My first-ever trip to Africa was to Nigeria. I went to install and train on chocolate equipment in a factory in Ikom, about 25km from the Cameroon border in the state of Cross River.
There was not much time in the schedule to stop and enjoy the experience. But here’s a small taste of what I did manage to capture.
The Landscape and The Trip
We are leaving the hotel in Calabar for the factory site in Ikom. We had a security detail of four armed officers escorting us wherever we went; one in the van and three in another vehicle.
The drive from Calabar to Ikom takes about 2.5 hours on a road – the only road – that often resembles an obstacle course. While some of the obstacles are deliberately placed ...
... many of the obstacles were created by nature , potholes and craters that can (and did) damage equipment inside trucks. A connector on the tempering machine’s cooling system cracked and we were not able to get it fixed until two hours before we had to pack up and leave.
A tantalizing glimpse of the verdant landscape.
These two scenes remind me of many places I have traveled – Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic.
L: We did manage to try to cross the border into Cameroon but because of civil unrest, it was not safe to do so – this is as close as I got. We were not allowed to point our cameras towards the Cameroon border, so I handed my camera off to a member of the security detail who took the photo with my back to the border. R: The complement of the Featured Image, the two signs are across the street from each other.
The Factory and Warehouse
The factory building is situated in a roughly 30Ha agricultural innovation zone. To the right of the factory is a 3,000MT cocoa warehouse.
L: A closeup view of the factory building. R: A peek inside through the open roll-up door.
L: Factory interior; the equipment on the left is a Buhler bean cleaner that is four stories tall capable of cleaning ~1MT ton of cocoa per hour. R: Our factory space under construction – the stub walls are complete but that’s about it, there is no electricity, no air conditioning (no ceiling), and no plumbing (no running water in the building!).
Two more views of the Buhler bean cleaner.
The interior of the cocoa bean warehouse – sans beans.
I loved the light emanating from the hole in the floor and the geometry of the stairs.
The Cocoa Beans
L: We’re in a factory capable of cleaning over 1MT beans an hour but this one bag of beans represents the sum total of beans available to us. R: Cleaning beans – trash (doubles, rocks, flats, etc.) weighed in at about 10%.
A cut test of the beans, above.
Fun with Food
The Wuse food market in Abjuja is larger and more varied than any other market I have ever visited – bigger and more varied than the Huembes market in Mangua or Mercado #1 (or #2) in Lima! Often vendors will say “No Snapping” (no photos unless you pay 5000 Naira – the equivalent of about US$2.50) or you buy something from them.
L: Alligator pepper. Right: Dawadawa. Both were found in the Wuse market. I got the bowl in the craft market in Abuja – an experience for another post.
L: Breakfast plate – the gelatinous yellow mass is a savory corn “pudding” – going on a keto diet would be very hard. C: Palm wine – by noon it has already begun fermenting (yummy!). R: Giant snails in the Wuse market – for dinner, not as pets – are on offer in the market.
