Traveling is that one thing I enjoy doing, but then due to having so much on my plate, I don’t get to do it as often as I would like. I’m a huge fan of traveling, and as a matter of fact, traveling more is one of the resolutions I set for myself this year. Yeah, I’m yet to start working on it, but I know that it’s only a matter of time. Once certain things I’m working on fall into place, I should have more time to travel freely.
Traveling has the ability to free a person. When you travel, you get smarter and more intelligent because you realize that the world is actually bigger than your small corner of Earth, and there is so much to learn and know. When you travel, you learn about more cultures, you mingle with more people, and you try out more delicacies. That way, you might be able to understand why people in a certain demographic do things a certain way. Because in reality, not everything can be gotten online. Some things can only be experienced.
So, when was the last time I traveled? I think that would be when I left Owerri and moved to Lagos. This happened sometime in December, I think. I was done with school, I had spent the last three-ish years of my life in Owerri, and I needed to change my environment before I lost my mind. So, I worked towards that and I did that. Before that, I didn’t travel much, but I did remember taking trips to Aba, Awka, and one time I went to Enugu.
I didn’t stay in any of those places for long though, only a few days tops, and I wasn’t there for fun or enjoyment. I had pretty serious reasons to be there. However, in the end, it all worked out. So, back to my story… my trip back to Lagos was something that I was looking forward to because I had not seen my family for a pretty long time. I needed that trip to happen, and I just needed to relax and unwind from all the stress that school and the school environment put me through.
My flight out of Owerri was without any event, although some bike men at Sam Mbakwe airport tried to con me by carrying my load for me, but I was smarter than them. Getting to the checkout, the first stumbling block I saw was that the airline didn’t have airtime. They said that data had finished and as such, their access to the internet was revoked. This meant that they couldn’t process our tickets. Also, none of them were willing to use their private data because they had done it before, and when it got exhausted, they were never refunded.
So, we had to wait for a few minutes until the manager subscribed for some data (I think). Getting my luggage through the carousel for scanning, I met another airport staff that was asking (more like demanding) me for tip. Once my ticket got cleared and my box was taken to the cargo, the airline staff who helped me asked me yet again for tip. These guys wanted to use tip to finish me.
But then, when I got to the waiting lounge, I found out that there was an even more exclusive lounge for VIPs. I guess that was where politicians and celebrities waited for their flights while the rest of us commoners chilled in the general area. I also knew that it would be a bit expensive. Didn’t care though, I’m thinking about checking it out the next time I’m traveling and see what’s actually VIP about it.
When the time for our flight came, we all boarded without any hitch. But for some reason, the air host kept insisting that we turn off our phones. Not put them on airplane mode, but turn them off. I’ve still not understood why this is always so important. I don’t really get the science behind it. Anyway, they went through the processes and soon, we were in the air and on our way to Lagos.
The touchdown was 45 minutes to an hour later at Ikeja, where I took an Uber home. And just like that, I left Owerri and was in Lagos, where I’ve been ever since. It’s only been a couple of months, but I’m already getting antsy and soon, I’ll have to travel again. For now, I’m yet to make a decision, but I know that I’ll be doing some serious traveling later this year. And I expect to enjoy it to the fullest.
We’ll see how it goes.
