I’ve been tying to organise my page for ages and though I’m not too bad with computers, its taken ages for me to get the hang of navigating around my page,the tagging, categorizing etc etc…but anyhow,the good news is that i’ve learnt, improvised and now i’m implementing (just heard that…sounds good right?). So I’m gonna divide my blog into different pages according to categories..the page on cardiff is already gone so cant do nothin about that, but let me just take advantage of this opportunity to welcome you to my fondest page….the heart of Africa page; where i will gladly talk about my country Nigeria (oh that great country…i refuse to elaborate right now). I will share my dreams for my country, my views on current affairs and any solutions i might have (doubt that) for the country’s development, you will most likely know more about the country by the time i’m done than you’ld get to know from the media because, this is unbiased (come on..its me…u trust my judgement right?). So welcome….to Nigeria…the heart of Africa.
Sweet home a la…..Lagos!
Ok guys, I’ve got a problem, i said i was gonna organise my page into different categories dint i? well, i did that n now i just realised that each page is just a page! you cant write new posts or anything so though it looks like the post above and this were done on the same day…….there’s actually weeks in between them!!!!
Oh boy, well, i wont let that stop me, have a lot to say..and i must say (gba!).
Am I the only blogger afflicted by the ‘unwilligness to write’ condition? never heard of such condition right? well,thats because i just made it up…so dont go googling it. Its a term i coined for a condition where one wants to write but cant seem to get yourself to do so for various reasons….so the ideas just stay in your head (or sometimes evaporate) for days/weeks until you finally get yourself in the mood to write again. Ofcourse this condition has a more common term which you’re familiar with..its called LAZINESS!!! I wont elaborate on my attitude any further cos that would amount to spilling more beans than you guys are entitled to hear.
Haven’t you just been loving the english weather lately? oh it reminds me so much of home but there are some differences. The Nigerian weather is hyper consistent, when the sun is shining you’ll know very well that the sun is definitely shining cos you’ll feel it and when its raining….oh my God!!! you do not want to caught outside during one of the heavy showers in Lagos. I always laugh whenever i listen to the BBC weather channel and they go…..”we’ll have some thundery spells tomorrow and the chance of heavy rain”. Heavy rain? I’ve been in these city during these ‘heavy rain’ and my clothes have never for once been so wet that i could feel it cling to my skin! When rain beats you in Nigeria (yes…it beats you cos you’ll feel it)….you’ll be soaked to your pants men! Its funny i should remember this now cos when i was home i used to whine about not being able to wear my jeans and whites around (cos i like my jeans long) and its gonna definitely get wet and dirty…to make matters worse, i live in lekki…aptly called Eti-Osa ( lake side) Local government cos of the proximity to the lagoon so you can imagine our predicament (especially f you dont have a car, which i dint), cople that with poor drainage and you have a near flood in your hands.
I remember having to waddle in the water lots of times with my jeans rolled way above my ankle and my shoes in one hand while my bag will be in the other. Its not easy to be a babe in lagos! Imagine after going thru that..i get to the dry part of the area…buy pure water(some form of bottled water but its not in a bottle..they’re actually in sealed nylons!), rinse my feet/leg depending on the level of the water, roll down my jeans, straighten it well, check my make up, hail an okada and hit the town! sound depressing? but it was mad fun.
Back to the english weather, I dont know what i’ve got for the sun cos i’m a Leo but how good my day turns out seems to be dependent on the appearance of sunshine through my window pane. If i wake up to sunlight streaming through…oh its gonna be a lovely day but when i wake up and i’m not even sure if its morning yet cos its still dark…..then its probably not a good day to try to get funny with me. No sunshine, no nice day! 
Maybe its cos im used to the sun shining consistently in Nigeria. The sun doesn’t show its face briefly and then dissappear behind a pack of thick clouds every now and then like its playing hide and seek, it doesnt make you feel all sticky when the temperature is just 25 degrees….gosh we go as high as 30 atimes and while you might feel hot,its a different kind of hot. The kind of hot that you probably wont notice unless you’re in a danfo (thats what we call buses in lagos) and thats obviously why we have the good old okada (motorcycles). I miss okada like crazy men…..i flew (i like to call it flying cos literally, thats what they do)those things around every corner of lagos….if you live in Victoria Island or lekki which is where i live…..then you’ll appreciate the phenomenon called okada.
waiting for passengers
Okada’s can be wreckless I know and the number of accidents attributed to those guys alone will attest to that..but who can deny that they’re priceless in lagos? If i who gets easily paranoid can let my hair down and i mean really let my hair down to take an okada….then the Lord is your strenght. I always take care to warn them though before climbing on not to speed else they wont get paid, next i speak a lil of my hard learned hausa to whichever one is from the north (that always gets them on good terms with you and they do whatever you bid happily ever after). Imagine the joy of cruising through the never ending traffic of lekki, Victoria Island or surulere and the cool lagoon breeze blowing your face? ah….heaven (i’m a juvenile…but dont i know it!).
okadas doing their thing!!!!
Its funny how you remember these sort of things and tend to appreciate them when you dont have them anymore….i’ld give anything to be able to hear the sound of thunder right now even though it gave me the creeps back then and would i be crazy to say that i actually miss seeing proper lightening? I miss feeling the rain hit your skin in thick strokes (i think they were usually slanting) and being able to taste the water…..so soothing. I remember how the water collects in bowls lying around and wonder if the rain here would even fill a wash hand basin back home. All i can say is that its a good thing that everyone’s got access to water here…..whatever would they do if there wasnt enought water to go around? some families survive on rain water collected in buckets for weeks in Nigeria!!! hardknock life you’ll say? but these are the kind of things that make us strong,resilient and more appreciating of whatever life has to offer……cos when u see a typical Nigerian in a situation you’ll classify as suffering……he will most likely still be smiling, we’re the worlds most happy people!
