Traveling by road in Nigeria can be fun sometimes and risky too some days due to the insecurity in our country nowadays, especially when it's a far-distance journey. However, I am going to share with you one of my most memorable experiences with the public road trip I made sometimes in April this year from the east to the western part of Nigeria.
One thing about public transportation is that you will journey with people of different characters. Perhaps, journeying with both the gentle beings who wouldn't say a word throughout the journey, some comedians who will make you laugh out your worries during the journey to the point that you may even forget your destination, hahaha, and some folks who love to bring up political talks or arguments on a particular topic of discussion. All these and more were an experience I had with this road trip—an experience that never leaves my mind as I always talk about it day in and day out.
When I was buying my ticket in the park, I saw some gentlemen seated at the reception waiting for the bus to load.
Only for me to discover just a few minutes into the journey that most of these people I tagged as gentlemen were actually comedians and fans of Nigerian politics, hahaha. I won't deny how they made the 12-hour journey look so lively and enjoyable. To start with, the air conditioners in the vehicle weren't active enough, and to know that we paid for the service and didn't get most of it made some of the passengers attack the driver with words. At a point, we requested a natural breeze instead, and the feeling was amazing. I used my eyes to explore nature so clearly since the window glasses were whined down while we journeyed to our destinations.
In every discussion or argument, there may be new knowledge to add, and the group of people I boarded the vehicle with raised lots of topics about our country and the government, the happenings, and all of that. I am not a politician, but the conversation opened my eyes to new information, which pushed me into further research in order to stay updated with what's going on in my country. Believe me, I have been bad at listening to the news until I encountered these people in the vehicle on this trip. Since that encounter, I have cultivated the habit of listening to the news more, both local and international. To me, it's one positive thing that happened to me in the course of that trip, and each time I tuned in to the news in my home, my mind flashed back to that trip!
During the journey, one thing I enjoyed was these road sellers who hawked varieties of snacks on the way. Some people in our vehicle were kind enough to shop for others. Just mention what you want, and you will have it. The journey seemed to be as if I were journeying with my relatives, but no, they were total strangers who turned into friends and couldn't stop showing kindness to people. Indeed, there are still good people on this planet.
The cost of buying cooked food in some bus terminals during the Naija road trip isn't funny anymore, but we still had access to food through one man who looked like a philanthropist in our vehicle. I had enough snacks and food from a total stranger, as did many others in our bus. However, I didn't hesitate to use my supposed money for food and snacks on that trip to buy a bunch of plantains at an affordable price on our way.
I lost count of the number of checkpoints on Naija Road. I think it's understandable due to the insecurity in the country; however, some folks with me on this trip couldn't stop making fun of the whole thing, especially how it delays their time, forgetting that kidnappers and other evil dorers also operate during the day.
Seeing these livestock being transported inside this trailer from the north to the west was another experience to behold.
Some of the passengers with me found it weird and couldn't stop expressing their concerns about how traders can keep hundreds of livestock in one place under control for such a long journey.
During a road trip, you get to see things a lot, especially with public transport, where you meet different characters of human beings and their dramatic lifestyles. lolz, it's all fun after all, and yes, I will love this similar experience, especially with a daytime road trip!
This is my response to the #hivelearners community contest on the topic of public transport.
Thanks so much for reading through!!.
Please note that all pictures are from my phone gallery.
