by Yemisi Adegoke (@briticoyemo)
There’s no place like Lagos.
It’s so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of it all. The constant ‘go,’ the speed, the intensity. it’s addictive. So many people, so many places, so many things, so little time. You can get carried away with it. Before you know it everywhere else almost seems less. Less interesting, less fun, less ‘real,’ less intense.
But for Lagos newbies all that wonderful intensity can get a little much and there’s a real need to take a time out and escape.
Someday I really hope to visit a lot of places within the country, one of the most striking things about Nigeria in my opinion is its vastness, how each place differs, the richness of each culture, the striking change of landscape.
Unfortunately as it stands, traveling around Nigeria probably isn’t the safest thing to do. Being a journalist however, sometimes means going to places/doing things out of your comfort zone. I really do commend the brave journalists, local and foreign who have been responsible for some incredible reporting during this current onslaught of violence. Some of them risking their lives in order to bring out the truth. It’s an inspiration.
In my short time here, I’ve been to Abuja, a lot of states in the south-west, Bayelsa and Benue, but my most interesting trip thus far has to have been my (short) visit to Kano.
A fellow journalist (and dear friend) and I took the Lagos-Kano passenger train as part of a story we were doing on its reintroduction.
Typically the trip didn’t start smoothly, we were delayed and given the wrong tickets. We had orginally booked a shared sleeper car, equipped with a/c and a private toilet. However, we were given first class seated tickets. Doesn’t sound too bad until you picture yourself sitting in a chair for over 30 hours with no air conditioning.
We were told that the sleepers were sold out and we’d have to wait until next week. We held out until Ibadan until the overwhelming heat and leg/back ache started to kick in and we decided to wait until next week, where thankfully we managed to secure one.
Armed with wet wipes, laptops, dictaphones and cameras we were good to go.
We made our way through the train interviewing everyone we came across, from 1st class passengers to third, from the driver, to the armed guards. Hearing their thoughts on the train, the state of Nigeria, the world. Seeing the landscape change, the type of people , kids waving as we rode by, the breakdowns, the refuelling, the random stops in the middle of the bush, the fights in the restaurant car, the laughter, the other journalists on board, how packed it was, how many people loved the train, how many people hated it.
It was an experience like no other but 30 plus hours is a long time and the relief I felt pulling into Kano terminus was immense. It didn’t take long for me to start craving the hustle and bustle of Lagos though, because really, there’s no place like it.