Our journey from Zinder to Abuja was mostly uneventful. We said our goodbyes to Niger, crossed to border to Northern Nigeria and watched as the desert was soon replaced by lush green surroundings. The extreme poverty also gave way to a sense of prosperity and big bustling cities. The first of which was major centre of Kano.
The famous West African Peugeot taxi we were driving in did break down about half way to Abuja. But by now we were used to that happening and patiently waited in a random mechanic’s yard as they welded and grinded away at pieces of the car until they could present us with a solution. In Africa you don’t order parts- you make them.
Of course this put as back a few hours and by the time we arrived on the outskirts of Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, it was pitch dark. Like always the taxi drivers had some sort of hidden arrangement that we hadn’t known of. For some reason they couldn’t continue further and at a random, very big and very chaotic taxi rank they transferred us to a minibus. A Nigerian missionary’s wife had come with us and she was very worried that they would kidnap all of us!
But all went well and soon we arrived at the church that would host us. This church was unlike anything we had ever seen on our journey through Africa. It was a massive, very rich, Nigerian mega church. And for accommodation they booked us into a very fancy hotel with a pool and meals three times a day. We weren’t sure what was happening! Within one day we crossed from barely surviving on a cut throat budget in the sweltering hot Niger desert to AC rooms with soft linen and all we could eat. It messed with our heads, but we were also very thankful for the Lord’s abundant blessing.
During the day the church drove us around in their black luxury minibus with the words MISSIONARY emblazoned in big yellow bold letters on the front. In Nigeria this secures a free pass through any check point. And even if you’re not in a ‘Missionary’ bus those words will get you through most check points unharmed.
All in all we really enjoyed our time with the mega church and made some good friends.
Abuja is the most politically correct city I’ve ever come across. It’s right smack bang in the middle of Nigeria, to prevent the north or the south to feel left out. In turn, in the middle of the city, is Nigeria summarised. On one side of the highway is a massive majestic mosque and on the other side a massive colossal church. Abuja is the place where the government tries to balance out the massive extremities in the rest of the country.
Other than visiting our mega church friends our mission in Abuja was to secure our Cameroonian visas, which was our next destination. The embassy probably took us for being part of an Overland trip and they gave our visas without hassle.
So our time in Abuja came to a close and we tackled the next leg of our journey- 1300km's to Yaounde, Cameroon on some of the worst roads we ever traveled. It would prove to be incredibly adventurous as we crossed through jungles and rivers and used a border crossing that no white man had used before.
But first, we got into two, by now very familiar, Peugeot taxi’s and made our way across the Nigerian landscape. The jungles became bigger and the roads worse as we approached the unknown region called Central Africa.
Photos (from top to bottom): The famous (or infamous) Peugeot. One of my more pensive moments. Leaving Nigeria at Abong. The ‘missionary’ minibus.
Photos from top to bottom: Me in one of my more pensive moods. Leaving Nigeria at Abong. The famous Peugeot taxi.
