Children hawking, Overcrowded buses, Blaring music on the streets and refuse dumps are some of the signs that you indicate that you are in a third world country. The experience is the same in Most African Nation. This is not to say that there are no beautifully manicured gardens and incredible architectural edifices but the sheer side by side coexistence of these two expressions of life is the wonder you see in Africa.
A lovely plush estate with expensive real estate could be on one side of the road and the other side is a filthy slum. A luxury Rolls Royce or Bentley plying a dilapidated road with potholes. I live in the commercial city of Lagos, themed the centre of excellence in Nigeria, home to some of Africa's richest personalities. Recently I moved from living in Ikotun, a downtown semi-slum-like neighbourhood to Lekki; a reserved, Uptown part of the city of Lagos. As much as I could see the difference between uptown and downtown, I could not help but notice the people and the lives they lead. In the midst of the opulence in the highbrow area, you could see the poor trying to get the attention of the rich, seeking alms, help and any sort of charity.
You could spend up to 3 hours in traffic moving from one side of the city to another. God help you and it is one of the very special occasions when you have to spend up to 5 hours or more in traffic. These type of occasions happen along the Apapa wharf seaport area most times, it could also be that the President of the country is in town, this would mean cordoning off certain access roads, it additionally could be a first Friday and Saturday, which is a religious observation day for some of the biggest Christian church denominations in Lagos.
Above all, it can be really liberating to live in Lagos, Nigeria and observe the tenacity of the people, the doggedness, the spirit of entrepreneurship all over the city, from the little boy hawking on the streets to the CEO seating over a business worth millions of dollars. The laughter and love on the streets, the freedom and the joy of living, the loudness and carefree life of the regular people. The life in the ghettos and the life in the highbrow are quite different but is the same people.
For me, I will recommend you spend some time in the ghettos and downtown parts of Lagos, that is where you will feel the real love and vibe of Lagos. Go to Ajegunle, Surulere, Apapa, get to Ajah and feel the people. Despite the decrepit state of infrastructure and the system, we still love our towns ans cities in Africa.
