A Typical day

Last week, while I was coming back from taking Elizabeth to school, I thought I would take pictures of what I see out the windows of the car each day while driving through the streets of Ikoyi and Victoria Island. It occurred to me that i was starting to take the things I see for granted and I wanted to capture some of the sights that i try to tell my friends and family about. Although, these pictures can't give you the true flavor of actually being here....they should give you pretty good idea of a "typical day" here in Lagos.

Here is a woman selling bread in the morning outside on he street next to Elizabeth's school. I see many women just like her carrying the huge piles of bread along the streets. it really is amazing how they can take the huge pan down from their head, sell the bread and then place it back on their heads again like it is nothing.


















Yes, this is a picture of a bus coming right at us as we were driving back. Remember my previous post about patience? Well, this is a prime example of how impatient Nigerians can be. We ARE in the correct lane...the car and the bus are trying to pass gridlocked traffic thinking they will get ahead...all it does is cause a MAJOR traffic jam. Below is another car thinking that he can just squeeze in...crazy!




















Three Nigerian men on an okada literally weaving in and out between angry drivers stuck in a huge traffic jam.














Here is a crippled man sitting along the road side begging for money.....so many people are like that here...


Below is a picture of a market off of Falomo street....I am sure they would probably only give me the oyibo prices there....by the way, since everything at the market is priced with the bartering system..there are two prices...the Nigerian price and the oyibo price....you can guess which one I get!:) ( note: I would never even have considered going in a market like that when I first moved here...but now...why not??!!)
































Here are some posters which have been placed around the city because the Nigerian elections are happening here in April. I am sure I will be posting more about that when the time approaches.:)

I really am not too sure what this building is, but I see it everyday when I come back over the bridge from Ikoyi to Victoria Island. It says, "Afrika Center Lagos", but I am not sure it has ever been used for anything.

Sorry for the reflection in the picture, but I wanted to take a picture of Ikoyi from the bridge...and we are heading back to V.I. Unfortunately this is the only way back and forth to Ikoyi...so if there is an accident or something else...the traffic can be backed up for hours...

No...I don't know what in the world is hanging out of the back of that public bus....and yes, that is a small girl riding an okada to school....without a helmet...

It still makes my stomach drop to see kids riding the okadas without helmets or riding and okada ...period! I didn't have my camera ready when an okada went by with a woman who had her small baby strapped on her back...

And, finally, no day would be complete without seeing the random men on the side of the road peeing! As a matter of fact, I would think there was something wrong here if I didn't see a man on the side of the road taking care of business!:)

When I talk to my mom and try to describe the things I see here....it is so hard to put it into words. When I first arrived here..I think my eyes must have been as big as saucers and my mouth probably hung open all the time. I am glad I don't have that reaction anymore....it really has been wonderful to have this experience. I think we all can take things for granted in our daily lives...and I had no idea how truly blessed I was to live in the U.S. until I moved here. The newness of Lagos has worn off...but, the realization of how lucky my family is crosses my mind each and everyday. For many people, these pictures are of a far off place that many people will never visit. For me, they are just pictures of a typical day.:)