Lagos, Nigeria

We are learning a lot about traveling in West Africa. Whether on the road or in the air, it is always an adventure. The purpose of our 4-day trip to Lagos was to meet and train writing specialists called from each of the five coordinating councils of the LDS Church in Nigeria. We also met with the Nigerian Public Affairs council for additional training and instruction. Two newly launched LDS websites in West Africa are being managed by senior missionary couples at this point, but our goal is to eventually turn the responsibility over to the African members as they become more confident in running the websites by themselves. If you are interested, go to www.mormonnewsroom.com.gh and africawest.lds.org.

  

A young man picked up at the airport to take us to our hotel. His
car wouldn't start. He got a second car. It died in the middle of a 
busy street. In blistering heat and among a lot of honking, the men 
got out and pushed the car to the side of the road.  

Our nice driver then called his friend to come and get us
while he made arrangements for a mechanic to help him. We then
transferred luggage to a smaller car and crammed ourselves into a
tiny car with no air conditioning. Needless to say, we were hot!

  

Our writers training included a video conference from Church
headquarters in Salt Lake City. We had the same instruction for
our four writing specialists in Ghana a few weeks before.

Our five Nigerian writers and the editor flew in from various parts
of the country to become more familiar with good writing skills
and techniques to help them in their new assignment. 

  

Our national Public Affairs director spent a few hours driving us
through parts of Lagos -- Nigeria's largest city with over 19 million
people. The city spreads over 4 main islands connected together
by a system of bridges. Downtown has a growing number of 
multistory buildings. There are highways, including bus lanes, but
traffic is still heavily congested during rush hours.   

Large churches are found throughout Lagos. This is an Anglican
cathedral built years ago by the British. Lagos was the capital,
but to reduce massive urbanization, it has been relocated to
another city. 50% of Nigeria's industry is in Lagos, including auto
assembly, metal works, food and beverage processing. Oil, gas
and coal are the natural resources in Nigeria. 

  

Football (soccer) is huge in Africa. This is one of the new stadiums
in Lagos. In the foreground you can see a light rail system being
constructed -- a much-needed way to transport millions of people.    

We were amazed to see these "floating cities" built on planks.
Nigeria's population ranges from very wealthy to very poor. I have
a hard time wrapping my mind around a city with 19 million people. 

  

This is a beautiful new bridge that connects part of 40 kilometers
of today's Lagos. There is also a state ferry that runs regular
routes. Most of the population lives on the mainland.

The men stretched their legs while Sister Petersen and I enjoyed 
walking through an art market full of beads, wood carvings, brass 
trinkets, baskets, and African instruments. 

  

This is the stake center where we attended meetings on Sunday
morning. It is one of the most beautifully constructed church
buildings we have seen since we arrived in Africa.

The property is large enough to hold Nigeria's service center and
mission home and offices along with the chapel. You can see the
gate that is locked and carefully guarded 24/7.

  

Adesina Olukanni (our boss and the area Public Affairs director)
with his cute 10-year-old daughter. He was a great host and made
sure that we felt safe and comfortable on our trip.

Nigeria's taxis are little yellow three-wheeled vehicles that zip in
and out between the cars and trucks. If you want to get
somewhere fast, this is the way to go.