The Super Eagles were disappointing in their group opener on Sunday against Equatorial Guinea. Like I tweeted after the game, it was not a pleasant result. The team failed to come to the party and as a form of little protest (chuckles), I decided not to pencil anything down in my diary and basically spent Monday indoors to rest and host a couple of friends who came around.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Super Eagles had their first open-day session at the team’s hotel – Pullman Hotel – located at the heart of Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. It was a two-hour long session and gentlemen of the press had access to the players and got their deliverables. I had chats with Enyimba skipper Ojo Olorunleke, who sent his wishes to his teammates ahead of their Nigeria Premier Football League games against Katsina United and Shooting Stars, Fulham’s Alex Iwobi and former Enyimba goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali – who made his AFCON debut on Sunday.
READ MORE: AFCON2023 Diary 4: The Trek to Ebimpe and more
After a good day of work, the boys and I headed out to Adjamé – which means “a junction” or “the centre” in the local Tchaman language – to check out the Nigerian community over there. We got word from our other colleagues there, about the presence of indigenous Nigerian foods like Amala, Pounded Yam, and the likes.
At this juncture, let me state the reason why we went in search of the place – we were looking for amala! When I travel outside Ibadan, I try my best to eat that meal as long as it is available in that location. The last time I ate outside my place was in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State and I did enjoy it. On this occasion, the yam flour used looked a bit different but still gave an idea that I was “home”.
I spent just 1000 CFA (2000 naira) on a plate and I was satisfied after the “clearing”. Well, you might see videos of me dancing afterward online, it is simply because of the celestial feeling. Meanwhile, I tried to buy white socks for my sneakers but the asking price (after I converted it to Naira) did not sit down well with me, so mo “japa”. We took a few pictures and bought some regular Nigerian beverages before departing for our apartment around Cocody.
Tomorrow will see us head to the Press Conference and if there is anything notable to talk about, I will share again. Merci.
