Beady eyes stared back at me from the window seat as I switched seats after takeoff en route to Amsterdam. Our flight was barely full and there was a large, sweaty man causing a scene, yelling at the flight attendant for not letting him take the seat he wanted.

I watched my petite seatmate fumble...

“You this idiot man!” Seyi yells at Samson. “Why are you listening to Fashola?”

Samson is leaning in close to a parked car, listening to the governor’s latest decree about motorcycle taxis called okadas. The governor’s voice blasts from the radio through the driver’s open window, the...

For those transitioning into life in a new city, there’s that period. You know. The one wedged squarely between mere traveler and bona fide local. Between a few basic phrases and a couple insider jokes.

That ongoing period called immersion. No doubt, the key to getting beneath a culture is to learn...

The last few months have been a blur of activity; only a handful truly productive. From rounding out the last year to packing up and shifting base for a couple months, I had it all mapped out. Some sense of order.

Until I turned the word "y-y-yes" into 3-syllables between sniffles on thanksgiving day,...

Your friend just returned from the trip of a lifetime - traveling around remote regions, being invited into homes of locals, feasting on ethnic spreads, and immersing in centuries old cultures.

Seething with travel envy, you sign up for your own life changing trip, only to arrive there and find your...

From clear white skies they fall.

Almost appearing out of nothingness, they gently float to earth. Different sizes, each unique in design,  yet fundamentally the same, they float down, lightly touching where they land.

They collide with each other, they lean against each other, and they carry each...

It's been one of those weeks. Where life forcefully collides into you from all angles. At first, the world seems like your oyster and you gorge till you puke.

Then everything becomes a priority. You puff in frustration, disorganized and disoriented. Deadlines are jumbled together. Arms already full,...

Check out my latest piece titled Bonfires of Valborg: The Fiery Heart of Sweden and do let me know your thoughts. 

It chronicles how Sweden welcomes the arrival of spring with massive bonfires lighting up the landscape. The article was spun from a short blog post I'd written awhile back -

“There’s no way she’s going to get it in”. He was confident.

Both of us, along with a newly befriended seatmate were waging as a middle-aged Nigerian woman kept shoving and wedging a square shaped piece of luggage into the narrow, rectangular overhead bin.

“Trust me, it will enter”, our new...

Wow, its been a long, busy summer of work, traveling, writing, and some new editing responsibilities.

Currently typing just two hours from the Arctic Circle, it seems like every two weeks finds me somewhere new.

Recently returned from a 10-day trip back home to Nigeria which flew by so quickly that it...

In a little over two weeks, I'll be taking my annual trip home to Nigeria, but this time, with a significant other in tow. Though excited to the core, I wonder if he would love my country as well.

While perusing a couple bookstores in Stockholm looking for Yòrubá language...

It looked bad.

My small checked-in gym bag filled with bubble-wrapped gravlaxsås, jars of herring, and other seafood-related condiments. Coupled with the fact I was only spending two nights in the US, you could have sworn I was smuggling pickled fish products into the country.

Had I boarded my original flight today, it would have been attempted without a passport. As of this afternoon, it sits at the Swedish Embassy. Similar fond memories of past experiences at various embassies with my green passport come flooding back.

If my passport were blue, would my immigration worries...

The First Kilometers

The pounding drums of Quechuan music playing in the background couldn’t keep up with our heartbeats as our little minibus rolled towards Km 82. Sure, we were elated but our crash course around the Sacred Valley the previous day had deflated our parachutes and promptly brought...

We had to leave our training wheels behind in Pisáq (Písac).

“Phew! We must have done like what, 6km?!” I ask Aly, panting to catch my breath as we explored ruins in Pisáq (Písac), an hour or so from Cusco. A quick fitness check before we started the Inca trail the next day.

Wobbling on calves hardened like lead with my trekking pole in a death grip, I raced with the others in pitch darkness through the rainforest towards the Sun Gate. I had nothing left except pure adrenaline pushing me forward.

Two days earlier, fellow trekkers atop Dead Woman´s Pass (

I overpacked.

I knew I would. Staring at the monster from across the room, I can`t help but feel embarrassed.

Humiliation seemed to have welcomed me into Lima. After an arduous journey with turbulence that had me reciting last prayers, I get to customs only to be pulled aside. This time around,...

We stuff leftover chocolate cake, brie cheese and crackers along with crispy bread and lox into a rugged rucksack. A silver canister filled with piping hot coffee joins the mix. Laser-like sun rays spill indoors through the balcony glass door warming everything in their path. I quickly slip into...

I recognized those haircuts. I’d seen them in 1987. Complete with tapered stonewashed jeans tucked into high top sneakers, teenagers and young adults filled all decks. This was, I presumed, going to be their booze cruise. The next demographic up were middle-aged men with forlorn looks dragging...

Happened to be in Stockholm on April 30th when all of Sweden celebrates Valborg - the arrival of spring. Not one to revel in festivities with historically pagan undertones, I ventured out into Skansen with an open mind to check it out. Pouring rain did nothing to dampen the sheer determination of...