On paper, Nigeria is synonymous with conflict, kidnappings
and crime, but the coastal village of Tarkwa Bay is
overcoming these stereotypes one wave at a time.WORDS BY WILL BENDIX | PHOTOS BY ALAN VAN GYSENOASIS
O
ur plane cuts through the
layers of cloud as it starts its
descent for Murtala Muhammed
International Airport in Lagos. Six
years have passed since my first
trip to Nigeria and, even at 32,000
feet, I’m not convinced returning is
such a good idea.
Back then we’d come to verify
rumours of a world-class wedge that
breaks on the outskirts of Lagos
harbour. The rumours proved to
be true. Swells would refract off a
mile-long breakwall like a pinball
machine, finally bouncing up into
dark tubes that spit metres from the
shore of Tarkwa Bay.
The trip was rewarding but
exhausting; the result of constantly
keeping our guard up while
simultaneously getting deeplybarrelled. Since then, however, the
West African country has dominated
global headlines with stories of
escalating terrorism, kidnappings and
ethnic violence. “Briton kidnapped
by armed gang while leaving Lagos
airport,” read one Sunday Express
headline in July, 2013. “Two hundred
and thirty-four schoolgirls kidnapped
by extremists,” said CBS News in
April, 2014. “Double suicide bombing
at Nigerian university,” reported
News Week in January, 2017.
“Gunmen attack UN team in
Nigeria,” announced DC World News,
a month later in February.
Even the man at the visa agency
was surprised when I checked
‘tourism’ on my application form.
“Tourist visa?” he said. “We’ve never
done one of these for Nigeria.”Concrete