There's a particular state in my country, Anambra State, that harbors one of the biggest markets in Nigeria, and in that market, there's absolutely nothing you won't find there; in fact, all the new products originate from there.
I traveled to this state some weeks ago, and what I saw marveled my whole system, and till today, I'm yet to believe it all.
I arrived very late at night after being drenched by rain, and my fiance, Claudia, whom I went to visit, warmly welcomed me with a big sized burger and a cup of tantalizing coffee, with the aroma so tempting.
After taking a hot bathe, I settled down for the meal but I found out that my stomach was actually full already.
"Babe, I ate a lot of my way here; permit me to settle for coffee only, please." I requested regardless, not expecting a favorable response from her because I know how tough she is, and yes, she attacked me, "You're rejecting food in my house; are you for real?" I don't know if it was faked, but her countenance really changed, and I didn't want to see more of that. I just succumbed, "It's alright, I'll force myself to eat".
"Better," she said, jokingly hitting my head.
As I began to eat, first, second, and third intakes, I reached out to a cup of coffee oozing out a different aroma from the one I know. I took a sip, and the taste was far tastier than what I usually have in my state.
"Wow!"
I stepped down the cup and took it a little bit closer to my sight to check if I could see the name, but oh, I remembered the coffee cup is just a random cup and not a brand.
"What's the name of this coffee?" I asked her out of curiosity, and she turned away from the spot where she's watching television. "You say?"
"What brand of coffee is this? I love its taste and aroma; it's taking me to heaven."
"Oh! It's the new trending brand in the state. It hasn't gotten to your state?" She said it with a little bit of concern while trying to concentrate on her TV.
"No, not at all. Explain better, please." I had already paused my food and was eagerly waiting to get everything in detail.
"Okay, let me blow your mind. What you're sipping is not actually a real coffee from coffee beans but a well-mixed collection of chemicals, and...wait, I'm coming," she paused. She walked inside the kitchen and came back with a sachet. "This is the sachet," she dropped it on the table for me to have a look.
"And less I forget, it comes in powder form and it's snortable just the way they take in cocaine" Claudia concluded.
My mouth was wide open in shock. I collected the sachet and looked closely at the ingredient descriptions, and it was written as follows;
Ingredients:
Caffeinated sawdust from Oak wood, cinnamon powder, sugar, garnet red scales and water
"Am I dreaming? This is so unbelievable! A coffee that's not a coffee? What on Earth?"
I said all these aloud while Claudia was surprised by my reactions too; she was just there looking at me.
"Is this approved by NAFDAC(National Agency for Food & Drug Administration & Control)?" I put on my phone's torchlight because it seems the light from the bulb on the ceiling was not beaming well. I used it to check the sachet again, and all that came out of my mouth was, "Jesus! It's NAFDAC-approved! This is totally unbelievable!"
"Claudia, and you've been taking this?" I asked, showing her the sachet on her face.
"Yes, na, it's what everyone in the state has been taking, and it's delicious. Or when you had it at first, didn't it taste good?
Please, I'm tired. Are you done with your investigation? Can I go and rest now?"
Claudia sounded more like she's mocking my intelligence, and she left the room while I stayed put on the dining table, wishing I could vomit out the already taken-in liquid.
I spent two days with Claudia, and I didn't have anything to do with their type of coffee. Yes, it was difficult, to abstain from coffee but I had no option because my knowledge of taking chemicals instead of coffee wouldn't allow me.