The Vuvuzela Diaries

We shouldn’t beat about the bush: Nigeria has an image problem. It dominates West Africa economically and politically, and has produced music and literature whose influence spreads far beyond the continent. But for all this clout, mention the country’s name to the person on the street and they’re more likely to come up with a litany of woe: corruption, ethnic violence and email scams. As a travel destination, Nigeria seems more a place to avoid than to book a flight to.

And yet, Nigeria is a country we’re coming to love. Getting around can sometimes be a little tough, and it’s certainly a challenging destination for first-timers to Africa, but you shouldn’t believe all the scare stories. Lagos is one of the most exuberant cities in Africa, while port city Calabar makes for an enjoyable stopover for travellers on their way to Cameroon. Across Southern Nigeria, old kingdoms carry on their customs, from creating elaborate brass sculptures to venerating the ancient gods. More modern traditions include one of the world’s pioneering primate conservation organisations. In the north, where the land dries out as it stretches towards the desert, Muslim Nigeria thrives in dusty trade cities where memories of the Saharan trade routes still linger. Don’t miss West Africa’s oldest city Kano, and Yankari National Park, the best in the country.

Nigeria is a country of extremes. Great wealth and great poverty sit cheek by jowl, and tensions between different communities can boil over into civil strife. While a few parts of the country remain problematic, the vast majority is as warm and welcoming to visitors as anywhere in Africa. Challenging yet exuberant, this is Africa in the raw – there’s nowhere quite like it on the continent.

Thanks to Lonely Planet

If you’re heading to West Africa to unearth lost treasure, look no further than Benin. This club-shaped country, on the western edge of Nigeria, was once one of the most powerful empires in Africa – the Dahomey kingdom. The ruins of the Dahomeyans’ palaces and temples can be seen in Abomey, while Ouidah is a poignant reminder of where their riches came from: the slave trade. The Route d’Esclaves in Ouidah was the last walk on African soil for slaves bound for Brazil and the Caribbean. Museums here and in Porto Novo, Benin’s lagoon-side capital, examine the resultant Afro-Brazilian society and culture. Cotonou, on the other hand, is urban Africa at its most frazzling and polluted – but is not without its own charms, a lively nightlife and good shopping being a couple of them.

Regardless of the ill-gotten Dahomeyan gains glittering in the Musée Historique d’Abomey, there are plenty of treasures on Benin’s dusty streets and palm-fringed beaches. This is the birthplace of voodoo, the country’s national religion, exported by the slaves and distorted by Hollywood. Voodoo is an important part of everyday life and most towns bear signs of it, such as the fetish markets stocked with the heads and skins of every animal imaginable.

Elephants, lions and crocodiles can be seen in more animated form in the northern wildlife parks, notably Pendjari, one of the best in West Africa. Then there are the stilt villages, home to thousands in the southern lagoons, and the northern tata somba (fortlike mud huts) built by the insular Somba people. Not only is Benin a richly historical and cultural country, this politically stable nation is one of the easiest parts of West Africa to travel in.

Thanks to Lonely Planet

Once regarded as the pearl of West Africa for its tranquil beaches, exotic markets and friendly people, Togo was overwhelmed by riots and human-rights abuses in the 1990s. Sadly the saga continues. When the despotic president Gnassingbé Eyadéma died in February 2005, and his son Faure Gnassingbé seized power, hundreds were killed in street battles and thousands fled the country. But with the new president gradually winning over the Togolese population, it’s a great time to check out tiny Togo’s hilly landscape, diverse cultures, yam-based dishes, and the football team that qualified for the 2006 World Cup.

Lomé, the capital, is one of the most beautiful cities in West Africa, with the grand Blvd du 13 Janvier sweeping away from the beach and into the heart of a ribald city, heaving with nightspots. To the east, past the resorts on Lake Togo and the Atlantic beaches, Aného exudes crumbling colonial charm, and has a fetish market. Voodoo is also practised across the lake in Togoville, a fishing village with fetishes in the streets.

Inland, Kpalimé is the gateway to the coffee and cocoa triangle, where ruined chateaus, butterflies and mountain villages hide in the forests. The northern cities Sokodé and Kara are appealingly slow-paced spots to take in rural Africa, with the road between them passing through national icon, the Aledjo fault. Close to Kara, centuries-old culture and traditions can be seen at the famous fortresslike mudbrick houses in the Tamberma Valley and the weekly markets in the Kabyé region.

With thanks to Lonely Planet

Ghana hits you in the face the minute you arrive. English speaking officials, a duty free shop at the border, school children in uniform, MTN colours on every available space. And the humidity. How a scant border post can contain all of this within the country is unbelievable. We have said goodbye to the dry dust of the Sahara desert and the Harmatan that was starting to pull in. We say hello to lush green scenery, soaring temperatures and insane humidity that I don’t know if I can ever get used to. It comes with reward though, and that is South African products! Our eyes were on stalks when we walked into Shoprite and didn’t know what to buy and what to leave!

After spending a night in the bush after the border we headed for Mole National Park in the Northern section of Ghana. Reputedly the best game park in West Africa, the road to get there was in a sorry state and our poor cars took a beating as we bumped and jostled for about two hours on 80 kilometres. We had the campsite to ourselves (and the baboon troops on their daily rounds of annoying tourists and stealing food) which overlooked the savannah plains. We spent two nights here and went on guide walks and drives, and whilst it was lovely, there was unfortunately not very much game and a lone elephant was our best sighting.

The group then split and Maude made a dash for the coast. The Capetonians were not coping with the dust and needed the sea. The Joburger and our Newcastle delegate were happy to oblige. So back on the terrible road and South we went. We unfortunately misjudged the state of the roads and after a day found ourselves in Techiman at 6pm at night. Techiman leaves a lot to be desired in terms of tourist comforts (let’s not forget we are also in Africa, and are really not asking for much). We battled to find any accommodation and eventually had to settle on Emmanuel Inn. We’re still not 100% if the Inn was aimed at the general public or at the pimps down the road, but we had our fried rice for dinner in the courtyard and headed for our scaffy rooms. Doors locked, each others numbers on speed dial. My favourite part was the suggestion box next to the very grotty ablution block. Doubt I’ll ever be back there, so will keep my constructive criticism to myself.

We then continued South and hit the coast, and what a site it was! We landed up at Anamobo Hotel – a lovely expat vibe resort where even the campers were allowed the buffet breakfast in the mornings. The restaurant was a lovely open air wooden, colonial style deck overlooking the ocean. Our intended one night stay quickly became two nights and we spent a day relaxing on the sunloungers on the beach.

Green Turtle Lodge, on Akwidaa beach, was calling and it was time to head West now along the coast of Ghana. Along the way we did the tree-top walk at Kakum National Park – a lovely suspended bridge system from seven trees and 40 metres above the ground. We also dropped in to Elmina in search of some fresh fish, but had missed the fishing day, but vowed to come back on our way to Accra to have a tour of the imposing Portuguese and Dutch built fort.

We arrived at Green Turtle Lodge late afternoon on the 30th March, where we were to be spending the next 6 nights. We were not disappointed. The beach in front of the lodge is truly spectacular and is now one of my top 5 beaches. The lodge and the owners are so relaxed and the overall vibe was just what we were after. Paradise found.

Paula couldn’t have picked a better spot for her birthday. We were in Loango National Park and set out with our guide for the day. We saw hippos from our boat and loads of birds on the lakes and in the mangrove swamps. We then went on foot and traipsed through the rain forests ending with a late swim on the beach. The best was yet to come as we walked home along the beach and spotted forest buffalo and elephants. Dinner celebrations included plantain – a favourite for Paula!! This is a birthday most likely not to be repeated…