Transcorp Hilton Abuja Hotel

... and the kids in one particular village ran aft** the truck till we got to the next one before turning back. We bush camped on the road and Chris had to repair the front wheel before it got dark. This was the best driving day of the trip thus far.<br><br><br><br>Dist. cov. = 172 km<br><br><br><br>27th - Still 500km or so from Abuja, and we're still not on any good roads. I really enjoyed today's drive ov** the v**y bumpy roads. We did eventually hit tar sealed roads ...

... copp** topped mosque it has v**y v**y v**y v**y little to actually do or see and iwas phenomenally expensive compared to just about ev**ywh**e else we had been in Africa.<br><br>Th**e are no actual campsites in Abuja, howev** of all places the Abuja Sh**aton allows free camping to ov**land**s at the back of the hotel on a grassed area. Previous trips had stayed at the staff carpark which was an absolute dive, so we felt quite lucky to be ...

... could start ov** the following working day, that usually the checkpoints can be twice as many. Unbelievable. So th**e I was on the outskirts of Lagos, in a place that looked like a refugee camp wh**e chaos reigned, surrounded by grimy looking individuals going about their (shady) business and giving me unpleasant looks. I ignored them until I was spoken to and when that happened, I didn't allow the time for animosity to settle, a big smile and my full attention w**e enough to ...

... or flow**s that I grew up with in Karratha or past massive mango trees that dot the landscape ev**ywh**e you look, bringing memories of Queensland. I had my first pang of homesickness today... I looked upon an orange stand and wished I w**e back in Waitrose walking through the fruit section looking at beautiful bright orange oranges instead of these yellow green things they call such fruit h**e. I don't even eat oranges back in London so ...

... joining them but v**y much looking forward to having more time to spend exploring the beautiful country of South Africa. I just hope Oliv** is as excited and doesn't regret not going through Angola too much. On our last night at the Sh**aton we headed to the Elephant Bar for goodbye and thank you drinks with Pet**. We got a brilliant photo of us all so Mike blew it up and made it into a card for him which we all signed. He was thrilled.

... But the most important thing that happened was that Egghead's friend Kelvin wanted me to come to Port Harcourt, in the ***** Delta. It is a large city with around 5 million people (or more) and known for its ************ment. He said he could get me to a meeting with Prof. Okoko, who is the lead** of the biggest organisation in *****ia, consisting of hundreds of diff**ent groups in the ***** Delta. He is a political scientist, and it would be v**y beneficial for my thesis. The ...

... my thirst. On the church front, Ngozi has invited my ev**y Sunday, but I have always found an excuse not to go. Even, Ochi, a woman in the office has said that I HAVE to come to church with h**e, but I have declined v**y nicely, sev**al times. I guess church is the place to meet people in *****ia, but I have some issues about attending church, and I would feel like a hypocrite if I went. Even Actor went to church on Sunday, and he was pretty wasted the day before. Nev ...

... me. I good a really good price and was asked to come back on Monday to pick it up. Moreov**, when I picked it up on Monday he was just finishing it, and it was actually nic** than I thought it would be. So I got a v**y nice Africa shirt for less than 20 US$. In the evening I just worked on the thesis, the whole evening, and by Sunday aft**noon I actually had a first draft of the whole thesis. 100 pages included ev**ything. I was kind of proud and I feel that I ...

... lagos to kick back and rock and roll:) I have to try an get in touch with Gani Adams so i can conduct my interview with him on monday or tuesday. Don't think I'll write during the weekend, but i should have some interestiong stories when i get back, but that is just a hunch:) Thinks are working out fine in the office and peoplea re nice and I know the names of most people now. So next time I write I'll have something interesting to tell. So take care and stay tuned for more wacky days