You have heard all the unflattering tales about Somalia.
Al Shabaab insurgents lurking at every corner. Hunger and poverty everywhere you look. Chaos in the city and chaos in the village. Some ungovernable land. Only that much of these tales are greatly exaggerated.
Don’t get me wrong though.
Some parts of Somalia, especially those bordering Kenya, can be insecure and must be approached with utmost caution.
Yet, as I found out, there are parts of Somalia that are as tranquil as the sandy beaches of Kenya’s south Coast and where people extend courtesy to strangers.
Last week, I embarked on a journey to the unknown. When I mentioned to one of my friends that I intended to visit Somalia, he tried to dissuade me from what he termed as a “suicide mission”.
He thought I was tempting fate by putting my life on the line through the visit. True, I had my apprehensions too but I was determined to honour an invite from Abdalla, an engineer based in Garowe, the principal city in the semi-autonomous state of Puntland.
Still, going to any part of Somalia, more so the semi-autonomous regions to the north can be tricky and requires maneuvering a bureaucratic labyrinth in Nairobi before heading to Somalia as a visitor.
First, I was not aware that a visa was needed to travel to the country. I had thought that we were just good neighbours despite the ‘small’ problem of Somali insurgents who think Kenya is a fertile playground in their proxy wars with Uncle Sam.
I toyed with the idea of showing up at the airport and boarding a plane and worrying about the visa on the other side of the border.
I checked with Abdalla about a visa. His response was categorical “Yes, you need one before you come here,” he told me in that Somali accent we so much like to make fun of. “You can get problems if they find out you were trying to sneak in here without one.”
The real problem was not so much about getting into Somalia without a visa, but the “they” part and what such ones would do to me.
“But getting the visa is straightforward,” he reassured me.
Under strict instructions from Abdalla, I took a matatu to Eastleigh for the visa application process. yes, Eastleigh.
Eastleigh is more than a big marketplace with good bargains. It is also a hub for all information about Somalia, visas and tours included. From Somalia, Abdalla directed me to a tour company where I could not only apply for the visa but also procure the air tickets.
However, my Kenyan fixer was unavailable. Not a problem for Abdalla who directed me to yet another office in the sprawling neighbourhood.
Another 10 minutes’ walk and I met an affable gentleman who took me through the motions of obtaining a Somali visa. The office liaises with the government of Somalia in assisting travellers procure the vital documents.
I gave ‘Moha’ a scanned copy of my travel document and $150 for the visa fees. Having to pay Sh20,000 for a Somali visa was an eye opener. The cost of procuring an American visa is within the same range despite the two countries being as different as day and night.
“And what about the flight?” I asked Moha. “No problem,” he responded. “We have many operators to Somalia and back. Just pick one.”
That was yet another revelation. Contrary to what many of us think, there are scheduled flights operating from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, some on a daily basis and others on selected days of the week.
To get to Garowe, located to the northeast of Somalia, I had the option of stopping over in Mogadishu or flying directly to Garowe.
“Be ready to answer many questions in Mogadishu,” he told me. I don’t like many questions so I opted to take the direct flight to Garowe that operates on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
“And do you need a return ticket?” Moha’s question startled me. Why would he ask whether I needed a return ticket? How on earth was I supposed to get back to Kenya?
“Some people opt to fly out with one carrier and return via another on the day of their choice, rather than when a specific airline determines that you should fly.” That was another helpful piece of information.
I chose to use the same airline for the return trip. It is called Freedom, an airline that operates a good number of CRJ 200 regional jets to Somalia. By 2am Wednesday morning, and with foggy eyes, I found myself sitting on a lonely bench at JKIA’s Terminal 2. Most flights to Somalia begin their journeys here.
An equally tired airport attendant was surprised to see me at that early hour since the flight was departing at 6.30am, over four hours later. That side of the airport can be lonely, a stark contrast to the “regular” side most travellers are used to.
An hour later and more people started streaming in, their heavy merchandise on tow. By 4.30 am, the terminal had come to life. And as the first rays of the rising sun pierced through the clouds, I took my position on Seat 5C for the 2.5-hour journey to Garowe’s General Mohamed Abshir International Airport. How did things pan out once the wheels touched the tarmac? Tune in next week.