For fun, for health, for long life

...says my yoghurt. Things, companies, products, just everything has very interesting names and descriptions here. They either somehow refer to God or Jesus, or are in general very poetic ("Spring of Knowledge Academy", "Peace and Unity Driving School", "Tender Years Primary School").

I have had a long weekend, Monday and Tuesday were public holidays, the end of Ramadan. On Friday I went to my colleagues housewarming party, him and his roommate, who works at the German Embassy in Abuja, have a really nice place in Maitama, including a pool, 24hrs. electricity, and warm water from the tab (which now seems like a luxury to me). I have learned that expats are generally very nice to one another, there seems to be a sense of community, which I couldn't quite grasp yet. A very nice German couple drove me home, all the way from Maitama to Gwarinpa, which is a 20 minutes drive, and either them nor me knew the way very well, so we were randomly driving through Abuja, but actually made it to my place in 30 minutes, which isn't all that bad, considering none of us really knew how to get there.

My friends are all leaving now, going back to Uni in England, and I m sure I will miss them quite alot. Not only have they taken really good care of me, but they also felt responsible and watched out for me, which meant protecting me while going clubbing, making sure I wouldn't smile at strangers, because I randomly do and here it's not something you just do, it always seems to be an invitation for more..

Meeting people here is very interesting. Guys tend to tell you the most unbelievable things. Basically, everyone is a pilot and can get you a jump seat to anywhere you wanna go. Or they successfully work for the Government and if there is anything you need or want they will be able to arrange it for you. "Anything you need.." Hmm, I wonder. I have not taken anyone up on that offer, but I might just do it for fun one of these days and then see what happens (I guess nothing will happen and I will hear interesting excuses why they will not be able to do what they promised).

Nigerian men are very generous, even if they don't have much money. A friend of mine really doesn't have anything but when I randomly mentioned that I wanted to buy credit (actually wanting to buy it myself) he just bought me a recharge before I could say anything (even though it was only for 100 Naira, which maybe makes for a 3minutes call, but I still thought it was really nice). When we go out clubbing or to a bar or a restaurant one of our friends always pays for us (meaning: all of us), and it seems to be the most common thing to do. I will come back home totally spoiled with attention and generosity. It's more of a big deal if someone invites you or pays for your drinks in Germany than it is here. It is expected that the guy who takes you out pays for all your expenses. Sometimes it is really hard for me to just accept, because I am used to paying for myself, and only once in a while let someone pay for me. Here, you don't even get a chance to pay for yourself as a girl. It's strange in the beginning, but its also amazingly generous and sweet.

A friend of mine asked what I miss about home, and it was hard to give a good answer to that. There are some things I miss, like just being able to wash my hands without having to fetch water from outside, being able to watch a movie without power going off 20 minutes before the end, or the possibility of crossing the street without the danger of being killed. Those aren't really important things though, I can live without them. I rather miss people, my family, my friends, but more surprisingly, I already know now how much I will miss Nigeria. I will miss the chicken suya, the "oyinbo, oyinbo" on the streets, the warm-hearted and welcoming people here. It's a strange strange feeling that overcomes me once in a while. I m really having a good time here, I m enjoying it, and I m happy I went here against all odds. It was the right decision after all, even though I had to fight for it.

It's funny, how people think about Germans here. Everyone who has a German boss or supervisor tells me how stressed they are because they always have to be on time and work so much to finish things on time, how they have to work efficiently and how Germans are so perfectionist. It's funny to me because when I was growing up in Germany, I always just assumed that's how it is. Spending 3 years in Jacobs partially changed my mind, but being here the contrast and difference in work ethics is just so stark. My colleagues here consider my (very nice, very efficient, very German) boss a tyrant.. He is sort of a work-a-holic, and expects people to get stuff done while they work (typically German and actually very normal to me), but people here think he stresses out way too much. Work really is not the most important thing in people's life, it's just this thing that pays the bills.

Rambling on about work ethics, I only have 3 working days this week, but instead of using them like a proper German I have been writing on this blog. Time to get back to good old German virtues...