The first time I heard of tourists flooding in from all over the world to Nigeria,it struck me as a surprise. The 10 year old me pursed my lips and furrowed my eyebrows in unbelief and I digested the information with a rebuttal and even after asking my mum a myriad of questions, all the answers met an impenetrable wall of indifference. I wasn't going to let go of my vista on 'bland Nigeria' so easily.As time went by, social studies opened my eyes to the endless possibilities and actual existence of places that makes one's jaw drop here in NIGERIA. It piqued my interest and as the inquisitive girl I was,I took it on myself to research and I've been amazed. Nigeria is blessed with many attractive places and truly, every state has their wonders but I'll be narrowing it down to the ones with the uttermost value in my hierarchy of interest.
CALABAR
I honestly do not understand my obsession with Calabar, I've longed for a trip there for as long as I can remember. I love their carnivals, the way they play with colours, their names, delicacies and just everything. Calabar never runs out of charming and picturesque places but a place I'm very much fixed on is the Agbokim Waterfall located at Crossriver. Now,I have a huge thing for waterfalls and the Agbokim Waterfall is breathtaking.
'It is a collection of seven cascades rushing over a cliff and creating an impressive seven-part waterfall'
I also read that the waterfall produces blends of colours during the rainy season, sounds like magic to me, like an excerpt from a fairytale. Although I'm a little water shy, I'm definitely making an exception for this place (a good way to die,lol).
ENUGU
I love Enugu. I was originally drawn to it because of how the name originated, 'hill top', very succinct and many of my favorite Nigerian authors hail from there. I also find their Mmanwu masquerade festival really intriguing, not that I have any plan to participate because I'll be looking in from the outside馃槀, masquerades aren't always friendly.
A place I'd really love to visit is the Awhum Cave. It is tranquil (a little creepy if you ask me) and it has an atmosphere of serenity that I'll very much appreciate and a spiritual ambiance. It houses a crucifix of Jesus Christ and religious fanatics go there for spiritual practices. Another distinct quality of this place is it's waterfall and beautiful rocks. Aside taking tons of pictures when I finally visit,I plan to run around the cave with outstretched arms and taste the air on my lips. My roommate visited there last Christmas and took pictures that still oppresses me. While she was discribing the cave paths,I couldn't help seeing a refuge during a Zombie Apocalypse,lol.
I grew up having this vague concept that such places only exist on the southern part of Nigeria or anywhere outside where I live (Kaduna) thus taking for granted my proximity to the Matsirga Waterfall in Kaduna or the Kajuru Castle; a surreal and ancient temple situation on a hill and built in an European style, for granted. I was going through my bucket list of places I want to visit and I was disappointed to find no mention of Nigeria, I've made a mental note to change that. While we should aim further and dream bigger,we shouldn't ignore the magical places around us, Nigeria doesn't necessarily have to be the next best thing.