As I was scrolling through my gallery this morning, I saw some of my old pictures, and one of them stood out - my first time visiting Ondo State, Nigeria. I was still in school, doing my National Diploma, and we had just finished our exams. A friend told me about her grandfather's passing and that they were planning a final burial ceremony. She brought clothes to school for us to buy, and I was excited to visit another state, not just because of the event, but because I love exploring new places.
Four of us planned to travel together, and we agreed to meet at the Ondo bus stop in Ibadan the day before the ceremony. My friend had already explained to us how we would get to Ondo since I had never been there before. I live in Oyo State, so it was a new adventure for me. My brother called me, reminding me that my mom had told him to warn me not to go because she didn't know my friend well. However, I insisted on joining my friends.
When the bus was full, we left for Ondo State. The journey was beautiful, despite the bad roads, and we arrived in Ondo four hours later. We were told that if the road was good, it would have taken us just two hours. When we arrived, I was hoping to eat rice, but they served us beans, which I don't like. I had to eat it because I was hungry. Her sister drove us home, and when we got there, there was no food ready. They just brought us bread for dinner.
The next morning, two of our other friends arrived from Ibadan, and we realized that there was no food planned for breakfast. Lunch was egg and plantain, which wasn't enough for someone who hadn't eaten since morning. My friend had told us before we left school that we would eat well and be full, but we were disappointed when we got to Ondo.
The burial ceremony took place overnight, according to Ondo customs. The next day, we prepared for the burial service, but things didn't go smoothly. My friend's sister needed adjustments to her outfit, and we went with her to make the changes. However, our friend was angry, feeling that we are her guest and not her sister guest and we should have prioritized her needs over her sister's. She was angry that we followed her sister to amend her cloth when the event hadn't even started. We took photos without her, because she was still angry.
After the ceremony, we prepared to leave early in the morning with our bags full of plantain, because they had a plaintain farm at their backyard. Though we don't eat in full as we expected, But I was grateful for the opportunity to visit Ondo State and experience its burial culture.
When I got home, my mummy was happy to see me and also thanked my friend for the plantain and I enjoyed the plantain.
All pictures are mine, though it's been 5 yrs but the picture is still bright.l