OFF TO THE NORTH! (part 3)

Feels like Home What’s in Kaduna? Absolutely nothing, as the Italian husband of a Pinay living there said. Nothing, that is, except for a small Filipino community who really made me feel at home after almost 7 months of being in a strange country. Kaduna wasn’t part of my original plan, but it wasn’t so far away, there are other VSOs there, and I felt a dose of the Philippines would do me good. I stayed with Simon, a volunteer working in a deaf school. The children were very friendly, and when they were not in their classes they were out in the yard playing, but the whole school was so quiet it was the weirdest thing! And a very nice change from my very noisy village. The Filipino expats, I was surprised to find out, had been living in this country for many, many years - from 7 to 17! And here I am struggling at 6 months! They were really nice and accommodating (I would like to say very Pinoy – I miss that so much), and even prepared a 5-course home-cooked Filipino meal for me and the British VSOs in Kaduna! Oh sinigang! I got really helpful tips and advice on surviving in Nigeria, as with the other Filipino volunteers who are here. Manong Blas, the couple who prepared dinner know you and your brother (the engineer); they were also teaching at IIT. It’s such a small world! Sino ang Bestfriend mo Doon? Though I’ve been to Abuja, the capital, twice before, I never really had time to go around. As this was my last stop, and it was really nice just spending time with Marebec, I just stayed around trying to get civilized until my money ran out. I felt so taga-barrio with the nice tallish buildings, wide well-paved roads, and aha! An elevator ride to boot. Dave, Mr. Techie himself, Bec’s boyfriend and also a VSO, guided me through all the technical stores for my brand new generator (finally I‘ve decided to get myself one!) and all the cables and stuff that go with it. (I was going to have my keyboard fixed, but it would have been expensive and they might just end up destroying my laptop, so bear with my capitals when I email or chat with you guys.) I went shopping in a real supermarket (small but they actually have a cash register and marked prices!) and splurged on overpriced cheese and potato chips (they exist in this country after all!). I met other VSOs working in or near Abuja, as well as ex-VSOs and other expats. It‘s a different world altogether. Marebec is one of the first people I met in Nigeria and the first person from my country. She was one of the volunteers who facilitated our in-country orientation, and the only Filipino volunteer who is my age. She works in Radio Nigeria, and this photo was taken from the Radio House’s rooftop. Though she lives 9 hours away, she has gotten me through some tough times and there are many things I share with her that I can’t confide with Cercopan or other nearer VSO volunteers. I got pampered at her house, which has air-conditioning, hot running water, and almost uninterruptible power. I overstayed actually, and since it‘s not particularly motivating to go back to the village when there‘s no water, no one can blame me. God Realizes I‘ve had it After a week in the (relatively) big city I got myself on a bus going south, and overloaded as I was with my gen, external keyboard, some pasalubong and potato chips (including all the pounds I had gained back), decided to head straight for the village instead of Calabar. So it was that I found myself trudging through sticky mud at 8pm so the motorcycle carrying all my stuff could climb uphill. When I finally got home I was too tired and too dirty, but I knew I had to half-cook all the expensive meat I had brought from Abuja. I was grateful I had a bit of water left just for a bath, but thought it had better rain tomorrow, otherwise Cercopan had better bring me plenty water quick or I would just go back to civilization. The next morning I woke up to the glorious sound of rain which didn’t stop for the whole day.