Chronicles Of My June 12Trip Challenge: National Musuem Benin City

Yello everybody!!!

What are you planning on doing this weekend?

For me, I feel like visiting the stadium here, have a bit of some time with the Word… that will be after working on my upcoming book sha

I woke up this morning, had my quiet time with lots of smiles on my face, and then I stumbled onto this post I had written on prayers for the blog.

I read it, prayed along with it again, and couldn’t help but thank God that the prayers were answered and are still being answered.

Firstly, God placed me in a Church that indeed feeds my spirit.

And then this prayer: “Lord, in this year 2015, let your life breathe on this blog. For every soul that will come here, let them not leave empty. I do not just want to sugar coat the words that you have put in me, let the words here on this blog convict souls unto repentance and inspire men and women to know more of you. For every category on this blog, whatever it maybe, Lord breathe life on it. Holy Spirit, take us deeper into you this year.”

 

I think about some of the comments and mails I have gotten and I know that God heard when we prayed for the blog at the beginning of the year. People don’t leave this site with a desire to know me but to know the God I serve – and that was and still is the prayer.

 

And now, unto what we have for today.

I hope you nor vex say no Frances’s love letter for today?

I thought to update on my 12Trip Challenge, it’s been a while. (For what 12trip challenge for single ladies is, see here)

 

Forgive me for not updating on my trips. I usually like posting my chronicles along with pictures and it’s pure torture to upload the pictures with the network I have here/with my phone except I subscribe on my lappy. And I haven’t subscribed in a looooong time. But I plan to update on my backlogs, probably do back to back posts on my trips every friday on the blog.

It will be cool yes?

 

My birthday is on September 6th and I am planning a trip to Erin Ijesha waterfalls on the 5th…who wants to join me? 🙂

 

I will try my best to start chronicling the trips from next week Friday, starting from my April trip to Idanre hills Akure that I still haven’t written about (or I have the draft saved but don’t have the pictures uploaded yet). Anyways, my June trip had few pictures because I wasn’t allowed to take pictures in the museum so I am sharing that today.

I have a secret on the way I make sure that I meet my goal of 12trips this year… I steal trips when I go on trips. eg, if I am passing by a town, I google somewhere to visit that’s close by and stop over. That way, transport save, and I kill two birds with one stone. Brilliant yes?

 

So for my June trip, I went to Delta State and was while going back to Ado-Ekiti, I passed through Benin City. I googled and found out that there was a museum in ring road where the bus from Delta will stop me, so what do people like us do? We pop in for a visit!

Thankfully, I didn’t have much luggage so it was easy. The National Musuem is just located by the left hand side of ring road (directions in case someone else wants to go). The entrance fee is just 100Naira but you aren’t allowed to take pictures of the pieces.

 

Soooo what pictures do I have to show that I went there? Trust me na, I met some men outside and asked them to snap me pictures at the entrance of the musuem. Nothing spoil.

The musuem has 3floors with each one holding different artifacts and long long ago history behind it. I know we read about the Benin terracotta works then in secondary school and they are all true you know?

Benin City was operating on a different level before the white men even came to Nigeria. They had their own art works, their king, the Oba who was mightily respected by the people and even given the status of a god.

 

It was said that the welfare of the king translates into the welfare of the town. There were different pieces depicting the king as a god – one with him on horses legs, one with him as an oloku (sea god), etc, etc. The Oba was usually attended to by eunuchs and messengers were in vogue then. And in fact it was messengers that were sent to Benin that caused the eventual capture of Benin by the whites.

 

It was said that the Benin people traded with the portuges for a long time before the whites got wind of the fact that there was a developed town like that in Nigeria with an organized structure of leadership and amazing art works. The British sent messengers to Benin to discuss a treaty but Benin chiefs killed 6 of the 8 messengers. So of course the British staged a war with Benin which they won. The Oba was sent on exile and the contents of his palace confiscated and sold. All the great bronxe works, the terracotta, etc. etc. I imagine what they did to his wives, were they sent on exile too?

 

The Benins had an interesting culture and maybe I should do a history lesson on them (I’m too lazy to do so sha). There were pictures of the1668 Oba procession, depictions of the Oba having dada (another depiction of his god like attributes), Chief Ogiamen’s house built before1897, pictures of the Oba’s wives, and then pictures of the Portuguese who helped the Benin to fight some of their wars. Benin thrived on its own and was hidden until 1485 when Europe knew Benin and of course wanted a piece of it… but that’s all water gone down the drain abi?

 

All in all, was my 100Naira worth the trip?

Yes! It was!

 

 

Would I be visiting another museum soon?

Errrr no.

Somehow, my body almost only recognizes that a trip is a trip when I am involved, eg, climbing a hill or mountain, like here and here.

But it was a welcome change for once. And hopefully, the change on me being back with chronicling my trips is here for good (provided I can upload my pictures.lol)

 

I am soooo looking forward to my birthday trip. I have browsed pictures of Erin Ijesha waterfall and it looks so beautiful.

For more gists on my trips sha, stay tuned 🙂

 

I hope everyone who started out the 12trip challenge with us has been hitting their goals?

I can soooo relate with just wanting to sleep on the couch but that won’t do oh, life be going, free time we can use to travel be going fast too. No need sitting around waiting for the man to come when you can go out, have fun, put yourself out there and meet people.

You can indeed make your single life fun, that’s the essence of this challenge and for me, this 2015, making this goal was one of the best things I ever did 🙂

So comment below and let me know how far you’ve gone with your trips 🙂

 

 

 

 

Till the chronicles of my next trip, Love,

 

Frances.

 

 

Join Our Blog Family

[mc4wp_form]