It’s almost a month since I landed in Djibouti, around late evening on November 5, 2019.

Exhausted and sleep deprived, I entered the smallest international airport I have ever been to. With a printed copy of the e-visa, I made my way to clear border control. It was not until the immigration officer stamped my passport, did I believe that the e-visa issued to me was in-fact authentic. The document e-mailed to me from an application made on a website which preferred to have images of fishes over essential information, didn’t even have the type of visa printed on it. Delighted that the visa was no con, I moved onto collect my bags weighing over 85 kgs.

Unable to find any trolley or functional WiFi at the airport, I hired a porter to help me with the bags and load them onto the taxi waiting for me outside. Inside the cab, was my first ever encounter with the oh so famous, Khat (a local stimulant, legal and freely available in this part of Africa). Green leaves falling out of a plastic bag as the driver continued to pluck and chew on them while I soaked in what was about to come.

As I passed the streets of Djibouti that night, I glanced at the city I was to call home for the next two years. Dim streetlights at some junctions, with none at others, I was reminded of a quaint Indian country side landscape, without any vegetation. Soon, I had my first glimpse of the sea at Siesta Beach. The beach had people exercising, playing volley ball and some sitting in circles khat’ing (a verb in Djibouti).

Fortunately, the guesthouse I arrived at had my room well-made and the guardian take care of my luggage. After a shower and connecting to the WiFi (thereby informing my parents of my safe arrival) at the guesthouse, I finally slept like a baby for over 10 hours straight.

From then on, to date, here are some of my first impressions of living the expat life in Djibouti,

1. Not a single day goes by in Djbouti winters (the equivalent of summers, in most parts of the world), when you are not reminded by everyone you meet, about how hot it gets in the summers.
2. Djibouti showers have no geysers. The water heats automatically all year round, with the tank placed outdoors. So, there’s no scope for a hot water shower at early mornings or late nights to satiate fatigue in Djiboutian winters (as the weather gets better, showers get tougher).
3. Tap water in summers is so hot, that one is advised to fill buckets the night before, in hopes of it cooling down by the time its morning.
4. Djibouti sells no fresh milk. After the President’s nephew started a milk company in the country (called Douda), they banned all import of any other brand of milk. Consequently, the only milk available in the country is powdered or Vegan Oat/Rice/Almond milk imported from different parts of Europe.
5. Djibouti Telecom is a state owned monopoly on telecom in Djibouti. As they had no new sim registrations the week I arrived, it took me a little over a week to buy a sim card.
6. Foreign exchange in Djibouti is handled by women on the roadside in the city center (equivalent of a ‘forex mandi’ of Djibouti). While I hesitated getting my Euros exchanged for Djiboutian Francs on the pavement, the women exchanging money sit with thousands of Dollars on them, without any inhibitions.
7. Djibouti was among the last French colonies to attain Independence in 1977. The French influence is still very strong – French Military base, supermarkets, cafes, restaurants, people and the official language.
8. You meet people (mostly employees from UN Agencies) travelling to Yemen, all the time. As an entry point to and fro Yemen, tales from Aden and Saana’a come to life over dinners.
9. On that note, met a Phillipino guy, escaped from Saana’a who showed me videos of him carrying a bazooka on his shoulder and dancing with AK 47s at a Yemeni wedding.
10. Djibouti is expensive – 10 pieces of strawberries cost INR 1050 and tomatoes, INR 800 a kg. This is because the Djiboutian land does not favour any cultivation. Everything sold here is imported from France, Ethiopia, China and everywhere else.
11. Yet, got introduced to the place selling the cheapest booze in the city and an inexpensive veg meal at the backyard of an Ethiopian orthodox church.
12. Went clubbing on my first weekend in Djibouti. Danced to Bollywood at the Menelik.
13. The expat community in Djibouti is big and comprises of people working in diverse international organizations and UN Agencies. While some of them work for Djiboutians, alot of the work done here is for neighboring countries including Yemen.
14. Nearly escaped a snake on the pavement of my office building, at my first week at work. Was asked to keep office windows closed thereafter (the presence of snakes in the office compound was no news to my colleagues).
15. At work I greet half my colleagues with a Bonjour, and the other half with a Salaam Alaikum.
16. Djibouti has gorgeous evening skies;
17. And many cats.
18. Djib’tonic, a fortnightly event for expats to get together, has been helpful to socialize with people from all over and make friends in this country.
19. Since I am home from work before 17h, I get to watch the sunset on calm Djiboutian waters, everyday. This has been an amazing fix even on the worst of days.
20. You learn to plan your meals not only for the day, but a week in advance as fresh produce in groceries comes to Djibouti only on Mondays and Fridays.
21. No Djiboutian French soirée is over without pointing out at the local inefficiency, affection for khat, St. George (local beer from Ethiopia) and the weather of course.
22. Tomorrow, is going to be my second working Sunday. I think my spoken French has improved already (my colleagues speak close to no English).
23. I am soon taking Arabic lessons. The more I hear the words khaalas (over), khursi (chair), salamat (all’s well), bandook (gun) the stronger my motivation to do well at the language gets – its fancy Hindi!
24. Did I mention the people are awesome, though? More on that, in another post.

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