the peacefulness of orderly Germany and the bustle of the most populous West African city.
There was certainly some mayhem in the gigantic beer tents of the Bavarian Oktoberfest. Just imagine 9000 happy drunken chanting revelers under one tent hoisting huge liter mugs of delicious oktoberfest beer. And the beaches and living compounds in Lagos were islands of tranquility.
But overall I was very impressed with the serenity of Munich, even though its metropolitan area is home to 2.7 million people. There are public parks and outstanding playgrounds everywhere. Fields of fruits, vegetables and flowers have unattented deposit boxes for payment after you've helped yourself. My brother and his wife feel that time goes by slower there.
Lagos on the other hand was an exhilarating ride. With all its internet phising scams and frequent alarming mentions in the news, Nigeria has an unfairly rotten reputation. I did see naked corpses by the side of the road, just lying there, ignored. And I also found a rich vibrant culture with friendly people. I picked up some priceless old 70's LPs from the heyday of the High Life Nigerian music scene. I got to witness legendary Afro Beat founder Fela Kuti's son, Femi, proudly carry his father's torch in twice weekly concerts at his New Africa Shrine nightclub. My sister took me through the mazes of colossal markets where we haggled over wonderful pieces of art and crafts.
A dear friend just did a tour of Togo, Burkina et Bénin. And she put it simply: "Bénin was the poorest and also the one with the most liveliness."
In Nigeria, arguably the world's most corrupt country, you always have to be savvy and on your guard. Which of course wasn't too hard when i had the privilege of an armed patrol car escort in the evenings. All in all it was a memorable trip and I very much look forward to getting back there and exploring the country and the culture beyond Lagos.
Click on the pix above for some narrated photos.
The picasaweb slideshow works great.
