The Rave returns for season two with a new name and brand new content to share with you all. In this episode, Micheal takes us on a journey to Lagos and details some of his adventures in the land of hustlers. 

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Live, Love, Grow

Hello, hi, good morning, good afternoon, good evening. 

Welcome to The Rave, a monthly podcast where I talk about topics that are geared towards living a productive life, loving ourselves as well as others, a bit more, and ultimately growing to become a better version of ourselves. The journey across and beyond will be thrown in once a while.

It’s basically me talking about random things in my life. It’s more like bringing me closer to you. My name is Micheal Olaniyi and if you will, Mandrel Mykels. It’s so lovely to have you join me. Other times I won’t be doing this alone. I’ll have other amazing people who will either anchor with me or will be interviewed anyway.

All the opinions shared on this podcast are majorly subjective. It’s yours to do whatever you would with it. But majorly, I do hope you pick a thing or two, welcome to the best days of our life.

 Welcome to season two of The Rave. You will be listening to the Journey across and beyond, enjoy.

The Journey Begins

Hello, everybody. It’s so lovely to have us back here. Oh God, it’s been a while. I’ve missed every single one of you. And it’s really lovely to be back today. And into today’s episode, as you heard from the intro it’s going to be the journey across and beyond. And today I’ll be talking about my journey or my trip to Lagos

Hmm, Lagos, Lagos, Lagos oh, God Lord. Okay. Before I go into talking about Lagos, let me start. I’m going to walk you through all the process from how it started when I was in Kaduna down to when I…in fact, okay let’s just, lemme not even give you spoilers. Let me just start. Okay. So how many of us have that feeling that when you are about to travel, you are barely able to sleep.

Like it goes, okay, let me not oversleep. And then, you know the sleep doesn’t even come in fact and then you’re just restless. That was me on the day supposed to travel to Lagos. Yeah. I’ve been to Lagos before, but then I was working in Ilorin, so it was not so much of a distance. And then I wasn’t supposed to, it was a private I was going with, so yeah.

So I was supposed to go with a luxurious bus. And then when I called and asked for the price Oh God. Ah, I was, I was amazed. 17 five. Okay, to some people 17 five might not be much, but to me at that point, it really was. Cos 17 five go and then you know, the journey within Lagos. Lagos is like a country within a country.

Like, and then coming back again, that same 17 five. It was funny cos I had to call, I called with my airtel line and then I had to call with my MTN just to know, okay. Maybe that person didn’t understand what I was asking. I called and he said the same thing. I was like, eh.

As I called the park of bus, and then they were like 10 five, and then, ah, 10 five, I save seven.I would save, I think 7,000, right. As I went to Bus and then they told me, okay, I should get there by six and you know, okay. I didn’t behave like a normal Nigerian, normal Nigerian person goes to places late.

So, I got up as early as I think, four 30, although I didn’t get to sleep really well, but I was up like four 30 and I, you know, I was out of the house, like getting a bike or a bus or something at that time was really, really hard. Like I stood there for over 45 minutes before I eventually got something and I got a bike and then, you know, we raced and then, you know, that kind of time a bike man is talking to you he says something and you are like Yeso my brother that’s the way it is

And then we rode, we got to the park on getting to the park. I was amazed to see that I was the only one in the park. My heart was broken. I was expecting to see that, okay, the boss is almost filled and then will be moving my people. I was there at 6:00, 6:30, 7:30, 8;30. Like we didn’t get to leave the park until I think 11:45 or something.

That’s when we later left the park, since then I told myself in my life, I’m not going to go to the park early as long as it’s a bus, I know the luxurious buses. I’ve never got the opportunity to, you know but I’ve family members that, you know, use it and then, you know, they leave at the time they say they’re going to leave, but among the bus people… Huu! God almighty as in it was, it was, it was, it was, it was really amazing. Uh, so yeah, then this journey started and you know, I was squeezed cos of how skinny, okay. I’m not skinny because of how lepacious I am, I was in between two plum people.

Ah, my God, it was an experience. And then, you know, how that they sat down. like okay it’s my personal car. I wanted to just yell like, go shift, you want to kee me. But of course I couldn’t, I couldn’t do that. Ah, dear Lord Lagos is far from Kaduna. Oh, Lrd I adjust my yansh, my bom bom, as in, you know, that kind you’re sitting and then you are adjusting, you use the right butt cheek to sit, then you adjusting the left, butt cheek, and then you sit to shift front.

As in that, that is how it was like, you know, the journey just kept going. And in my mind, I’m like, ah, Are we there yet cos okay. I think it was my first time, as I said earlier, of going to Lagos from Kaduna like, are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? like, oh good Lord. And then on the journey, you know, we got to pass through a lot of beautiful places.

My brother, my sisters. Ha, when you’re travelling and then you have, you know, ample money with you, you’re trying to economise. That’s when everything looks tasty, that’s when everything looks affordable, seems affordable. I beg your pardon. Like, I, I, I was trying to, you know, minimise my spending.

That’s when, you know, the, suya people like the aroma just comes like Hmm. Or the eateries, you know, the biscuits, the chocolates, the sweets, and all of that. Everything just seemed like, Ugh, Micheal. Just take a bite, Mandrel. Just get your snack. It was, you know, funny, but then I didn’t get to, you know, spend as much cos I already cooked.

Yeah. I cook. Yeah. So I already cooked. So, you know whenever I feel tempted, although at some point let me nor lie I got something, but it was, it was minimal cause I already cooked. So, you know, when I was feeling really, really hungry, I just had what I had. Yeah. So. You know, it’s, it’s really nice when you are going somewhere and maybe you’ve not been there before.

And of course you have people on the other end, but it’s really nice. How that if you can get someone in the bus or in the car or in the luxury bus or in the plane? Well, plane. Okay. In the plane that, you know, knows where you’re going to, that, you know, can help you get around. Like it was, that was the case for me.

Stranger in a New Land

I met this guy in the bus. You know, luckily for me, I can speak Hausa. So, you know, they were just conversing and okay. I just, yes, I did amebo, I heard their conversation. He said he was going to Ikorodu and for me I was also going to Ikorodu, so, you know, I just hitch along and then, you know, the beautiful thing about, you know, I dunno if he’s going to get to listen to this but I want to say a big thank you to him.

Like it was amazing cos you know, he took out of his time to take me to exactly my bus stop of where my people were going to come and get me. Like it was really fascinating for me. Like how that someone would be that selfless, you know, it was, it was awesome. Before we got to Lagos, I kept looking, looking, looking, okay, where’s the guy, where’s the guy. I just attach to him and all of that. And then, you know, it was just beautiful, the journey. And then he was, yeah, God bless you wherever you are. God bless you for me, I’m really, really grateful. Okay. So, uh, yeah. So one thing that happened on our way to Ikorodu was how that, I think the first was Ketu now, I can’t really remember.

I think it was Ketu that, um, from where we dropped, I think was he a Berger? I can’t remember the name. I think we dropped at Berger and then, you know, um, get first go to Ketu. You know, I’ve never been there before, so my eye just shine and everything. And then the guy was just dozing off and I didn’t know whether I should tap him or, or something.

And then, you know, I didn’t know the place. So when, when the driver stopped and then, you know, the guy was still sleeping in my mind, I’m like, okay, maybe we will still go further the driver yelled “esokale now” let’s come down then. It was, it was just, it was just funny. And then that was like, okay, me starting to get the experience, you know of, uh Lagos. Yes. And then now to talk about my host, I must really give it to the Adedoyin’s. Yes. Um, Mr. And Mrs. Adedoyin, you guys are amazing, like you made my stay Lagos amazing. It was really, really beautiful how that you guys, you know, went out of your way.

Ah, my people I eat, you need to see me when I came back from Lagos. Oh, I fresh. I even fat, but then now went to work again. I’m black. I’m not fine. Like when I like it was, it was amazing. I think it was in their place that I first saw diced chicken inside egg, like, uh, God, uh, Just sort of, oh God, I wanna go back.

Like, yeah, the Adedoyins, I’m coming back soon. Like, it was really fun, you know, I’m really grateful and yes, they’re my number one fan. Like in every episode they are people that comment the most. So, thank you guys so much.

Yeah. So thank you so much. Big sis if you’re listening. I’m really grateful. Thank you for the support. Thank you for always sharing. I became the nanny for my nephew. Like it was so amazing that he didn’t let his mom, like, he just, I think he forgot that his mom was there. I became his new mom, like, you know, taking care of him, everything.

And then, you know, he’s always coming to me wherever I was. He’s always coming to meet me. And then I’m like, you people shuu come and carry your child, they’ll come and carry him in the next five minutes. He’s back. And then he just scattering everywhere, and, and it was, it was fun. At some point he made me feel like giving birth to my own child, but ha ha ha haha.

Um, so yeah, my elder sister’s husband was almost always busy, you know, he’s um, a Coder, a programmer, anything I.T it’s him and then Yihan, you know, it. their company that is coming up shortly. You know, one of the projects that is out currently okay. In the making, you know, is urgent 2k. Okay. Okay. I’m gonna give you the update in subsequent episodes or something, but you know, it’s really beautiful to see people that go out of their way to see that, okay, you are comfortable and, you know, it was really nice.

And then God, the bread I ate in Lagos God like it, it tasted different. I don’t know why, but it was really nice. Really, really nice. So I enjoyed it. Okay. So, um, my highlights in Lagos were the few outings where I didn’t. I didn’t really get to go outside, cos I didn’t know anywhere was, was the outings I had with my girlfriend.

Those were really the highlights, although I didn’t really get to experience hold up as much. Okay. Um, I did I, not really the, you know, the typical one hour to 2 hours, but I was lucky I didn’t get to experience that cause I think, okay. We moved um, more with BRT and they had their dedicated lane.

You know, Lagos is really, really nice, but my dear, if you’re not strong, can’t live there, it’s funny to see how people like they’re chasing the bus. They’re chasing, they’re chasing the bus. Um, okay. They don’t call it bus danfo. They’re chasing the danfo and you know where I am here in Kaduna like, You can, when you stop the bus, they stop and then they will reverse and then you climb in like, I can’t live in Lagos.

So I beg oh, yes. Um, okay. I just mentioned my girlfriend frivolously. Yeah, that was the first time I was actually seeing her, you know, we’ve been online lovers so, um, partly the reason why I went to Lagos was, you know, to see her and make everything official. Okay. So you wanna hear the gist? I’ll talk about it maybe in a subsequent episode of, um, the journey across and beyond, but let me just give a spoiler – she’s the definition of heaven sent and answered prayers.

In essence, what I’m trying to say now is I have journeyed out of single hood. So, yeah, that is, that, is that about, um, my trip to Lagos. Oh, yes, there was one part I forgot to mention. There was one lady, not a lady, like a woman. One of the fat people that compressed me in the bus. So she was like myself. She wasn’t really sure of where she was going.

So, you know, she had to make stops and all of that. And then, you know, she was just making a scene. The driver didn’t know where she was going. And then when they called a different place, the person over the phone told the driver and then the driver took, she insulted the driver when he eventually, you know, it was quite late.

I think I got too late or 5:00 AM ish. Was it five? I can’t remember. I think three or so. I think it was three, three or so. And then, um, and then, okay. Yeah, when we, when we got to where she was, okay. She didn’t get to where she was going to go that day. So they dropped her in the police. I think she was just insulting the driver.

I would take your, take the car number of the car. I would tear out in my mind. I’m like, dude, just shut up. Okay. Sorry. I’m not supposed to say that, but that’s what I said in my mind. Like, like what’s the point? Okay. If you do what would now happen?

So, um, that was it for me. Yes. And there’s another thing I forgot to mention. Yes. Sorry, this podcast is not structured, so I’m just carrying everything. Like just talking. So , so you enjoy, you know, it’s unlike the usual structured one, I have like, yes, the journey across and beyond is not going to be as structured as, you know, the, the Rave itself, you know, it’s, as I said, the journey across and beyond is like an offset of The Rave this is just me basically telling you bits and chunks of things that are happening in my life. So yeah, there was a guy that, Hey, people I say in all your doings make sure that when you are going to tell the people to charge their phone very well o, tell them to charge their phone and you too charge your phone very well.

In Retrospect

So there was this guy, he was, I think it was also his first time in Lagos. And then, um, before we got there his phone died and luckily for him. He had written the person’s number he was going to go and see on a piece of paper. So, um, we kept calling for him and then the number was switched off. I just imagine that you’ve not been somewhere before and the person who is supposed to get you their phone is off and your phone is off. Please. So, yeah, that’s my piece of advice for you.

Whenever you’re travelling to a place, you don’t know, make sure your phone is charged. And by all means, if you can travel, travel, explore, see places, you know, learn things like when I went to Lagos, I, I really learned, you know, I saw different people, you know, You know, the ruggedness of people in Lagos, you know, their tenacity, you know, it, it’s beautiful, you know, especially their conductors, we call them agbero.

Like it it’s, it’s beautiful and fascinating to see people that, you know, you know, saying like, why you dey look me, you know, it was, it was, it was. And, you know, I’m going to definitely visit Lagos very, very soon. Although, I don’t intend to live in Lagos. Yeah.

Even the thought itself is scary. I think I was just lucky enough not to have experienced hold up. Um, but you never know, maybe my next visit. No, God forbid the Holy ghost fire. I don’t wanna experience it. So with this, I’ve come to the end of. The journey across and beyond for today. I hope you enjoyed listening, although I was rambling and repeating myself, but I hope you enjoyed it.

And you learned a thing or two, I don’t know. Was there any lesson to learn, but of course you must have learned something. Okay. So thank you so much for listening. Um, I’ll see you in the next episode till next time. E go be.

Thank you very much for listening. It was a joy having you around here today. I hope you were able to pick a thing or two. This was the journey across and beyond. If you’d like to get up close and personal you could add me up on Facebook @Micheal Mandrel Olaniyi or on Twitter and Instagram @Mandrel_Mykels. Mykels being spelt M Y K E L S.

THE RAVE, LIVE, LOVE, GROW