Sound, Within Ones Soul
By Hannah Williams
Growing up in the quiet area of Essex, for me this holiday
was a movie unfolding. The music blasting in your ears, police sirens and car
horns echoing from afar; this was just a normal day in the city of Lagos,
Nigeria. Travelling there with family during summer a few years back, I was
filled with excitement to finally experience the culture I had grown up hearing
about. Largest city in Nigeria and also the former capital until 1991, with
Abuja becoming the capital on the 12th December 1991. It has a
diverse and on-growing population.
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Lagos
Surroundings
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This all transformed to a cool breeze of fresh air which slapped us in the face as we landed on the island, surrounded by expensive hotels and huge shopping districts, the view of the beach was what caught my eye- Bar beach.
Bar Beach Island
Whilst embracing the mainland viewings one is able to
witness the borders of Ikoyi shining bright in the rare; the most affluent
neighbourhood in Lagos with a mix of 4* hotels and 2 main estates. We were
lucky enough to pass along the hectic way of Awolowo road (high street filled
with shops & boutiques) quicker than expected.
The extreme ‘hold-up’ forces drivers to leave
cars at bay, loud hooting of horns and the shouting of impatient individuals
yelling at each other through car windows continues to ring in your ears. After
an hour, we finally reached our destination- The National Museum, where history
begins.
Unfortunately, cameras were not allowed inside- such a
shame, as there was so much to see. Fascinated by the many ethnicities that surrounded
in this one museum, surely took me by surprise, I guess this was due to the
fact that Nigeria contains more historic cultures & empires than any other
nation in Africa.
Inside, the attraction of Nigerian art and sculptures leaves
people feeling mesmerised at the historical aspects the platforms set- several
different aspirations built around the information captured.
Once heading back into the market, the continuous
smell of charcoal burning was what flew into my nostrils; and of course I could
not resist but to help myself to a piece of suya (fried spicy chicken), the hot
pepper sizzling on the tip of your tongue has you quickly engulfing a sachet of
ice cold water like never before.
This was the usual procedure in the blazing heat of Lagos;
by this stage any bit of breeze would take you into a deep meditation.
Back to Essex, where quietness reigns.
LAGOS
• Lagos is a port and the most
populous city in Nigeria. It is the second fastest-growing city in Africa and
the seventh in the world. The population of Lagos according to the Lagos State
Government, was 17.5 million. Wikipedia
•
Area: 999.6 km²
• Weather: 26°C, Wind S at 8 mph (13
km/h), 83% Humidity
• Population: 5.195 million (1991)
This was a piece of coursework done for one of my modules at uni (was told we had to publish it on our blog) my first travel article so its not great! Any feedback is more than welcome.
Thanks for reading & have a great weekend guys :)
Hannah x
