KWELI JANA KULIENDAJE: 40 BETTER ways to spend your weekend.

Has your life started feeling like a re-run of a “Busted” by Ciku: It was once so hilarious when you heard it. Then you played it for about ten different friends. Each time still finding it so hilarious. Then soon enough other friends started playing it back for you. But because you don’t wanna kill their joy and cut them off with a “I heard that about three weeks ago”, you pretend to laugh as hard as you did the first time. But its just not funny, or new or fresh anymore. Case of the same-s**t-different-day syndrome.

Well now is the time to take chances. Try something new, Spice up your weekends. Here is a list of fun things to do that we at Ghafla have set out to do over the next couple of weekends. Join us! share it with your friends, make a to-do-list, and let us know how you’re doing!

1. Go for a hike at the closest big outdoor space to you. Get lots of friends, on a nice warm saturday, wear shorts (the tinier the better for the ladies), white vests and sneaks and get hiking! (Check out the weather forecast in advance, avoid disappointment.)

2. Ride your bike somewhere. (borrow a friends, rent one, do it as a date, do it alone…..)

3. Have a sophisticated and chic afternoon drink: Dress in ALL white (not off-white, not striped, not polka dots, ALL WHITE) on a hot day and go have some drinks at an outdoors kind of place. (Do this with a couple friends. Don’t forget to pull out the sunglasses for extra oomph!)

4. Be a bartender at your home ‘casino’: Imagine you are an actual bartender for the day, make some different cocktails, serve in variety glasses. Call friends over and play (preferably with actual bets) card games/board games.

5. Go to a festival (There are LOTS happening right now. Case in point Aug 31-2 at the Rift.)

6. Be a music critic for the day: Tell all your friends to make mixed CDs of their favourite underground songs, and get together one day, (with drinks or food) and listen to all of them together while chilling. (Check the lyrics on Kenyan Lyrics, or submit them if you want to).

7. Have a REAL blankets and wine date. Get a blanket (the Maasai ones work really well), two good bottles of wine, two glasses, two comfy cushions/pillows a good sized bag, get to the closest green grass to you, set up wherever you can and sip some wine.

8. Two words: Roof-top. Party.

9.Have a pool party at a house that has no pool: How? Squirt-guns(Uhuru highway for 50-100bob), water balloons, a sprinkler. All you need is a little space to get wet and fun friends. This has to start early though. And warn everyone to come in their swimsuit…. Cuz EVERYONE will be getting wet.

10. Have a random theme night with your friends. eg. Dress like characters in the Godfather, and go for dinner together to somewhere really casual/laid back. Stay in character and act like its perfectly normal that you guys are in the Mafia and look like you just walked out of the 1930’s. Eat, and then just head on out.

11. Take a roadtrip/long drive with your friends. Not necessarily to stay over-night. Sometimes the best fun is had in the car with the radio loud, sipping from bottles which no-one is really sure what’s in them. (Suggestion: head towards Limuru sides. You won’t go too far, and chances are at lunch time you’ll be in the middle of nowhere surrounded by grass far as the eye can see. Park, get out, turn the music up, sit on the grass, on the car bonnet, eat lunch, sip drinks, get your shades on, play games in the grass, take pictures, attempt to ride the closest cow-LOL- roll down a big hill like a kid, whatever… Then head home before it gets too dark.)

12. Hellsgate. Need I say more? Hiking, biking, picnics, tours…. But don’t dress down. Comfortable shoes, but stylish clothes. Carry your phones: PICS PICS PICS and dont forget to tweet, facebook, and instagram.

13. Make boozy popsicles/icecubes, jello shots or home-made sangria. Of course then enjoy them?!

14. Get all your friends over, make enough popcorn and watch a SUPER LAME movie together.

15. Plan an outdoor date. (They are so much more fun, so much cheaper and guaranteed to lead you to better places than a club.)

16. Get the ingredients to some exotic recipe you picked of the internet, and try to make it from your own kitchen as perfectly as you can. (Guys this is a perfect date idea. Girls this could also work alone or with your girl. Fun if you get it right, funny if you mess it up horribly! Just have some ice cream in the fridge or cookies just in case.)

17. Try your hand out at finger-painting/graffitti: Paint + friends + paper always ends up in fun. Just make sure everyone comes dressed appropriately, AND don’t spill paint in anyone’s hair(it will take 3-4 weeks to come out)

18. Go bowling/put-put golfing (or the real golfing too, if that’s what you’re about!)

19. Organise your closet: Give all your old clothes and shoes (that are in good condition) to a younger relative, to a needy friend or to anyone in need.

20. Kitengela. Rolf’s Place, Paintballing. THAT IS ALL.

21. Dress up real nice (guys put THAT oufit on, not jeans, girls wear a lovely floaty dress/super bright colours). Pop into the ‘fancy’ side of town on a Sunday and take random photos around town with your friends. Get a good camera, and don’t be scared to go H.A.M. Think magazine fashion editorial pictures. (One of these pics will probably end up as your facebook cover picture!)

22. Blue Post. Thika. Chania Falls. Make sure you go all the way down on the wood bridge. Carry your camera.

23. Clean your room (be honest, you KNOW it needs a whole day!!)

24. Volunteer at the closest place you can that takes volunteers.

25. (For Nairobians) Go to the Nairobi National Museum. The Museum more so than the snake park. (latter gets a bit crowded) You’ll be surprised how fun it is as an adult! (Not anything like the weird school trip I vaguely remember from class three….)

26. Make a delicious home-made burger (with all those random fillings you like but will never get at steers), get an ice-cold beer. Partake. This will probably go down as one of your most legendary meals.

27. Read an interesting book… No wait. First BUY an interesting book, and go ahead. READ it.

28. Become a youtube star: Make a video with you and friends in it. (Could be a short movie, miming to your favourite new song Camp Mulla song, pranking everyone, reviving Makmende… Any fun ideas) Post it on youtube. (And five years later your reactions to your younger selves will be such joyful shame!)

29. Phone to silent, TV off, laptop away, alone. Calm down. Now, meditate. (Try it. It’s not that easy, takes some SERIOUS effort.) Spend an entire day completely technology free. Can you?

30. Have a home movie marathon for a chronology of movies. (ALL Batman movies ever made. ALL James Bond movies. ALL Lord of the Rings. ALL Harry Potters. ALL Twilight etc.) See how far you will make it, how much you remember watching, how the movies flowed into each other, and how stuff changed/improved over time.

31. Try and watch a classic movie from back in the Black and White days from start to end. Use it to look intelligent next time you are speaking to someone. “I was watching Casablanca three days ago……”

32. Got a laptop? Internet? Get on chat-roulette with your friends. (Two or three people is best) Do something naughty *wink* Catch up with some friends on Skype.

33. Loisaba. Laikipia. QUAD BIKES. 

34. (Perfect for during an out of town trip or in someone’s garden) On a clear night lay down and watch the stars. Try to find constellations-google is your friend- that are out that night. Discuss the meaning of life, and lots of deep things.

35.Watch a sunrise or a sunset from a beautiful view. (You’d be shocked how few people have actually done this). Try Uhuru park, there is this hight point where you can see the ENTIRE skyline of Nairobi’s CBD. One word. AMAZING.

36. GP-karting!

37. Attend or do your own spoken word with friends.

38. Take a FAT book with you to a restaurant. Order just a drink: a coffee, or a milkshake, or a juice and be one of those bookworms you always see reading a book at a coffee shop!!!

39. Watch a Bruce Lee movie AND a Jackie Chan movie in one day. COMPARE.DO IT. SERIOUSLY.

40. Try and meet a new person, and try to start a REAL friendship (sober, during the day, well dressed…. You’d be surprised how few people want to make friends in these conditions!!!! Something about daylight makes friend-making reeeeeal creepy!)

Steady, set…… GET GOING!!!!!!