It’s Tuesday evening and we are in Lagos, the largest city in Nigeria and apparently the second largest city in the world. We have been here since Thursday but I feel we have only been able to scratch the surface of this fascinating city.
Let’s face it, Lagos isn’t Sydney or Barcelona or even Sheffield. There are no parks and very few places of tourist interest. There is rubbish and abandoned vehicles everywhere, the roads are the most congested and dangerous that we have seen but it is an exhilirating place.
We came with our boss, Rev Timothy, and some other colleagues from Amaudo to visit some of the movers and shakers, including the secretary of conference (we will upload his photo a a later date) within Methodist Church Nigeria and try to raise some much needed funds. We also met with the brother of the owner of Sheffield restaurant UK Mama.
We have been enjoying the abundance of fast food here in the big city. It's probably the only place in the world that doesn't have a McDonalds, but we have become regulars at Sweet Sensations where I had a huge tub of banana ice cream

a goat we got donated

a weekend of constrasts

How are you all?

We have had a mixed weekend, some very good and some a challenge but that is life.

According to research after 3 months you should hit your low point in terms of cultural adaptation. I can not say if this will be the low point, but it was a weekend of extremes.

On Friday we went to Enugu to see the psychiatric hospital, and to meet the only OT who is managing the department, he is doing a good job. He is keen to learn and so I hope that I can spend some more time with him. I have agreed to review his paper work and deliver a seminar to his workers when my OT students come. It is about 2 hours away. It was difficult getting to the meeting point to pick up our lift. We left at 7am from home, and then waited till nearly 9 to try to get a public transport vehicle. It had been raining so they were not coming. I was getting bitten very badly. When I get bitten a lot the pain seems much worse.

So at 8:50 we got a lift to the other Amaudo site, and then got a motorbike taxi, and another public transport vehicle. (so it ended up 3 legs instead of 1).

Then after we had been to the hospital we went to see another Hazel in Nigeria, she is the Aunty of Peter who came with his wife Sarah to set up project comfort (where I am working). Hazel is married to a Nigerian, and very wealthy. I do not know how many people she had working for her in her home but I recon at least 5!!

We arrived and she gave us a glass of red wine!!!!! In a wine glass, and then a piece of chocolate cake. Yes you heard correctly. I savored every sip and bite.

For dinner we had tomato soup, and chicken pie with mashed potato and cooked carrot. We stayed the night and slept with air conditioning, and had hot water. What luxury.

On the sat we looked around town and went a saw one of the expensive hotels.

That evening we ate curry with popadoms!!!

And had a three course breakfast both days!!!

It seemed a shock coming back here. It has been raining so the house smells all musty.

We left 10 am, using her driver to get to the public transport depot. It is a chaotic very noisy place, Andy nearly got his mobile pinched out of his pocket. We got in to Umuahia at 12:15, and had arranged to meet a pastor at 1pm. Well we waited till one and he rang and said 2:30, so we thought ok, and waited. 2:30 came and went and no sign of him. In the mean time the skies were getting darker and darker. You know what that means, rain!

And then the skies opened, when it stopped raining as heavily. We decided we had to go and try to get back here, so did not manage to see him. Which is a shame as he traveled up especially to meet us.

We walked with our umbrella through the puddles, to the motor park, but there was no direct, vehicle so we got one to Bende. When we got to Bende it was raining again, and there was a huge queue of people wanting to get a motorbike. Eventually we got one, which both of us shared, so 3 on the bike.

The boy did not know the meaning of the word slow, and the road was awful, we were slipping and slidding everywhere. I lost my shoe twice, and we went through puddles at such speed we got soaked. In the end we asked him to stop and we walked the last bit home. I was so pleased to back off that bike, and we just got home before nightfall.

So that is the end of our weekend adventure, how was your weekend

Busy week of work ahead of us, but Andy has arranged to watch football with people on sat, I am sure the football fans amongst you will be watching too.

Ndewo (good day) from Enugu

At the training course we attended in January before travelling, we learned that one tends to reach a culture shock nadir at about 3 months after arrival. We have now been here for 3 months and one day so let's just say I'm happy that from this point forward the only way is up!

We are currently in Enugu, the largest city in the Igbo-speaking region of Nigeria. I have left Hazel at a psychiatric hospital - she's a visitor not a patient I hasten to add - while I surf the net. We are staying tonight and tomorrow night with a British woman also called Hazel (these Hazels get around, don't they?) who runs a development project based in nearby Ohafia, so hopefully this will be a break from rice, beans and yam.

There have been a number of sad events at Amaudo over the last few weeks, which I shouldn't really elaborate in this public space, but please continue to remember us in your thoughts and prayers as we try in some small way to take this place forward and restore it to its former glory.

We are still struggling to build good friendships here but we are getting along well with the three "coppers" (National Youth Service Corps workers) - Martha, Gbenga and Olide. They are about our age and have been posted to Amaudo for their post-graduation national service and are a breath of fresh air in terms of the integrity and professionalism that is sadly lacking in Amaudo, as it is in Nigeria generally. We took Martha and Gbenga to the Damgrete Hotel in Umuahia (capital of Abia state). Hazel gave Martha some swimming lessons and introduced her to the gym while Gbenga and I retired to the bar for a meat pie and a beer to watch the Manchester derby. As a fervent Manchester United supporter, Gbenga was very happy with the result.

Also, on Wednesday evening we did a "huddle" with Martha. Those outside the St Thomas and Order of Mission clique won't have a clue what I'm talking about, but now is not the time or place to explain - suffice to say that it's all perfectly above board!

Finally, you may be interested to know that I retched four times in the early hours of Thursday morning but I'm now feeling much better, thank you very much!

Andrew

Steering the ship

It's 14.19 on Tuesday 1 May and I'm a happy man. Not that I've finally solved all of Amaudo's financial problems, nor even that I managed to finish breakfast this morning. But I've just found out that Cheltenham Town secured their League One survival with a game to spare by winning 4-2 at Rotherham on Saturday.

Anyway, let's update you with events closer to (or further from, depending where you live) home. First up, those financial problems. My task as financial supervisor is extremely overwhelming. It can only be compared to trying to sail a ship on stormy waters while at the same time carrying out major structural alterations to the ship, without having any nautical or shipbuilding experience. Thankfully, I have every faith in my team - the cashier, Chief Raymond (yes, I am managing a traditional chief and, yes, I do call him "Chief") who has been at Amaudo for at least 150 years and knows everything about how the organisation is run; and the fresh young graduate, Gbenga, seconded to Amaudo on national service who is both a chartered accountant and has a degree in accountancy (i.e. all those vital qualifications that I don't have!). So, between us, and with God's help (you have to say that here but it is true), we will succeed.

Our weekend was spent doing PR for Amaudo. We attended a burial of the wife of one of the board members on Saturday before showing our face at a church service on Sunday, where we did the customary begging for money. Not only did we get money, but they also gave us a goat and a chicken (both still very much alive). Thank goodness we brought the pickup and not my little toy scooter that is apparently known locally as a motorbike.

Cheerio for now

Andrew