I think one similarity about most cities is that everyone is always on the move. Lagos is no exception and so far I've lived for more than twenty years, it seems the movement has only increased.
I like my quiet and peace which is why I stay home mostly except it's a day out with the guys, or I've got something important to do or I'm just traveling to other states.
One thing I can say I love about Lagos is that something is always happening. Immediately I leave Lagos, it takes awhile to get used to the slow pace of life elsewhere.
From the street food, night life, daily drama and absolutely crazy traffic, you just know you'll get free entertainment immediately you leave your doorstep.
As much as lagos state is a thriving hub of activities, it's capital ikeja can best be regarded as the tech hub.
Over the weekend after a long while away, I finally visited the infamous ikeja computer village. Computer village as it's fondly called is actually a network of streets offering tech services but in reality it's a city within a city.
Computer village is where you can buy or sell your technological gadgets from phones, computers, amongst others and repair or swap for another one.
Of course there are other places within Nigeria offering these same services, but in most cases it's not on the scale you find in Computer village. My cousin and I had a saying If everywhere has failed you, your solution is at computer village.
About a few years back just post covid-19 nationwide lockdown, I had a lot of free time on my hands so I decided to do some internship in that market and this actually helped a lot with my communication skills.
Everyday we had people from different cultures, tribes and sometimes even nationalities come for different services, it was a real eye opener compared to my otherwise secluded lifestyle up until that point.
I had a repair to make on saturday and computer village it was, I was definitely looking forward to meeting my old boss.
I had to admit that even though from my house to ikeja, everything seemed a little bit slowed down from it's usual pace which I eventually attributed to a recent hike in fuel prices causing most people to find alternative transportation.
Immediately I got inside computer village, everything changed and I was finally back in my comfort zone. Everyone seemed to be going somewhere and transactions were literally happening right in the streets even though hundreds of shops were offering those services.
Whenever you're surprised by the tenacity of a Nigerian, you only have to look at the hustle culture. Everyone in that market had a place there and if you don't have that determined look when you're on the move, then you just tagged yourself a potential customer.
You'll find absolutely no one offering a service simply gawking at buildings, everyone is looking for the next customer. It's quite a competitive mindset, but at the end of the day everyone gets to eat.
My old boss was surprised to see me and I actually ended up spending the whole day helping him with his customers. The guy even escaped for awhile leaving me to it (Lol, I knew I wasn't going home soon at that point).
I eventually got my repair done and even though I was tired, it was quite an eventful day. With the population that would be leaving once it was evening, I knew I was about to enjoy good old Lagos traffic back home.
Trust me, I wasn't disappointed.
All images used are mine..