UNRAVELLING NIGERIA

After searching high and low for straw Fulani hats to give during the  Kajuru tour  with Naija Nomads, my hunt and uncle led me to the Abuja arts and crafts village. It is a village of goodies and wonderful people. All things arts and crafts can be found there just as the name suggests. It’s easy to overlook it as it’s beside Sheraton Abuja but once you find it you’ll be delighted. There are huts everywhere with people from different tribes all selling their wares. It is trul

Contemporary art in Nigeria is on the rise in recent times with efforts of places like ‘Art21’ and ‘Contemporary Art House’ among others. A creative hoping to contribute towards the rise of the contemporary art scene in Nigeria is Morountodun Obaigbo. She, along with a team of young Nigerians and creative spaces in Lekki phase 1 – “The Gallery” and “Stranger in Lagos” are working toward an art exhibition titled “The Philosopher’s Muse: An Alternative Art Exhibition” which fe

Mr. Busuyi says in Yoruba, while pointing at an Ayo set, “This thing ehn, this game. If a thief comes to your house and sees it, he won’t be able to stop himself from sitting down and playing it until daybreak. Until the owner wakes up and finds him.” In the semi-dark, two-storey building of the original Nike Art Gallery, I watch his animated gestures and the seriousness in his face and I wish, not for the last time that day, that I could fully understand the Yoruba he was sa

While it may not be the biggest art gallery I have been to, it doesn’t make it lesser than its counterparts. When you take a trip to Olumo Rock in Abeokuta; Ogun state,  you are immediately ushered into the art gallery on the premises. Mr Oyedeji Banji welcomes all the visitors to the gallery and without missing a beat, starts showing everyone round. Just like The Nike Art Gallery, trash to art is embraced here, and is probably one of the most important features of this galle

So this might be coincidental, but you know how pyramids are in Egypt, and the history of education has roots in Egypt too? Could that be what they thought of when naming this art gallery? Thought Pyramid Art centre is a contemporary art gallery that can be found in Abuja. 18 Libreville Street, Off Aminu Kano Crescent, Wuse 2 to be precise. I was lucky enough to stumble on it while waiting for my friends as it was next to our meeting point. Sometimes, arriving before everyone

Coffee isn’t really my thing but I can appreciate a good coffee shop. While wandering around the airport, I stumbled into Umutu Coffee Shop! They stood outside trying to woo people into coming in and I took the bait. It’s a nice, jazzy, arty coffee house that is trying to start a social coffee place similar to that of Starbucks. Soon, you’ll see them everywhere, but for now their flagship store is at the departure lounge of the Murtala Mohammed Airport (domestic wing). I love

So you have a boring Saturday and can’t quite figure out what to do with it. Why not grab a couple of friends (or enemies as the case may be), and head to Freedom Park on Broad Street? Great part is you get to relax on prison grounds and walk out whenever you like. I should say here that it used to be a former prison and is now a leisure park, so you can all relax now. You can go and chase chickens around. Chased it till it ducked under the bench. Or how about listening to jo

I got to sit down with Mummy Nike, the owner and curator of the Nike Art Gallery and learnt a few things about her journey. See below for the video and enjoy. I also included pictures of some awards she’s received and some knick knacks for sale which weren’t included in previous posts. Some highlights from the video are: 1. We cannot wait for the government to do everything for us. 2. Support your business with prayers. 3. The gallery was opened to show the voice of the peopl

I’ve heard about this gallery for a while, even from my dad. When I finally went, it was amazing and definitely worth my time. I even got to interview the management, so it was a good day for me. I’m going to divide the gallery posts into 2 or 3. This post being the main one and the other posts will have the interviews, and the store. When I was going I was a bit worried because it was my first time unravelling a place on my own. I think this was one of the best decisions I m

It feels like we haven’t done this segment in a long time. This interview is slightly different as I got two people to do it at the same time so you can see how people living in the same place can have different opinions about it. Horses of the day – Oyin & Wale Location – Lagos Taken from Y-naija Lagosians waiting to get on the bus popularly known as BRT. Nickname – Eko, Las Gidi, Lag Age Range – 25-35 Occupations – Lawyer/Auditor Brief background: Both were born and brought

My friend schlumberger came to town, and we have this ritual where we always try to meet up, catch up on life and just faff around before he’s on the next flight out, heading back to his reality. I nicknamed him schlumberger because he works there, I’m not sure he fancies the name but if you’re reading this, I’m letting you know again that it’s here to stay. 🙂 Schlumberger asked me to decide where we would meet up this time because according to him, I am now a local tourist

Hey guys, so I have decided to add another segment to this blog. Actually a lot of segments will be added as time goes by, so watch out for that. Today, It’s going to be ‘PICTURE OF THE DAY’. This is where a picture of a landmark, tourist site, building, food or anything interesting relating to tourism is taken and put up here. Fun facts, tidbits or a little story about what is in the picture will also be shared along with it. So on to our first picture of the day. National A