Enugu Tourism Scene

…a conscious effort to reinvent Enugu state as a prime tourist attraction in the country

With the number of tourist attractions in Enugu, it is surprising that the Tourism industry in the state is not currently bigger.

This situation is something that the present state administration is trying to fix. In August 2020 there were news reports of the plans to develop a new project in Enugu state called the Gburugburu Wining and Dining in the Sky Project.

According to The Guardian, the project is a result of a conscious effort to reinvent Enugu state as a prime tourist attraction in the country.

By giving this project his approval and his name, Rt. Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi has shown that tourism in the state is something he takes seriously and for many, the hope is that this is a move that will open Enugu up to more foreign and domestic investors/investments, generate more money that will go towards increasing the state IGR and provide jobs for Enugu residents.

Enugu is a beautiful city, rich in history and culture, and has several tourist attractions like the Opi lake complex, Nike lake resort, Udi hills, and many others.

On that day, we had converged at the Polo Park Mall which was the agreed take off point. After about an hour delay where we ate and networked, the hike/picnic organizers showed up with more hikers.

Around 9 am, the bus finally showed up and we began packing up our stuff only to find out that the bus could not carry us all no matter how much we squeezed and contorted ourselves to fit. After arguing for a while, we eventually had some people take a Keke napep “drop” and the rest of us climbed into the rickety bus, and off we went.

We were dropped off at a point near the Milliken hills and the driver drove off to Ngwo junction where he would pick us after the hike. As the place we were to meet the guides wasn’t far away, we walked there to wait for the rest. It took a while for the rest to catch up so we occupied ourselves goofing around and taking pictures while our guides stared at us bemusedly.

We moved into the forest and started climbing the hill around 11 am. This was my first hike and I was still feeling the novelty as we began the climb, even moving to the front of the line and joining the others as they sang and exchanged banter.

Halfway up, however, the climb became more difficult and I had to stop and catch my breath often, eventually falling away to the middle of the pack. Very soon, I was drinking from the water bottle and cursing my choice of shoes, wishing I’d worn boots instead of sneakers.

By this time, we were nearing the summit and the climb had become so steep that I had to crawl to move up sometimes to the amusement of some of the more experienced hikers who were familiar with the route. Frustrated, I asked how much longer we had to go to get to the summit and hearing we didn’t have much farther to go, I picked up the pace so I could get to the top and rest.

Eventually, we reached the summit and I collapsed to the ground in exhaustion and relief, swearing to the group that this was my first and last hike with them to good-natured laughs all around. After some medical attention to make sure everyone was okay, we tried to find our way to the main road, eventually finding it after losing our way a couple of times. Once there, we paid the guides and set off for Ngwo junction. The walk to where we’d meet the driver was a long one but after the hike up that steep hill, I didn’t mind at all. When we got to the junction, we found that the organizers had fixed the earlier problem and had two buses waiting for us. Soon, we were on our way to Ngwo pine forest.

When we got to the forest, we encountered another problem — some “sons of the soil” who insisted that if they weren’t paid, we wouldn’t have access to the picnic ground despite already paying the elders of the community beforehand.

Despite our anger at the extortion, we raised the amount demanded, and handed it over to them and finally, we were able to spread our mats, lay out the food, drinks and speakers for the picnic to begin.

For the rest of that evening, I and the other hikers had the time of our lives as we ate, drank, played games, and generally had a good time. When it was time to finally leave, we cleaned up the place and took pictures before we got into the buses that took us back to the mall via a different route from the one we used in the morning. It was a worthwhile experience.

Before my trip to Ngwo pine forest, I had once visited the Awhum caves and waterfall and narrowly missed out on a trip to the Akwukwe sand beach. Due to work weeks and busy weekends, my free time to visit more tourist attractions in Enugu has been very limited. I hope it improves as things normalize.

In these uncertain times, with a pandemic sweeping the globe, tourism is likely low in the thoughts of the majority.

But as unlikely as it seems, there will come a point when a vaccine for COVID-19 will become available and we can resume our routines. When that time comes, I can think of few places I’d rather be exploring in this country than Enugu, the coal city.

With the tourism commitments been explored by the Government, I am hopeful and excited.

Originally published at http://discoverenugu042.wordpress.com on September 18, 2020.