My Journey to Nigeria was delightful every step of the way. From Philadelphia, I boarded my overnight British Airways flight to Heathrow airport in London. I've heard about the perks of flying internationally but to have finally experienced them firsthand was wonderful. As I strolled up the aisles in search of my seat I noticed each chair contained a blanket, pillow, and a red plastic pouch. Inside the red pouch were headphones, earplugs, and a toothbrush. I also received two meals while on board. I spent the 5 hour flight sleeping.
I arrived at Heathrow airport at 10:20 am. My connecting flight to Nigeria was scheduled to leave in a little over an hour. Heathrow however is a huge airport. I scrambled through various security checkpoints, flashing my passport constantly... as if I was part of law enforcement. I stand in a huge line to rescan my bag...remove my shoes... yada yada. I'm a bit nervous of missing my flight. At this point I have about 25 minutes before my plane leaves. I finally go through security and run towards my gate. I'm relieved when I see a crowd of Nigerians waiting to board. So...my flight to London was about 92% Caucasian. My flight to Nigeria was 98% Nigerian. Ive never been on a flight where the majority were people of color until now. Once everyone found their seats we were on our way. How lucky was I to get a window seat.*cue Erykah Badu please...thanks*
I flew over the Mediterranean sea and smiled. The greenish blue water with a lovely glow, flashed through the cloud filled sky. I wanted to touch it and decided at that moment....one day... this beautiful sea and I would meet. My first view of Africa was the lovely Sahara Desert. The reddish gold sand took my breath away. There were these funky waves throughout the sand that looked as if God scribbled them with His finger in boredom. What a mighty God to make masterpieces out of sand and...dust. I thank Him immediately and shed a tear or two. The days, weeks, months leading up to this moment have been rough..but what do the church folks say? ..His grace is sufficient...that's it... Amen.
So we leave the desert and the next aerial view is greenery. This green may exist in a crayola box somewhere but "African Greenery green" is a sight to see. Maybe it has something to do with the large mass of trees standing shoulder to shoulder, competing for the Sunlight...maybe it was the rain making all the limbs of these trees shine...maybe it was my own jet lagged pupils...but I've never seen green like this. The "African Greenery green" stretched for hundreds of miles and continued as we entered Nigeria.
I forget exactly when I met my Nigerian friend that I called my lil sis, but I know it involved student government board in college. One thing that I admired about 'sister' ( she will be called this in all future posts) was the way she carried herself. She didn't speak much but commanded attention anyway. She was a very regal and powerful young lady. After hanging out a few times, I realized sister was also extremely intelligent. This girl studied biochemistry, designed websites for clients, and created a her own nonprofit foundation.
Sister told me all about Nigeria. We'd talk for hours about differences and similarities between our cultures and ways to bring our cultures together. We'd also talk about me visiting Nigeria. She'd say that all I needed was the ticket and that I would be taken care of. I kept telling her that I was coming and 9 years later...I have finally arrived.
When I land in Nigeria, I have a series of tasks to accomplish that seemed pretty easy. Go through customs...call sister...get your luggage...and exchange some of your currency. Welp... it wasn't as easy as I thought, I felt like a preschool aged child once I stepped foot in the very busy high speed Murtala Airport. Thank God I befriended my neighbor on the plane ( a fellow nigerian) who was nice enough to help the 4 year old American girl. Toby was a middle aged Nigerian who lived in the Netherlands and was visiting family for a few weeks.
The line through customs was extremely long. When I reached a customs agent, I was told that I must fill out a form and jump back in the line. After getting through customs, I went to claim my bags. Toby was able to help me grab one bag, but an hour later, we realize that my second bag had not made it to Nigeria yet (smh).
The currency exchange was pretty harmless. The official exchange rate was 167 naira for each dollar. The rate of the woman exchanging the money was 165. Toby asked the woman why her rate was lower than the official rate? She responded "it just changed". Its hard for four year olds to call others out on their bullshit so I just handed Toby 20 bucks to exchange. In return I received 3,300 Naira! BALLIN!!!
Ok...I must call sister...but my phone is dead and Toby's phone from the Netherlands is not allowing the call to go through. Toby suggests that I pay one of the many guys soliciting all types of services, to use their phone. I choose "Random Nigerian dude" and ask to use his phone.... he doesn't understand what I'm saying...not because he doesn't understand English...just not this Americanized English laced with urban additives that I was speaking. Toby steps in to help the four year old and "Random Nigerian dude" hands me his phone. I call sister and pay Random Nigerian dude 100 naira. He looks at me like I'm crazy and at this moment I realize I'm not " ballin" as I thought. I give him an extra 100 naira" and walk out to meet sister.
We screamed and gave each other a big hug. We joked about how we both look the same, even though its been five years.Sister brought her mother to meet me as well. Her mother gives me a warm smile and says "welcome" . I felt deep in my gut, the most genuine welcome I've ever received. I am beyond excited! We sleep at a guesthouse for the evening and I, for the first time, close my eyes in Africa. I Thank God for traveling mercies and for scribbling me out of dust and I fall asleep...
I can see you publishing this blog.
ReplyDeleteThanks Genius...I appreciate that and thanks for reading
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