Igboland -The land of rising Sun

Attractions

Abuja

In a moment of misguided inspiration, the Nigerian government kicked out the local Gwari inhabitants and decided to up-and-move the capital from Lagos to Abuja. Unfortunately, they ran out of oil money before the grand vision was finished and parts of Abuja still look like a work in progress.

However, Abuja is slowly taking on the role of Nigeria's capital, and the city is filling. But while most federal ministries ministries and civil servants have made the move, foreign agencies and diplomatic missions are still in Lagos, and as a result there really isn't much to do in Abuja.

Kano

At nearly 1000 years old, the mud-walled Muslim city of Kano is the oldest city in West Africa and sits on the edge of the Sahel (the fringe of the Sahara). Although it's a bustling hive of commercial activity it's still more bearable than Lagos. Its main attraction is the Old City.

Despite the near-complete disintegration of the city walls, the gates have remained intact. The Kofar Mata Gate leads to the Emir's palace and Central Mosque. The mosque is closed to non-Islamic visitors but is worth seeing from the outside, especially during the Friday prayer time (around noon).

Lagos

Lagos takes its name from the Portuguese word for 'lagoon', but if that conjures up images of families ambling along a wind-freshened foreshore, please adjust your imagination. It's a churning, confronting, sometimes dangerous megalopolis that ranks as the second-biggest city in Africa (after Cairo).

When you're not busy watching out for yourself, you can fix your attention on some monumental structures and a mishmash of architectural forms, including places built by emancipated slaves, or you can take a long, languid look at a lagoon and some appealing beaches.

Yankari National Park

Yankari National Park, 225km (139mi) east of Jos, has West Africa's best nature reserve and holds the only wildlife remnant left in Nigeria. Seeing animals here is a bit of a hit-and-miss affair but if you're in luck you may come across elephant, waterbuck, hippo, crocodile and the occasional lion.

The other feature of interest in the park is the thermal Wikki Warm Spring. The best months to visit are January and February. If going through the park in a noisy wildlife-viewing truck is not your thing, you can arrange for one of the guides to take you on a walking tour.