I want to bring to light the difficulties travelers encounter when trying to cross the borders between Nigeria and Benin Republic (Seme border).
Do you dare to travel to the neighbouring countries to Nigeria by road, I advice you add a day to your estimated travelling schedule (that is if you finally make it through the frontier).
For those of us who are adventurous, who love travelling to discover new places, who have made some interesting travels and some in difficult conditions, can testify that this is one place that is completly out of the ordinary.
Given that Nigeria is an active member of the Economic Community of Western African States (ECOWAS), Nigerians who wish to travel either on a business trip or on a leisure trip, once in possession of your international passport or your ECOWAS passport, you are authorised to travel. But at this boder, reverse is the case.
I have taken this frontier a couple of times and I have either been obliged to consider renouncing my plans to visit Benin, even worst, I have shed tears twice due to their agressive manners. When approching the boder, you meet series of check points, police and custom posts all with their kalashnikovs. When coming back into the country from Benin try counting the check points, they are about 22. I have never in all my travels, seen so much gun in the air like as much as you will encounter at this precise boder. You only see such situations in areas where there is war or rebels in vue, like in N'Djaména Tchad.
Last June when I went visiting my family and after being frustrated with the inconsistent power supply, I decided in August to take a trip to Grand Popo in Benin. To my greatest disappointment, things were still the way they were.
On your arrival, you are greeted with a row of desks without positions writen on them, with men and women who are not in uniform and they all demand you make a stop in front of each and every of these desks. Some claim to be from the health, NAFDAC, and a whole lot of others that I really do not remember what the call themselves.
The most annoying part of all this is that while passing in front of all these desks, you are demanded by these so called officials of the state and country to pay money before you are allowed to go to the next table.
When you refuse to pay because you are fed up of the situation, they threaten to throw you in jail. Even the Hausa tribe at the customs that we used to be proud of are now the ones you should beware of. They believe the country belongs to them and so they can do whatever they wish and nobody can call them to order.
When you refuse to pay, they equally refuse to let you go because they do not want to loose out on their piece of the days ration. They find it difficult to believe you when you tell them that you did not pay their other colleagues because they are if I may say, all corrupt.
What worries me most is that in this their shameless act, no one is exempted, even other foreigners are subjected to these treatment. How do we imagine to be purged of the image the world have about us as regards to corruption.
My advice is not only that these people at the border comprising of the corrupt custom officers, the immigration officers, the so called NDLEA officers who after searching your car ask you to pay them to have searched your car, the health officers who do not know how to read the yellow fever card, and the touts who do work for these state officials should all be taken away and sent to centres where they should be educated on how to be true civil servants, there should equally be put in place a high standard or some particular personnality requirements. This is important because we should consider the fact that this is the first port of entrance into the country and if we keep having such unqualified and some of them uneducated individuals who keep dentening the country's image and efforts, the country will find it difficult to advance.
After much said, I am proud to be a nigerian and that is why I wish issues be discussed and this will help nigerians in every part of the world to proudly talk of their country to ears who wish to listen.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Thursday, April 17, 2008
farewell Aimé Cesaire / Aimé Cesaire est parti au-delà
The world just learnt of the passing away of a VIP Aimé Cesaire, a renowned french (original of the West Indies) poet and politician.
For those of us out there who might be wondering who he is, Aimé Cesaire is one of the founding fathers of the concept "Negritude", a concept that brought to light the acceptance of the black identity and culture.
This concept came to the limelight thanks to the francophon african literary writers in the likes of the first president of Senegal , Léopold Sedar Senghor.
Aimé Cesaire has been ill for a while but was hospitalised recently. Although I doubted his chances of sailing through due to his fading health (aged 94), I still kept all hopes alive.
I wept this morning when I learnt of his death publicized on one of french's national channels (France 2) .
Men like him are rare in this world, men who had courage against all odds to fight for humanity and justice, to fight against the tyranny of colonialism and imperialism. May his gentle soul rest in perfect peace.
My happiness is that he left behind him a rich legacy, teaching us to be proud of who we are. I encourage you dear blogers to read about this great mind and some of his writtings.
List of some of his inspiring poems:
The atomic rock cristal, day and night, prophecy, and night tom tom
For those of us out there who might be wondering who he is, Aimé Cesaire is one of the founding fathers of the concept "Negritude", a concept that brought to light the acceptance of the black identity and culture.
This concept came to the limelight thanks to the francophon african literary writers in the likes of the first president of Senegal , Léopold Sedar Senghor.
Aimé Cesaire has been ill for a while but was hospitalised recently. Although I doubted his chances of sailing through due to his fading health (aged 94), I still kept all hopes alive.
I wept this morning when I learnt of his death publicized on one of french's national channels (France 2) .
Men like him are rare in this world, men who had courage against all odds to fight for humanity and justice, to fight against the tyranny of colonialism and imperialism. May his gentle soul rest in perfect peace.
My happiness is that he left behind him a rich legacy, teaching us to be proud of who we are. I encourage you dear blogers to read about this great mind and some of his writtings.
List of some of his inspiring poems:
The atomic rock cristal, day and night, prophecy, and night tom tom
Monday, April 14, 2008
job experience search and the disappointments
Hello comrades,
Remember my job interview of last week (07-04-2008)? Ok, I was supposed to wait to be called by the human resource department of the company, previewed in two weeks from the interview date. But I decided to call a week before, and as usual, It is a refusal due to "insufficient level of experience to be able to carry out any post that MIGHT be given."
Such refusals are bound to come up during ones stay in a foreign country (even in ones country of origin), especially in a country like France.
People might believe am a pessimist but the fact is that to get a job in France, even when you have a resident's permit that authorises you to work, it is practically impossible to be employed because the country does not give opportunities to people.
It is more or less impossible to find a job here (whether it be a student job or an experienced worker)and I really can not tell why.
I believe that the country is not very welcoming as it claims to be.
Anyway, they say that the kind of welcome that you recieve when you travel as a tourist is not the same kind of treatment you get when you finally install as a resident.
I do anyway think that the anglo-saxon countries give more opportunities to their settlers and are more open in matters concerning foreign and internal policies than there (mainly european) counterparts. No wonder the anglo-saxon countries are more attractive to international carrier seekers, and this makes them better placed to face the competitions that surround globalisation.
Remember my job interview of last week (07-04-2008)? Ok, I was supposed to wait to be called by the human resource department of the company, previewed in two weeks from the interview date. But I decided to call a week before, and as usual, It is a refusal due to "insufficient level of experience to be able to carry out any post that MIGHT be given."
Such refusals are bound to come up during ones stay in a foreign country (even in ones country of origin), especially in a country like France.
People might believe am a pessimist but the fact is that to get a job in France, even when you have a resident's permit that authorises you to work, it is practically impossible to be employed because the country does not give opportunities to people.
It is more or less impossible to find a job here (whether it be a student job or an experienced worker)and I really can not tell why.
I believe that the country is not very welcoming as it claims to be.
Anyway, they say that the kind of welcome that you recieve when you travel as a tourist is not the same kind of treatment you get when you finally install as a resident.
I do anyway think that the anglo-saxon countries give more opportunities to their settlers and are more open in matters concerning foreign and internal policies than there (mainly european) counterparts. No wonder the anglo-saxon countries are more attractive to international carrier seekers, and this makes them better placed to face the competitions that surround globalisation.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
student internship (job) interview
Hello! dear readers,
Happy to be back to share more experience with you.
As I promised to keep you informed of my job interview, I intend to abide by my words. I was called upon for an interview in the north west of France for an internship in the human resource departement.
As it often entails in the country side, regardless of the post you are applying for, you need to have a drivers licence as well as a vehicule but I happen to not be in possession of any of these documents.
The interview went well and the interviewer was very comprehensive and considerate and considered my personal working experience as professional experience.
As you all can imagine, there are also other candidates applying for the same post. Students here need to acquire professional esperience while in school, in order to be competitive and easily fit into the professional world.
But the lady interviewer, a young lady of about 28 years of age promised to call me in 2 weeks time to inform me of her final decision (when she would have met with the other candidates).
I keep my fingers crossed and hope there is no other candidate better placed than I am i.e, a candidate with driving licence, a car, who have acquired more experience within the cours of his or her studies, or better still, in a business school.
Here in France, a business school applicant is more priced than an applicant from the university. The raison is that the business schools are more professionaly oriented (the teaching technique is centered on enterprises/companies), and the students are adviced to go for internships in companies as early as their first year as an undergraduate.
To keep all chances on my side while I wait for a favorable response from the company, I have gone to register at a driving school (which cost the hell, 800 euros ). If I finally do not get the job, I will at least have my driving licence and hopefully a car .
Happy to be back to share more experience with you.
As I promised to keep you informed of my job interview, I intend to abide by my words. I was called upon for an interview in the north west of France for an internship in the human resource departement.
As it often entails in the country side, regardless of the post you are applying for, you need to have a drivers licence as well as a vehicule but I happen to not be in possession of any of these documents.
The interview went well and the interviewer was very comprehensive and considerate and considered my personal working experience as professional experience.
As you all can imagine, there are also other candidates applying for the same post. Students here need to acquire professional esperience while in school, in order to be competitive and easily fit into the professional world.
But the lady interviewer, a young lady of about 28 years of age promised to call me in 2 weeks time to inform me of her final decision (when she would have met with the other candidates).
I keep my fingers crossed and hope there is no other candidate better placed than I am i.e, a candidate with driving licence, a car, who have acquired more experience within the cours of his or her studies, or better still, in a business school.
Here in France, a business school applicant is more priced than an applicant from the university. The raison is that the business schools are more professionaly oriented (the teaching technique is centered on enterprises/companies), and the students are adviced to go for internships in companies as early as their first year as an undergraduate.
To keep all chances on my side while I wait for a favorable response from the company, I have gone to register at a driving school (which cost the hell, 800 euros ). If I finally do not get the job, I will at least have my driving licence and hopefully a car .
Friday, April 4, 2008
difficulties of student job search in europe
Since I arrived in France, I have not stopped searching for a student job or a free internship. I am yet to land myself one. It is very difficult to find a student job mostly when you do not study in the capital cities. There are not a lot of internationally oriented companies in the smaller cities, especially in a city like Lille (in the north of France, at the borders between London, Belgium and close to Amsterdam and Germany). Companies always ask for esperienced/qualified candidates and I ask how much chances are giving to students who do not have the absolute possibilities to be qualified because they are busy with their paper works.
I recieved a call this morning for an interview scheduled for next monday. The job is supposed to be an internship in the human ressource department, in a city 3 hours away. Given the fact that I am a foreign student and do have enough holiday to spend away from the city where I live, I do not have to worry about going to work in a far away city because, I already live far away from my home land.
I will keep my deear readers informed about the out come of the interview. It is my first since I have been applying (so you can imagine how nervous I am) . Only a few companies have taken the time to contact me, while some others only reply by mail, informing that even though your candidature is very convincing, they are sorry not to offer you the job because your spoken french is not up to the standard required.
I do not get very sad because I am still in school and do know that it will not be the case when I would be through with school. But one still needs some professional esperience to boost ones CV.
I promise to keep you informed.
I recieved a call this morning for an interview scheduled for next monday. The job is supposed to be an internship in the human ressource department, in a city 3 hours away. Given the fact that I am a foreign student and do have enough holiday to spend away from the city where I live, I do not have to worry about going to work in a far away city because, I already live far away from my home land.
I will keep my deear readers informed about the out come of the interview. It is my first since I have been applying (so you can imagine how nervous I am) . Only a few companies have taken the time to contact me, while some others only reply by mail, informing that even though your candidature is very convincing, they are sorry not to offer you the job because your spoken french is not up to the standard required.
I do not get very sad because I am still in school and do know that it will not be the case when I would be through with school. But one still needs some professional esperience to boost ones CV.
I promise to keep you informed.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
travel preparatory steps, visa and integration problems
Etant donné que mon blog est centré sur ma vie ailleurs, je m'intéresserai aussi de parler de pleines de choses comme: ma préparation pour venir étudier en France (comment j'ai dû laisser ma famille et mes copains), le problème de visa (étant anglophone), mon arrivé en France, comment j'ai repri mes études (mon esprit de "never say die), rencontré des amis chinois (centre de langue pour étudiants étrangers), mon intégration en France, la possibilité d'avoir décroché une place à l'université après ma réussite au examen de Texte de Connaissance de langue Française (TCF), ainsi que mes nombreuses voyages et découvertes.
Mon blog comportera de deux langues: l'Anglais (langue officielle de mon pays) et le Français (langue adoptive, où je vie et poursuivre mes études).
I invite interested readers of my blog to bear with the fact that I write both in French and in English. This is due to the fact that I am originally English speaking; the French language is because I was an undergraduate of "Modern European Languages" majoring in French language, a discipline I droped out from in my third year to follow up studies in France on a fresh slate.
My choice to study French language in the university in an English speaking country came from the fact that my country Nigeria (in West Africa, popularly called "the heart beat of Africa"), is surrounded by the francophone African countries (former French colonies). I always envied the tranlators at the Economic Community of Western African States (ECOWAS) meetings and I saw the need in acquiring this knowledge. When the opportunity came knocking on my door to live and study abroad, I decided to give it a try. Besides, my university was always on stike!
And here, the trouble begins. The difficult task to convince the embassy to trust in one and let go of the visa. When you are an african and wish to study abroad, you have to give the benefit of doubt to the embassies that your mission is genuine (mostly our europian counterparts) and my nigerian brothers can testify.
You might wonder why all these stories, it still relates to my ideology of fighting and never give up. Of course I finally got the visa (after three refusals), if not I would not have mentioned it that I live and study in France.
Eventhoug I was an undergraduate of french language, on my arrival in France, I had to start all over.
I was asked to register into a programme of french for foreigners if I wish to follow up studies in the university.
At first I thought it was useless and a waist of time but I finally realised how important it was. I strongly advice that a student, worker or a wife of an expat who wishes to spend quality time in a country that does not speak ones language of origine, should try and enroll in one of the language classes. This will enable your easy communication and understanding of your new environment.
Some list of language centres in the city of Lille (France):
- CLARIFE LILLE
Campus Saint Raphael
Université Catholique de Lille
60 Boulevard Vauban
Tel: 03.02.57.92.19
- CUEEP LILLE
9/11 Rue Angellier
Lille
Tel: 03.20.58.11.11
- DEE VILLENEUVE D'ASCQ
Université Lille3
Domaine du Pont de Bois
Tel: 03.20.41.63.83
62.96
You can as well check on the "EduFrance" site. You will find all the adresse you need.
I met with lovely friends, mostly my chinese friends at the centre of French language for foreign students, with whom I shared very wonderful time.
I later moved on into the univerity of law and I am at the moment in the departement of administation, economics and social sciences, where I am expected to graduate in the next two years (with hope there are no carry overs).
While in school, I profit of my holidays to visit the world, meet knew people, learn new cultures and expand my horizen in every way that I can (intellectually and ortherwise).
A peep into my world in image. I live by the day to discover new things and seek for more adventures.......
Mon blog comportera de deux langues: l'Anglais (langue officielle de mon pays) et le Français (langue adoptive, où je vie et poursuivre mes études).
I invite interested readers of my blog to bear with the fact that I write both in French and in English. This is due to the fact that I am originally English speaking; the French language is because I was an undergraduate of "Modern European Languages" majoring in French language, a discipline I droped out from in my third year to follow up studies in France on a fresh slate.
My choice to study French language in the university in an English speaking country came from the fact that my country Nigeria (in West Africa, popularly called "the heart beat of Africa"), is surrounded by the francophone African countries (former French colonies). I always envied the tranlators at the Economic Community of Western African States (ECOWAS) meetings and I saw the need in acquiring this knowledge. When the opportunity came knocking on my door to live and study abroad, I decided to give it a try. Besides, my university was always on stike!
And here, the trouble begins. The difficult task to convince the embassy to trust in one and let go of the visa. When you are an african and wish to study abroad, you have to give the benefit of doubt to the embassies that your mission is genuine (mostly our europian counterparts) and my nigerian brothers can testify.
You might wonder why all these stories, it still relates to my ideology of fighting and never give up. Of course I finally got the visa (after three refusals), if not I would not have mentioned it that I live and study in France.
Eventhoug I was an undergraduate of french language, on my arrival in France, I had to start all over.
I was asked to register into a programme of french for foreigners if I wish to follow up studies in the university.
At first I thought it was useless and a waist of time but I finally realised how important it was. I strongly advice that a student, worker or a wife of an expat who wishes to spend quality time in a country that does not speak ones language of origine, should try and enroll in one of the language classes. This will enable your easy communication and understanding of your new environment.
Some list of language centres in the city of Lille (France):
- CLARIFE LILLE
Campus Saint Raphael
Université Catholique de Lille
60 Boulevard Vauban
Tel: 03.02.57.92.19
- CUEEP LILLE
9/11 Rue Angellier
Lille
Tel: 03.20.58.11.11
- DEE VILLENEUVE D'ASCQ
Université Lille3
Domaine du Pont de Bois
Tel: 03.20.41.63.83
62.96
You can as well check on the "EduFrance" site. You will find all the adresse you need.
I met with lovely friends, mostly my chinese friends at the centre of French language for foreign students, with whom I shared very wonderful time.
I later moved on into the univerity of law and I am at the moment in the departement of administation, economics and social sciences, where I am expected to graduate in the next two years (with hope there are no carry overs).
While in school, I profit of my holidays to visit the world, meet knew people, learn new cultures and expand my horizen in every way that I can (intellectually and ortherwise).
A peep into my world in image. I live by the day to discover new things and seek for more adventures.......
new home away from home
Hello every one out there,
My name is Jennifer from Africa but I live and study in Europe. My blog will mainly focus on life away as an expat.
Many of us live, work, study,or travel far away from our loved ones. This is due to time, time that brings about changes in ones life. We grow up and make decisions on the part to follow, on what studies we wish to pursue, on issues concerning relocating abroad as expats or as residents, meeting people and making new friends, career changes and then we look foward to new adventures in life.
If you find yourself linked to these aspects of life, then we most likely share some ideas and might have some common interests like: traveling to visit places, change completly our life style and discover the hiden passion in us, the true you.
So join me as we take a trip into the world of travel, to discover new places and different cultures. Welcome aboard the mile high club of globe trotters with Jennifer IWUOHA and discover the whole new you.
My name is Jennifer from Africa but I live and study in Europe. My blog will mainly focus on life away as an expat.
Many of us live, work, study,or travel far away from our loved ones. This is due to time, time that brings about changes in ones life. We grow up and make decisions on the part to follow, on what studies we wish to pursue, on issues concerning relocating abroad as expats or as residents, meeting people and making new friends, career changes and then we look foward to new adventures in life.
If you find yourself linked to these aspects of life, then we most likely share some ideas and might have some common interests like: traveling to visit places, change completly our life style and discover the hiden passion in us, the true you.
So join me as we take a trip into the world of travel, to discover new places and different cultures. Welcome aboard the mile high club of globe trotters with Jennifer IWUOHA and discover the whole new you.
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