the Lighthouse beach: a cool and natural spot

connecting between mother Earth and Heavens

Waves are crashing remorselessly on the sand of the ocean-shore beach, westward of the entrance of Lagos harbor. This stretch of sand is protected by the stone wall which extends into the sea up to a lighthouse to signal the entrance into the Lagos lagoon. As a result, the water current is deviated from the coast such that sand declivity into the water is minimal. It is a good place to safely go into the water.
A group of women, aligned on the sand, stands on one leg. They are looking at their yoga instructors who are currently standing on their heads. The women, who wear the same dark blue sweater, after having exercised for ten or fifteen minutes soon retire under their light shed to have some food and some drinks. The two instructors, meanwhile, carry on executing more advanced positions.

a fairly quiet sea

The sun has actually disappeared behind a thick layer of clouds forming to the outer rim of a storm positioned on the mainland somewhere between Badagry and Epe. The sky is very dark over mainland but the rain does not come up to ocean shore. The wind becomes very cool, which is quite a nice and unusual feeling compared with the usually heavy heat from the ferocious sun. The sheds are very basic, a few wooden poles to which a rectangular cloth is tied in order to provide some kind of shade, which is welcome.
This side of the beach has always had very few of those sheds, but it looks like development is in the air. A long raw of wooden poles has been erected in the sand, a white hut has been built in the nearby dunes with Heineken parasols. There is beach service with a food and drink laminated menu which never fails to take off with the wind. The plus of this place is its tranquility. It is remote from Tarkwa Bay where most beach-goers congregate because of the quiet waters in the bay. Jimoh, the man in charge of the sheds is very polite and helpful. He informs us that a direct boat service from Walter Carrington in Victoria Island can take us instead of landing in Tarkwa Bay and trekking all the way to the ocean front, which is anyway not an unpleasant stroll.
As we sit in our long chairs a few meters away from the water, the ears full of the sound of the crushing waves and the wind, it feels like being somewhere else than Lagos, on a private stretch of beach. Of course, the horizon is populated by the ships waiting for their turn to go to the container port to load and unload their wares.

a minimalist and secluded place

Two years ago, there was a ship wreck being dismantled on the beach, it has since gone but another long rusted one has been stranded along the stone jetty leading to the lighthouse. It looks like a gas or oil tanker. Its dismantling is underway, judging be the presence of gas bottles littering the surrounding of the wreck. The boys are working in the morning, so it does not collide with the visitors to the beach and yet it is an interesting show of strength and ingenuity.

remote from Eko Atlantic's future hustle and bustle

The beach of the lighthouse is a very good place to go, a few minutes away from Victoria Island, where one can swim, have a sense of privacy and adventure at the same time. As all things in Lagos, it is to be enjoyed while it lasts!

The Ogiamien family in Benin City: about wood and history

Roland Ogiamien in his wood-carving workshop Wood Roland Ogiamien is a renown wood carver. He is now retired in his home town of Benin City and is now in his 80s. We met him in his simple workshop, a barn opened on the surrounding greenery. A part of the studio is used to store wood pieces and make sure they are well dried. He is using a collection of german ustensils to carve and polish the wood. He spent most of his career working out of Lagos before relocating to Benin. Roland was explaining that the wood he uses today is different that the one he worked on in his early days. Ebony has become rare and wood carvers have had to switch to other types of wood. Traditional heritage is a large part of his inspiration which he translates on wood with his own particular style, exploring various techniques for the finish of his pieces. Roland Ogiamien and two of his favourite masks History Ogiamien is the name of an important royal family in Benin Kingdom. Towards the end of the

no hawkers allowed on kingsway

no hawking Sign of hawkers this was my discovery of the week in the urban signage section. I had to think hard what the "damaged hat" was all about? Until I saw a couple of people walking with large flat baskets on their heads loaded with small portions of peanuts wrapped-up in plastic bags right by the signage. I then understood that they were not supposed to be there if the signage is of any relevance. Exactly why is another matter. Perhaps for safety reasons as in the past people hijacking cars could have been mistaken with the hawkers selling wares in the traffic. Today Kingsway, the large avenue crossing Ikoyi and coming straight out of Victoria Island through the Falomo bridge, is fairly safe. Its 2*2 lanes are often packed with slow traffic and therefore a good place for hawkers to do business. Youth's future on Kingsway Two billboards attracted my attention along Alfred Rewane avenue (the new name for Kingsway). One was a representation of a young a

The mysterious stones images of Esie

turned into Stones Chief J. Agbo Ooye had been waiting in the shade of a large tree, in front of the National Museum of Esie, dressed in ceremonial costume with a velvet hat incrusted with crystal beads sown in the shape of his title and his name. He was sitting next to his wife on a bench, expecting our arrival. His wife, he would tell us later, was his best friend and she was actually demonstrating it by guiding his frail body from one place to another and guiding his hand when it came to sign autographs of his books. Chief Agbo Ooye is the author of two booklets on the Esie Stones. The first one, called A Personal Account of the Esie Stones is giving an overview of the differences between the scientific and the traditional interpretation of the Esie Stones. The second one is called the History of Esie and gives a brief account of Esie's history from the early settlement of Yorubas in various groups (Esie, Oro, Eku Apa, Igbonla, Edidi, Igbesi, etc...) to the present day. Thos

Nigeria, the land of plenty

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