the city to other destinations around the country for weekend adventures," says Anastacia, a domestic tourism crusader.

And it is not only rugby that has turned sports into a major attraction for the youth.

Unlike the past, local football matches are now a major sensation where even celebrated artistes are spending their weekends.

"Besides watching and cheering, there is that sense of association and joy that a fan derives by watching their idols live at the stadium. You always feel part of the show," says Samuel, a 21-year-old football fan who supports Mathare United.

"I can’t stand sports. I derive more pleasure from bush parties and camping," says Monica from University of Nairobi who together with her girlfriends spent the long weekend at Naivasha’s Crayfish.

"It’s kind of boring going for a holiday in Mombasa. It gets boring to be on an adventure then find everyone you know from Nairobi there," she adds.

Now, if you are still craving to get to Mombasa for your next outing, or simply burn Sh5000 club hoping in Nairobi from Friday to Sunday, probably, you are just too old school to be helped. The party just shifted to the wild side.