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Tempers rising, loud shrieking as names are called out, followed
by a call for a microphone. Followed shortly after by the death of the
microphone's batteries, so back to adrenaline pumping decibels and tones!
Struggling air conditioning and baggage trolleys
mostly with wonky wheels four or five deep running head to head for the same
spot.
Hot and sweaty throngs of people, screaming children, crying babies,
hyper toddlers buzzing around at disturbing speeds, some turning the dead
carousel into a newly discovered playground.
Parents handling overought
children by their wrists in an attempt to restrain them from instant demise as
they throw tantrums amidst sharp metal trolleys and a hard granite floor.
Everyone hurtling towards the baggage
handlers, at once hampering their attempts to manually do the job and blaming
them for being too slow!
After several appeals for the new process to be
respected and given a chance, sad, sad looking people resigned to waiting as
long as it took.
Suitcases like a wholesale luggage store, I have never seen
such large ones before.
Not to talk of wobbling cantilevered female bits,
imprisoned in clothes designed for flat bottomed waifs.
Bad weaves and
teetering heels all combine to unfold out of this chaos a comedy scene unparalleled.
One person had 17 pieces of baggage, don't these people know about air freight?
How do they afford to carry so much excess at commercial rates? Ha! Naija, we
are special.
This is God's own country for as the evening progressed, people
settled down to mutually commiserate or congratulate as bags appeared or did
not.
There was a way we all pulled together, united in our joint predicament.
It was back to smiles, laughter and endless jokes and mirth.
Three hours later,
our ordeal was over and I was utterly exhausted but amazed at our continued
resilience.
From landing to reaching home, the time span could have flown me
back to London as I finally reached home through check points, traffic and
wahala.
No wonder we are one of the happiest people on earth. We defy all
logic!
Lara Cookey
Baggage hall, Muritala Mohamed Airport Lagos
03 September 2008
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