Na mi get road but e come shunt me

Traffic go kill me - it's probably the most dangerous thing I have been involved in ever since I got here (Apart from the football game I'd say). I talked with my taxi driver about it this morning, he asked me about the way we drive in Germany, and all I could say was: "Well, it's different. There are rules and stuff." I m guessing that there are actually rules here, but I can't quite figure out what exactly the rules are. I m still trying to figure out the signs the policeman makes at the crossroads. The impressive thing about Abuja are its extremely well-built and new roads, highways, and expressways (thanks to Julius Berger, which is a German company no one in Germany ever heard of, but they are such a big deal here), so people really speed. Also traffic lights are in place. Those aren't working though, so during peak times, policemen regulate the traffic at the crossroads in a very confusing manner. I am actually thinking about taking driving lessons - there is a "Unity and Peace Driving School" close to my home. Maybe I will learn what the random waving and pointing is supposed to indicate. Surprisingly, there are less accidents than I would have expected (I see at least one every day, but that's little, considering the way people drive).
The picture shows the inside of the car that brought me back from work yesterday.

This morning when I got off the cab to get to work some huge, brand new car stopped next to me and some guy was trying to hand me his card. I didn't take it from him, because I wasn't sure what exactly he wanted from me. Turns out he just "admired me" and wanted me to call him. When I didn't react right away he jumped out of his car (tall guy in a very formal suit) and in the middle of a quite busy street he yells: "Madame (Every lady here is a "Madame"), please call me! I admire you! Promise to call!" Which was not only a really funny situation, but attracted the attention of my office's security personnel, as well as my taxi driver's concern; he would not leave until I had entered the office building. I find it cute, how any male person you meet, whether it's your friend's friend, the guy you buy your credit from, or just the guy who gets you to work in the morning seems to feel responsible for you and gets very jealous when he catches you talking to another male person.

Yesterday I went shopping. The store close to my office is called "Assorted Supermarket" - well, it really is not very assorted. I now know how people in the former GDR must have felt. Most shelves are half-empty, they have mostly only one or two items of any product. I was the only customer in the shop, surrounded by at least 6 employees. I am not sure, whether this "Assorted Supermarket" is a very profitable business.

Another lesson I learned yesterday: any lady that could technically be your mum, but isn't your mum is your auntie, so you call them aunty, which is very funny to me. It is considered more formal than using their first name. Your dad (baba, at least in Yoruba), uncle, and your dad's/uncle's friends, as well as your older male cousins basically only have one function: to give you money whenever they meet you. It's expected, and if they don't they are considered uncaring and stingy, which is a real insult to any Nigerian man, as they are generally very generous.

I have had Nigerian beer for the first time. Mind you, I m German, so beer is kinda a big deal and considered part of our culture ("Lieber Frau und Kind erschießen, als einen Tropfen Bier vergießen"). I have to say that "Star" (that's the brand I tried) isn't all that bad. But it gives you a headache the next day, even if you've only had a few cans (I m missing the Reinheitsgebot).

Something remarkable about the way of living in Abuja that I have discovered recently: there is a pretty clear distinction between Nigerians and Expats. There are certain places where I feel like I m in Europe, mostly white people, only the employees seem to be Nigerian. Expats have their own little communities. There is a large community of Lebanese people - they have their own restaurants and businesses. I m still not sure, why exactly Lebanese.. And then there are other places, like the area I live in, where people seem to never encounter any white people, thus they stare at you like you re an alien. So far, I haven't encountered many places in which there is a mean between the two extremes.

Apparently, I still blow oyinbo most of the time, so I m trying to adjust. But bodi dey inside cloth.