Canoe Trip

The first week of the Easter Holidays we decided to go canoeing. We have done quite a bat of canoeing in the past - down the Wye and the Monnow mainly and boy oh boy this was not like that!
I duly phoned a contact someone had said had canoes Mufu and we drove way out past Lekki to meet him, on his Ocada, at the side of the road. He then led us to this village. It was really well run with stand pipes and children everywhere. I had packed some sweets and pens incase there were kids about and I was quickly over run with children wanting lollipops. The little ones didn't know they had to take the wrappings off, so we spend quite a time unwrapping lollies.
We were then taken to our canoes and we had a paddler each! The canoes were in various stages of decay - each had a bailing bucket (not a good omen) and were hand carved out of tree trunks. The canoeing was fantastic there was no sound just insects and birds - magical two hours in the back waters of Lagos.

Edible fungus - but I am such a wuss I didn't eat it - isn't red poisonous?

Real dug out

my Paddler Taho

I am going to destroy this hat soon!

very willing to be disturbed!

In the school pineapple garden

After about an hour in the canoes we stopped at another remote village asnd we were introduced the the dead Chief's wife. The Chief is buried on the front step of the house - a thing that shocked our two teenaged companions. We were also taken to the school and they were very proud of their new toilets (although I saw kids peeing in the playground) but again our intrepid teenagers ( and their older companions) declined the offer of using the facilities. The pens came in very useful here though the kids and adults all wanted them.

School playground
Next stop after the canoeing was the beach at the Lekki free zone. This is where one of the previous rulers of NIgeria, Alowolo, was placed under house arrest for 10 years. It is also where Lekki, a portugese slave trader exported his thousands of slaves to the West Indies. It is hard to believe that such a beautiful place was the place of such misery and degradation.  All that remains of the slave compound is one of the pillars that they were marched through to the boats. This should be preserved to remind of of how cruel man can be to others but it has been left to decay- perhaps that is the better way .

beautiful beach and water but savage undertow

they caught very little when we were there

The slave post at Lekki