My Best Holiday Experience

My best holiday ever was within the shores of Nigeria, filled with ever living impressions on my heart about the richness of our cultural heritage and the beauty of trying out new things. Follow me on my journey as I unravel this exciting experience.

In the year 2009, my foster parents and I travelled from Lagos to the deep tropical forest of Cross River State, in a place called Obudu Plateaus – Obudu cattle ranch or Obudu mountain resort. This for me was one of the most joyful and memorable experiences as a teenager, being tired (for the first time) of maintaining the hustle, and bustle in the city of Lagos during my long vacation holidays – summer breaks. My foster parents and I booked a plane tickets to Cross River International Airport. We were welcomed by the facility management of the resort (Obudu Resort) and got straight into a Hummer Limousine. I had only seen this long vehicle on satellite television channels such as MTV Base, Channel O, and another related lifestyle shows, and I was appalled. I watched as the Hummer limousine doors automatically opened with the cool air rushing through my body, and I shivered as though as I had just come to the polar or ice cap regions. I opened my mouth in awe. My mum eventually tapped me to come out of the shock, and I got into the vehicle.

To my surprise, we were escorted by a well-spoken tour guide (named Mfonobong) who was with us in the hummer limousine. He greeted us and explained the history and basic culture of Cross River Province, and typical things to watch out for as we headed to the resort. We also discussed about the limousine, which had a seating capacity of about 18 – 24 persons. Champaigne (ace and spades classic edition) and other delicacies were given to us during the trip. Again, champagne for me was only seen on television shows and I was in awe a second time. My parents seemed to be enjoying the delicacies, and encouraged me to drink with them, but I declined. After summoning courage to sip a relatively small quantity of white champaign, I realized that It was not a good investment, as it was bland.

Upon arrival at the entry gates of the resort, I looked outside of the car and saw high mountains fully covered with green grasses, fog, natural habitat areas rich in biodiversity, small lakes, and so on. The air quality was way different and felt fresher to inhale, coupled with the ambience of calmness and environmental peace.

As soon as we were lodged into our various rooms (within our suites), we were headed straight for the lake – natural hot springs called Ikom-Basi which also provided a natural view to features of the resort and we had a great time there. The springs had other people who were enjoying the natural heating provided from beneath the surface, while some others sat on the concrete paddings installed at the side of the springs. This for me could be said to be a ‘’heaven on earth’ experience. At another location within the resort, there was a man-made pool like setting – with blue green colored see-through water, which I enjoyed observing during the day and nighttime. Upon getting to the swimming pool, I noticed about 3 of my classmates (who are my good friends) were present with their families. This made it more interesting as we all bonded and were introduced to new foods such as ‘’point and kill’’, native soup – fisherman soup and so on. We really had a nice time.

Over my stay at the resort, a major part of my time was spent near the swimming pool and more time spent at the warm springs. My parents and friends’ parents (with their wards) had earlier left to site see the rest of the town, and do some shopping for souvenirs, and so on, but I refused to go with them, and stayed back at the 2 locations. I eventually got into a swimming or water sports competition which I won in 3^rd position.

This was the best holiday experience I ever had with my family outside the province of Lagos. I would have never imagined that such a beautiful place existed within the shores of Nigeria. My parents allowed me to sightsee the resort with our assigned tour guide (Mfonobong). While this happened, a lot of stories and myths about the diverse native history of the location and Cross River state were shared. The natural views seen were astonishing, and I loved their food – except for the ace and spades champaign which is a foreign brand.

Generally, this was the best holiday experience I had because I was well rested, saw new refreshing places, learnt about other cultures and norms, ate new food combinations and dishes, spent time with my friends and family members, and intentionally made up my mind to have the best experience I could.

#MEMBA 12