The deserts, to many people, are huge heaps of wasteland with seemingly no tourism value. After all, many think, what would one be doing in a vast sand dunes that look alike? But in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), tour operators put together leisure trips to these huge expanse of sand in the country. They built exciting content around them. Thousands today troop to that country just to experience a safari in the desert. For those who have experienced a desert safari, it is an enjoyable sight. The thrill and excitement is much- the break-neck speed of four-wheel drive through the undulating sands, the late evening view of the sun from the wilderness,the sand barging as the land cruisers speed by, it is best experienced. It is a feeling like no other. The tour operators built a product and a tour content out of nothing. It turned out to be a hit with the rest of the world and now it is a multi-billion dollar business.
For many Lagosians, as those living in Lagos are called, there is this false sense of familiarity with the mega-city that the idea of going on a leisure tour seems rather unreasonable. After all, it is a city that one lives and daily plots how to navigate through the ‘landmines’ of traffic gridlock and other things that make Lagos peculiar to itself. So, there is nothing to see.
When the opportunity to go on tour of the city came, the first question was that what is there to see that one had not seen at one time or the other? It turned out to be a wrong perception. Indeed, a tour of Lagos is exciting and something individuals, families and organizations could undertake. It gives one a better opportunity to understand the city better.
The tour was packaged by S.J. Tours. The take off point was at the end of the Ahmadu Bello Way, linking Adetokunbo Ademola Street, beside Kuramo Beach. The tour guide, Mrs. Abiola Ogunbiyi urged every member of the tour team to visit the Bar Beach as this might just be the last time one might have the opportunity to see the beach.
Indeed, all that is left of what used to be known as Bar Beach has become a semi-lake that is gradually being taken over by the reclaimed sand. In the next few months, Bar Beach will give way to one of the most ambitious urban development project in the whole of Africa- that is the reclamation of land from the Atlantic Ocean and turning it into a high yielding, up-scale zone that makes both Victoria Island and the Lagos Marina look obsolete. Despite the gradual phasing out of the beach, there were still vendors and urchins that are still scrapping out a living, despite the disappearing water. It was as if the more they stay, the greater the chances that there might be a reversal.
Walking on water
The next stop was the corporate headquarters of the Eko Atlantic City. Here, the local tourists were shown an audio-visual stimulation of what the Eko Atlantic City would look like when completed. It is best seen and also difficult to fully conceptualise.
As if to confirm what one had just seen, there was a drive to the land reclamation site. It becomes a little unreal as one drove deep into what used to be the Bar Beach water fall reclaimed from the ocean.
After driving for close to 10 minutes, the vehicle stopped at the waterfront near what is now referred to as the Lagos Wall. It was built with a reinforced concrete barrier that has been scientifically tested to withstand ocean surge. It is expected to last for about 1000 years. Here one sees the much touted final solution to ocean surge in Lagos.
The land so far reclaimed from the ocean is almost twice the size of Lagos and it has not ended. The reclamation is still on, demarcations of choice land acquired by individuals and corporate organisations is also on.
Peep into the past
According to the tour itinerary, the next point was the National Museum, Onikan. If the trip to the Eko Atlantic City was a trip into the future, the museum was a return back in time. Right from artifacts of thousands of years back to those of the recent past, the museum captures them succinctly. The most poignant is the section that captures Nigeria’s leadership past and present. Here, apart from portraits of the past leaders, the ill-fated 1976 coup that consumed the then Head of State, General Murtala Mohammed is well documented at the museum. The Mercedez Benz limousine he was riding in, with its bullet ridddled body is well captured. It makes the incident internally vivid in the imagination of visitors to the museum.
Essence of a people
Arts captures the totality of a people’s life. In Lagos, nowhere is this captured broadly within the same building like what is seen at Nike Gallery, Lekki, off the Victoria Island-Ajah Expressway.
At the entrance to welcome the tour group was a local dance troupe that drummed and danced enthusiastically that many of the tourists had no choice but to join. At Nike Gallery, many of the tourists confessed to having an experience of a life time.
Chief Nike Ekundaye is an individual who understands the import of tourism in the life of a developing country and as such, collaborated with the S.J. Tours, the tour operators, to put together the tour experience.
The group were treated to hot akara (beans cake) and puff puff (doughnut) from a woman who was frying it in front of the building. Next was a lesson in textile art. Every tourist was given a piece of clothe to test his or her dyeing skill after being taught the fundamentals. Like little children, each tourist’s face disssolved into smiles watching the dyed material transform into a spectrum of colours. It was not over yet.
The next was a lesson in traditional dance. This was after the Eyo dancers had finished entertaining.
The dance lesson was both entertaining and also an exercise. The experience at the gallery was both educational and entertaing that none wanted to leave. But they had to go.
Chief Nike Ekundaye was on hand to say good bye to the tourists. The tour group was to head for Lekki market but this was cancelled because it was already late. So, Terra Kulture, an all-inclusive leisure spot was the next port of call. Here, one had an opportunity to enjoy the best of local cuisines in an ambience that was trulyAfrican.
the impression one got from the tour is that it is important, once in a while, for individuals, groups and corporate organisations to embark on such tours.
If one takes time out to tour Lagos, one discovers the soul of this enigmatic city.
