EKO 4 SHOW!
I left my house at about a few minutes to 8am on Monday morning. I was headed towards Yaba, Unilag to be precise. I was going to get some documents for NYSC so I decided to leave super early. You can almost never get anything you need at once in Unilag...there’s always a queue but that’s by the way. Living in Lagos is an extreme sport. I know this and I don’t even live in Lagos...although I schooled there. I live at the outskirts of Ota in Ogun State which is basically at the border of Lagos State so let’s just say we’re all doing the exercise together.
There’s the problem of being under a lot of stress, both physical and emotional, when you decide to step out of your house as a Lagosian because of traffic jam and the likes but these commercial drivers do not rate us. In fact, you don’t need to leave your house to experience any stress. Just be a Lagosian and the stress is moving in with bags and baggages. Let’s even talk about leaving your house for now because at least when you’re inside you can still manage the stress.
I left my house, flagged down a bike to take me to the bus stop and the rider stopped. I was on the bike and he had already moved a bit when his phone started ringing. He stopped the bike and said “ma binu o...mo fe sare pick call yi”. I was in a hurry because I initially planned on leaving the house by like 7am but it was almost 8. Even at that, I didn’t complain because I felt a few seconds or a minute won’t hurt. Sometimes I even feel like when I get delayed, God doesn’t want me going through some things on my journey.
So “mo ma pe yin pada” wasn’t going to be a big deal at all. Except there was no “mo ma pe yin pada” o! This man legit stopped the bike to have a full conversation. He was laughing and talking loudly with excitement like I wasn’t there. He went on until I shook the bike a little to bring him back to Mother Earth. That was when he apologized and moved.
There are drivers doing whatever they want...completely ignoring their passengers as well as those who drive faulty buses while putting the lives of people at risk. There are people exchanging blows on the express and crazy people in the bus riding with you...the whole nine yards. You’ll see everything in Lagos...everything!
Have you ever entered buses with no brakes or the ones where the conductors have to hold the door to stop it from falling? Nigeria is a lot of work guys! The roads are a whole other topic. Try attempting to get your make up done in the car. Very unrealistic! As in impossicant o !
Just remember to have paracetamol in your bags so you don’t die of a headache. There’s the saying that goes “if you can survive in Lagos, you can survive anywhere”. Through struggling to get on a bus and getting their cloth torn, Lagosians don’t slack. They keep going!
I’m eager to hear your own Lagos stories guys...so talk to me in the comment section. Don’t forget to share too ❤️.
4 Comments
Omooo that’s the struggle! And me I kuku claim Lagos even though I stay in ota cause we’ve entered Lagos finish sef.
ReplyDeleteOne day I boarded a bus to Oyingbo,I heard Davido's songs repeatedly but I was enjoying the book I was reading so I didn't care much about the source of the music, when I finally looked up,the inner mirror (that one up that drivers look into before reversing) was a mini tv, it was music videos that were being played not even audio. if he converted that mirror into a mini tv then he doesn't use the mirror at all. I have seen vehicles that have side mirror covers but no glass, the one that baffles me most is removing the key from ignition while the vehicle is in motion.
ReplyDeleteKudos to the drivers that buy up to 5k fuel at a go, others just carry a keg about and the moment fuel dries up, the conductor disappears to 'go buy fuel' even if there's no pet station in sight, I have learnt not to wait for conductors anymore.
Lastly, let me mention the drivers that drop you before your stop because there's traffic and they want to turn quickly to pick up more passengers that they can abandon again.
Lol, what face of lagos have i not seen, na God dey keep us o. Lagos currently has me taking a journey before I actually take the journey, I legit spend time to plan how I get to my destination in my head before I move an inch and even at that Lagos promises to surprise you
ReplyDeleteI entered a bus one day and the driver had weed on his dashboard and the conductor was also smelling like it but I told myself not to worry because it was just a short distance. Less than 2 minutes into the journey the bus ran into another car because the driver did not want to stop at the traffic light and also tried to flee the scene of the accident. It was a crazy experience. That day confirmed just how crazy Lagos is for me.
ReplyDelete