woh, haven't checked in in a couple of days, but I'm loving the activity. appreciate all the posts, many thanks!

To SNOOPY, no worries about the reposts. I hate when that happens, when you finish writing a long string of text and you lose it. So frustrating. You've been real helpful so far and thanks for that. I had a 3/4 review last week, so I can finally get some sleep lately.

To my man ABRANTIE, I don't know what all this talk about Chinamen is about, but Im American. I believe the expression helping a brother out was started by MY people here in the US, maybe you should do well to come up with your own.

TO the rest of you. Appreciate the love. keep it up!

Just to update all of you on my project, it's now on waste and recycling collection and transportation. I'm using the BRT and will design the stations. And then I'll design a recycling center, I suppose. Not sure yet, but only a couple of weeks left until my review. Essentially, I'm using the undercarriage of the BRT buses to transport recycleables. Some of the BRT stops will be turned into larger stations that collect and store the recyclables before they're put onto a bus. The people are the ones bringing the recycles and they get a free fare or maybe even get to go to front of the line for bringing a certain amount of recycleables. ANd then the bus transports bot hte people and recycleable along the route on Ikorodu Road. One stop on the route near the Military Hospital (are you familiar with this place? Is it used by the people? It's where Ikorodu Road almost meets the Rail line) is the site for the recycling and composting facility. So the bus will drop off all the stuff at that busstop and continue along its way to Lagos Island.

Any comments by Snoopy and others would be appreciated. And also, as usual, here are some questions for all of you:

1) How do you transfer to another line on the BRT. For example, if I'm going down Ikorodu Road and I want to transfer to another bus that goes East along Apapa Oworonshoki Road, how do I do the transfer? Do I have to walk to another bus stop? Or do both lines come to the same bustoop? And what about the fare? Do I have to pay another full fare?

2) Does LAWMA come to your house to pick up your waste? If so, how often does the truck come? If not, how do you throw out your waste from home?

3) DO you recycle? Paper, plastic, metal, etc.?


And to RAINTREE, I'm back for second half, maybe it's just stoppage time, but I'm back. Gutted that my Arsenal lst to Tottenham last week, but back nonetheless. Not sure where I should link this to in the forum. Any suggestions?

alright snoopy, so things are taking a little turn for me here. We were originally in a group of 3 and we're splitting up and working on different projects that we still want to keep related as a network of projects in the city. 1 of the projects has to do with finance and it will be on Lagos Island. The other is a system of small-scale urban farming and markets based along the railroad tracks. As for mine, not really sure yet, but it will be related to infrastructure, but not necessarily physical infrastructure of roads, tracks, concrete, etc. I'm looking at waste now and seeing how I can come up with some system of waste removal that uses the people as a type of infrastructure as well. Despite many examples of the people as a problem, the Environmental Day is a great example of how the people can become a resource. So I'm interested in this idea and somehow combining it with 1) tradtional notions of waste removal at urban scale and 2) the high amount of sustainability that seems to occur at the dumps--the stuff of creative intelligence that archtiects (including Rem Koolhaas) looked at years ago. But there seems to be a pseudo community/goverment going on at these sites and they seem to embody the very codes of behoviour and negotiating that characterizes the rest of the city. As Lagos modernizes, the treatment of the waste will be a big issue (it already is of course), but a question becomes will it take a similar attitude like in the USA (New yorkers generate so much trash and we have no idea where it goes. I mean we recycle, but that just means we throw different types of trash in different containers, but we have no idea what happens to it after its taken from in front of our building. And it's America so we don't typically care about those things. (Yes, it's so wrong).
So I don't know what all this means, but I was wondering if you had any thoughts, and if you could tell me a little about waste in the city. I'm looking into LAWMA and sure there are the BBC videos on waste from Mile 12 and such, but any suggestions would be a great help.

One more question. Can you give me a sense of what's going on at the bus stations? I just see this collection of people but I'm wondering if there are kiosks or even vendors hanging out around there trying to sell things. Do cab drivers wait around there trying to get a fare, do people socialize? etc.

many thanks

Hey Snoopy. You are Yoruba! Ha. I guess the esusu is not as common as I thought it was. Good to know. Of course if you ever need any assistance, holler. I'm actually interested in what work you're doing. Do you have a studio? And if so what type of project are you working on? Do architecture students over not sleep as well? Some more quick questions on Lagos:

1) how much of the BRT and Light rail systems have been completed so far, and under fashola, do you expect it to be finished soon?
2) is there anywhere I can find a vector map of the city? gis info is lacking for me.
3) Eko Atlantic was one of the first things I checked out. Was crazy to see the amount of devt going on there. I heard the dredging of sea is currently going on. You think the project will actually happen? And what about the Lekki SEZ. Will that happen as well?
4) Do you expect the the 1-3 story buildings on Mainland to soon be replaced by more large scale devt? In other words, Will Mushin soon look like Lagos Island? And if so, is this a good thing? Is there anything about the Lagos of old to preserve?

Thanks man.

Oh, one thing mate about the esusu. Esusu is not a food, it's a collective money saving scheme where a group of people pool their money and give it to one person. Next month they pool again and give it to someone else and keep switching off until the rotation is finished (i think, not completely sure). I think it's a traditional yoruba practice, not sure. anyways, just fyi. you must not be yoruba, right?

Hi Snoopy. Holy shizot. I just want to thank you first for your extensive reply because it is so so helpful. I can't even stress it enough. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it all and so I will get back to you with some followup, but in the meantime, there are some other things on my mind:

1. future growth of the city. It seems from your comments and things I've come across (rebuilding of road going to Ikorodu bc it floods too easily and moving of Mile 12) that future growth of the city will happen in Ikorodu and areas north of lagos Lagon. But I was wondering what's going on in areas west of the airport because density there seems pretty low and it seems like it could take much more people and activity for growth. Is there any real change that will occur in those areas? and why not?

2. Lagos Island and its mentality? (not the write word, but regardless, ) The way you describe wish of young people to get good-paying jobs in banking, finance, commerce, etc. makes Lagos sound just like New York where people coming out of good schools are really interested in investment banking, hedgefunds, and maybe managment consulting more than anything. But even in NY this is not the common concern, just representative of specific population. I can't help think of Seoul, where there is a huge split between those with money and those without (kids with money go to itnernational schools, or even school abroad, so the cutlture is very different between these 2 groups). I wonder if there is a similar thing in Lagos which may even be more complicated because of the colonial past. So if I ever get to a question here,
a) is the desire to have a hgih profile office job as strong to the everyday person? (I suppose the question is stupid because the answer is obvious, but I hope you can just talk a little more about these things)
b) how is Lagos Island the standard, a symbol of some kind? I ask because most of the hip hop videos seemed to be filmed there and I'm interested also how this positive perception of Lagos Island is reconciled with its past as colonial center of power. Does that stuff even matter anymore for typical Lagosians?

Many thanks.

Wow, already been a few hours since my last post and no responses. Feedback usually happens much quicker! To all you Lagosians out there, please help a brother out. Any comments would be invaluable in helping me come up with a good proposal.

Hello beauty. thanks for the post. I'm a an architecture graduate student at Columbia University. I'm Korean-American, born and raised in New York. My knowedge of Africa alone is very limited, so this whole semester has been a real learning experience. The project is treating the city of Lagos looking through the lens of Food, Fuel, Finance. I'm in a group of 3 so right so we are looking at Lagos at the city-wide scale. Although what the city needs more than anything is basic infrastructure (please correct me if you think I'm wrong), since I'm not in an urban design program, my group is looking to implement something a little different than a power or transportation infrastructure. (But it is still soemthing we talk about all the time)

In looking at different flows through the city, we've found that the top-down government network doesn't always work, and the informal organizational systems (pseudo governments in specific areas, even the power wielded by area boys to a certain extent) have been created to fill in wherever the government system isn't working propoerly. Sometimes this is good and sometimes this is bad, but the city nevertheless figures out a way to manage. Lagos seems to be in the middle of a process of formalizing everything; when markets are torn down and new ones are built, sure Lagos State can being collecting taxes (a good thing), but too much change can make Lagos look and feel like everwhere else (which may be a bad thing). Or maybe this is a good thing. I don't know. But I'm interested in your opinion.

The direction of my project seems to be going towards food right now. While there are many obstacles, Nigeria has the potential to become a net food exporter. Anything from millet, sorghum, yams to cassava can be grown in the country, and possibly even sold or donated to other countries. And so for lagos State, if food production can occur in the state, a lot of the food that ends up in Lagos could be shipped elsewhere and Lagosians could eat the food grown in the city.

That's the basic approach right now. Any comment would be greatly appreciated. Since there's a load of other stuff we've been looking at (esusu and stanbic ibtc e.susu, nollywood, bunkering of oil in the delta region, party scene in Lagos Island, etc), we're still interested in answers to the previous quetsions, since their still all things we're thinking about. even your favortie team in EPL. We've become as familiar as we can through videos and articles, but we're really missing on the ground information. Sure I've watched a lot made by the BBC, but they have their own agenda in making the videos. And so I thought going directly to the source (Lagosians) might help. Many thanks for any responses. Any comments are invaluable in us making a meangful proposal.

Eko o ni baje
Andrew

Hi all,

I am an architecture student and I am currently working on a project based in Lagos. I have never been to Nigeria before and so I'm not very familiar with many things about this project. But following this website for the past couple of weeks has been very helpful. I'm trying to get some information on the city and have some questions for any of you who live in Lagos. I'd be really thankful if you could answer any of them. Thanks!

1. How common is the esusu to everyday people? Are you part of one?
2. When purchasing petrol, do you know if it came from legit source or is part of black market? Do you even care between the difference?
3. If Lagos State was opening a new market to service people who have to travel too far to get to a market, where should it be located?
4. Do you prefer shopping in traditional market or modern facilities such as Palm Mall in Lekki? Why?
5. If you like market, how can shopping in a market be improved?
6. How often do you eat at fast food (Mr. Biggs, Tantalizers, etc.)? How does it compare to home cooking?
7. Do you own a generator? If so, how often do you use it?
8. How often does power go out in the city?
9 How big of a problem is hunger in the city?
10. If there was a system of urban farms in the city, would you purchase food grown there?
11. It seems like Nigeria has much arable land. Why does the country not grow a lot and send food aid to hungry countries in Africa?
12. If current development in Lagos State makes the entire city look like Lagos Island, is this a good thing or bad thing?
13.What team do you support in English Premier League? (just curious)

Many thanks for your time.

I'll start with acceptance of foreigners, i think they're more open to people in seoul than other places, if you could go to seoul, that would probably be easier for you. Koreans generally aren't very open to people they don't know (even other koreans), so it's even worse for people of other races, and probably even worse for blacks. That doesn't mean you will experience outright racism in your face (which probably will not happen unless you're out drinking and some random guys MAY come up to you) or if you are with a korean girl. Korean generally keep to themselves and just stare alot (they even stare at me for speaking english on the cell phone, and I'm ethnically korean). If you can get used to that, they stare at anything different, not just blacks, then go for it. Just be careful around bar areas at nighttime and when you are with a korean woman. Again seoul has areas like itaewon and hongdae where there are more foreigners and young people, so those areas are very cool and laid back. people down in gwangju may be a little more conservative.

As for money in seoul a room in a shared apartment starts at around 500,000 won. your own apartmnet will cost more. and things will be cheaper in gwangju. hope this helps

So if you look at the original post and read the questions, you will understand why I included the image. The circled areas are the places I'm itnerested in and I'd like to know more about them. If anyone has any info it would be very helpful. THanks!

And again, they do not make good bombign sites (not enough people) or place for kidnapping (too many people)

thanks for the help! this website is great.

and to the poster worried about bombings, no worries man, doesn't make sense to bomb areas that aren't inhabited. and the info is open to all on google earth. cheers mate!

My 9ja friends,

As a born American I can tell you that all is not well here. I think many people may look up to USA for now because for many years now, we were a world leader in many different ways. The country was founded by people who had a great vision of what they wanted this country to be. Many people in history worked hard to make this vision come true, and it has been true for many years now. The problem is that like other empires, people get lazy because they are satisfired with all that they have. The people lose their drive to keep improving and all that is left is an attempt to keep things the way they are.

And this is the America of today. My country no longer has a vision to keep moving forward. Many of the things that made this a great country (personal freedoms, desire to work hard, desire to be the best) is no longer the case. So for all you people who think America is so blessed, keep paying attention and you can watch over the next 20 years how america is losing that blessing.

Anyone ever been to the circled areas on de map? It's Western Lagos and I want to know if those areas are forests or river/water. Is it a park that Lagosians relax in? Also If anyone can tell me why those strips of green are left unsettled that would be very helpful. Does Lagos State prohibit people living in those areas? Is it for transportation or part of swer system?

My site for architecture studio this year is Lagos and I'm trying to find out some info. Any help is much appreciated. Many thanks!

Andrew

Yeah, I saw that video, it's really the only images I have of Mushin Market. I think it's hilarious when the nigerian woman asks the begger where she's from, "America? You come from America?"

This is for an architecture project. The city I'm working in is Lagos and I'm trying to find out more info about the city. So for now I am contrasting the newer developments of Lagos Island versus some busy areas on the mainland that don't have constant power, air conditioner, etc. ------> Mushin Market.

We don't get to visit Lagos which makes this very difficult so I'm trying to get a better sense of what the actual experience is on the ground. Anyone know if Mushin Market is open at night and if some vendors have generators so they have power when the lagos power grid goes out? Many thanks

Andrew

Hey all,

I'm over in USA and I'm trying to get images of Mushin Market and get familiar with what that place is like. Specifically, I'd like to know if there is electricity running through the market (I'm guessing no) and if not, then how common are generators in the market? Does is close at sunset?

Only image I have is a youtube video. If you can suggest anything that might help I'd be much obliged. Many thanks

Not from 9ja, but I lived in Seoul for 3 years. Sorry I can't help with info about traveling from 9ja, but hit me up if you have any questions about Korea itself. I'd be happy to help you out.

Found it. Many thanks.

Hi all. First time poster from the States. I'm an architecture student and my project this term is in Lagos, so I've been reading all about 9ja. It's been very informative.

I have a question about a site in Lagos. This is a picture that someone else posted here in a different forum, but I was wondering if anyone had any information about this place. Any help is much appreciated. Many thanks!