A trip to Awkunanaw River

While Kerry and I were exploring the market on Wednesday, I received phone call from my German friend Anna, asking if we would like to go on a trip to the river with her and some friends. We immediately said yes, because Kerry, like me, has spent her entire life near the water, and it is hard for us to be away from it. We also will take any excuse to hang out with other people, and it is a bonus if they are Nyacha… So we said yes with excitement and looked forward to seeing them the next day.

They asked us to meet them at their house the next morning by nine, and we were trying to figure out how to do this, because Kerry has a rule: she will not get on an okada. I respect her rule, so we decided the only other way to get there would by on foot. When we got back from the market, we realized Christopher, the driver employed by the sisters, was at the house. This surprised us because we thought he was away for the week. So I casually dropped into the conversation that we would walk to Ofuobe (a center near the house) the next morning for an outing. I planned this carefully, and I knew exactly what would happen next. Chris’s eyes got wide and he exclaimed, “That’s impossible!” For being such a fit and healthy country, Nigerians hate walking. In my short experience here, they would rather take a dangerous okada or a small bus packed with 25 people than walk for 30 minutes. Both Kerry and I love to walk, so it has been difficult convincing people that we can walk and still be safe AND not die from exhaustion. As I expected, my plan worked perfectly, and Chris not only volunteered to take us, he insisted. We were glad, it would have been a very long walk, and we didn’t really know where we were going.

We arrived at the house (it is Hildegard’s house, she owns the Therapeutic Day Care Center. Anna, Melanie and Laura also live there) and Anna was standing outside the gate with nothing but her wrapper on, wrapped tightly around her torso. Chris’s eyes went wide as if saying, “This is who you are hanging out with? You better not come home dressed like that…” She explained the reason for the garb was because she wouldn’t be joining us on our trek.

She showed us where Hildegard was waiting, and she was so excited! She made sure our shoes were water proof, we had sun screen on and had enough water, because according to her, “it is a nice trek”. Kerry and I perked at those words, because, you guessed it, we like to walk. Melanie and Laura joined us at the car and we set off for the river.

Surprisingly, the river was actually quite close to where Kerry and I were staying previously (hence the name Awkunanaw River…), and we were bummed we didn’t know about it before. We drove through a village and passed the nomadic people of the area, called Fulanese. They were dressed in brightly colored wrappers around their waists, and had nothing covering their chests. There hair was different from the styles I had seen before, and their facial features were more severe, with tribal marks on them. They were all carrying huge amounts of water or rocks on their heads as they walked from the river. When we pulled up next to the river, I was so struck by the beauty of it. It was mostly dried up, because rainy season hasn’t really gotten going yet. But there was some water in it. The hills surrounding it knocked me over, the magnitude of the beauty was frankly, overpowering. We walked in the river bed, the feeling of the sand and water between my toes was too much, I simply wanted to lie in the river forever. We trekked for about 30 minutes, and passed many people collecting water and rocks to sell. There were grass huts in small formations along the side of the river, where the Fulanese lived. Finally, we climbed out of the river and put our shoes on again, walking into the woods. We hiked for a few minutes before I saw a small lake through a clearing. It was small, but it was enough to convince me that I need to live near water someday. It was lovely just to sit next to the water. Hildegard told us that there are crocodiles that live in the lake (She was with her husband and children and dog. The dog was swimming and she saw the crocks coming slowly through the water towards them. The dog was rescued with out any injuries…) But I didn’t seen them, which bummed me out! I would love to see a crocodile, from a distance that is…

We stayed there for a while, before heading back to the car. We stopped on the way for snacks and a water break. On the way back, we collected rocks for the school. There is a certain type that is good for chalk. So we all carried rocks with us, waving at the children and women in the stream.

Now I am back, sitting on my bed, thanking God that NEPA is finally on, and feeling very hot. I was also sunburned today, despite my repeated latherings of sunscreen. I try, I really do… I hope to go back again soon.