Nigeria, the land of plenty

Old Abeokuta, on the way to Olumo rock Abeokuta is a city of historical importance. It is located in Ogun state, about 100km north-east of Lagos, on the river Ogun. It is surrounded by forest and the city is built around a few hills. The Egbas, a yoruba tribe who left Ile Ife westward, settled in Abeokuta because there was a rock dominating the whole area which provided a perfect place to see enemies coming from far and under which one could hide. It is called the Olumo rock. Abeokuta literally means "under the rock" in Yoruba. Abeokuta west and the river Ogun In the 19th century, missionaries established missions. The first church was built in 1846, the cathedral church of Saint Peter. A hospital was also created. The first missionary was Henry Townsend in 1843. Later, the father of Fela Kuti, Canon J. J. Ransome Kuti, was vicar in Abeokuta from 1911 to 1930. Olusegun Obasanjo, former president of Nigeria 1999-2007, also comes from this town. Cathedral church o...

guys, let's get it done while the tide is low Low tide is a blessing in Ilashe. Waves are much less powerful than during high tide making bathing very pleasant for those who want take a dip in the warm water. The sea also uncovers some surprises. The seashore is punctuated by abandoned ship wrecks. Some of them appear only at low tide, covered by algae. This means money opportunity for local communities who engage in the dismantling of those remains. Andrew Anetor is leading a team of young athletic boys, about 7 of them, to break those metallic structures into pieces that are small enough to be carried at the back of his pick-up. He was raised in the UK and lived in a few countries abroad before coming back to Nigeria. He resides in Tarkwa Bay and scrap metal collection for recycling has become his bread-earner. Andrew Anetor and the dismantlers Very short white hairs are perceptible on this face. He probably shaved a few days ago. His face is weathered and he proba...

Prof. Bruce Onobrakpeya talking about his plastocast works A black woolen beret let some cloudy white curly hair emerge. A pair of dark rimmed glasses hide a curious pair of eyes above a white moustache. Professor Bruce Onobrakpeya stands in front of us in his traditional outfit of black african print brightened up by vivid blue and red lines looking like electronically modulated laser beams. He is lively talking about his art displayed in the small courtyard of his three-storeyed studio of Oloje street in Mushin. He works there since 1973 and probably moved in around 1976. First, he looks intimidated by the crowd before warming up as he answers the first questions about his art. He is humbly talking about the technic he uses to form casts in which he pours coloured fiber glass to create a bas-relief. fiber glass coloured and painted   He mentions the work he does with copper sheets on which he is applying some patine. We see also a panel of African lace collages, apparent...

walking to the Agidan Hill Oke Agidan (Agidan hill) is located near Oyo town. It is a dome-shaped rock which dominates the flat land around it. The land belongs to the Alaafin of Oyo and for a while it was not permitted to cultivate it. Nowadays things are changing and the rock is surrounded by fields of cassava and yam. Fortunately, a few trees remain standing and give the landscape some allure. The rock itself is host to several shrines dedicated to various yoruba divinities. Once a year, around April, a large pilgrimage takes place. The starting point of the pilgrimage is a grove where multiple tents have been erected to offer pilgrims food, drinks and ritual items such as kola nuts, bitter-kola nuts, some plastic beads bracelets (almond green and brown) or Ifa chains (mix of nuts and beads) for divination. Oya, buy my nuts! Pilgrims are coming all the way from Oyo town on motorbikes, mini-buses, cars, some possibly walk. Drums are providing rhythm to the place. An ecle...