Trans West Africa: Nigeria and Cameroon

Nigeria
The worlds most corrupt country yet it's full of the worlds most beautiful people.
We anticipated trouble at the border, and we were right! Instead of entering near Lagos and having to drive through Africa's largest city, we took a more northern route and went through a much smaller border town. The officers accused all of us of having fraudulent Nigerian Visas and said that they were not in order. My visa said that it was valid for entry until Dec 10th which was the day we entered. I noticed this date while in Bamako, Mali and went to the Nigerian embassy there. They assured me that I would be able to enter on Dec 10th but not a day after. But, the officers at the border told me that it had expired. There was no getting around this one. After sitting in the dingy border crossing station, I was summoned by a few officers. They told me I had to talk to their commander. Alone, I followed them down a dark hallway, out of the building and through some tall grass. We entered a house, it was the commander's house. He was sitting on his couch, in his whitey-tities, watching television. I was mortified and terrified. As I sat small in a chair I began to think of all the things that could happen to me. My mind raced. He asked me, "What seems to be the problem miss?" I went on to explain the trouble I was having...my visa entry date says Dec 10th, I double checked at the Nigerian embassy in Mali to make sure it was valid. He then asked me to stay with him and be his friend, I politely declined. After a bribe of $30 and a paper beaded necklace from Uganda, I was allowed to enter the country. The rest of the group for the OK to enter, and we drove on to Abeokuta on the Ogun River.
Then we started our 3 day trip towards Abuja, the capital city.

Osun Sacred Forest

Bush camping was beautiful. Driving was horrendous.

In Abuja, we camped in the back of a Sheraton Hotel! Abuja was huge and had a great market. I got a lot of gifts there, and even stunning abstract painting!!!

View from our campsite in the back of the hotel.

There were speculations about safety before we even entered Nigeria (a lot of fighting caused by extreme Muslim groups calling for Sharia law). Our plan was to head north towards Jos and Yankari National Park, but after reading about the recent bombings we changed our mind and headed towards the Afi Mountains early.
An important habitat for wildlife, this fantastic wildlife sanctuary protects a number of threatened and endangered species, including the rare Cross River Gorilla and Drill Monkey. Check out how cool they look:

What gorgeous animals! We left the Drill Ranch Moneky Sanctuary and headed towards Calabar. Calabar wasn't on out itinerary, but since we didn't go to Jos and Yankari National Park we had extra time. Calabar is in the Cross River State (very south) and was a very lively city. Paul and I walked around all day! We spent 2 days there, I even got some clothes made for me. I was able to check out a little bit of the famous "Calabar Festival" that is an annual holiday type celebration (for an entire month!!) Calabar is one place I would love to go back to in Nigeria...it didn't have the craziness and unwariness of other cities in the country.

Leaving Nigeria in the dust, we headed out on the infamous Cameroonian Jungle road....

Cameroon
Thank goddess we were traveling during the dry season, because this road is impassable during parts of the year. Pictures won't do justice, there were pot holes larger than our truck! We had to drive in and drive out of the pot holes. I could stand in them, and they were over my head!!

Cameroon also has some of the most amazing tropical rainforest in Africa and this gives a perfect insight into how quickly the  rainforests of the world are being destroyed. Deforestation is happening faster here than in the Amazon Jungle.

Paul on an early morning hike on the Jungle Road.

During our trip, the Chinese were in the middle of building a tarmac highway from Nigeria to Cameroon so that this jungle road could be avoided. After many nights of bush camping we finally arrived in the beautiful beach town of Limbe. We camped in the parking lot of Seme Beach Hotel, they even had a spa! Paul and Rito climbed Mount Cameroon (Largest mountain in West Africa, 5th tallest in all of Africa). I watched from the ocean :)




Moving on via Douala, we went to Kribi, another beach town, for Christmas.

Merry Christmas (palm tree with gifts)!

Our group trip was over, but our flight didn't leave for another couple of weeks, we we went back to Limbe to relax on the beach and explore a bit more. One afternoon, Paul and I went to the Limbe Wildlife Center which has connections with the Drill Ranch Moneky Sanctuary in the Afi Mountains of Nigeria. It was much smaller, but much more easily accessible for visitors. Inside of the wildlife center, I saw a sign for "milkshakes"! I thought...milkshakes!? IN AFRICA!? I'm in!! It was here, at ARNE's Restaurant in Limba, Cameroon, that Paul and I met owners Ryan and Erika, who would be bringing us back to Cameroon on our next adventure in 2013.