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Trip To Badagry slave museum Travel isn't always pretty but it leaves you speechless and then turns you into a storyteller. Traveling to the Heritage Slave Museum had made me see inspiring and creative activities. It was one of the finest adventures of my life. The journey to the unknown had pulled me towards a new life experience and new knowledge. This experience had helped me to become a better storyteller. I boarded a bus as a Naive Tourist on October first, which is set aside to celebrate Nigeria's independence, to the Heritage Slave Museum at Badagry. According to history, Badagry was a coastal town and local government area in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is located between Lagos and Seme border, Benin Republic. En route, I peered out the window looking at the bubbling and hustling of Badagry. I passed by the statue of the Sato Drum. The Sato Drum is the tallest drum in the world and is usually beaten during an important festive period to cure diseases and to bring peace to the villagers. The Sato Drum is usually beaten by orphans. Arriving at the museum, I saw a placard that says, "this is the route of the journey to an unknown destination". At that point, I was overwhelmed with fear. I was wondering what could have happened to the slaves who walked through that route. It was an unforgettable experience for me and can be considered worth sharing. We moved to the other room where the guide showed us the different types of slaves; the domestic and the field slave. I saw different kinds of chains and padlocks use to lock the slaves' mouths and prevent them from stealing. We also went to the Attenuation well. It was the first well in Nigeria. According to the guide, the well had charms capable of making the slaves forget whatever they had gone through or whatever life they had lived in Badagry. Badagry is a city with lots of secrets but then, the town is full of natural beauty. I appreciate the natural beauty of the town; the green plants and the palm trees all around. It was so amazing that I forgot my grief for what I was earlier. The tour guide took us to the seashore where I saw a signpost that read, " point of no return". According to the guide, it was the place where the slave traders usually made the slave's board boats heading to Brazil. The atmosphere felt so scary and depressing although the sea was calm and the fresh air from the sea was amazing. The best part was when I tasted the Badagry snack called Ajogun and the cooled and fresh coconut water. Next, I visited the Seriki Abass Barracoon, which is a cage used to capture the slaves. They were kept inside the cage for the European merchants. Forty slaves were confined inside a small room, where some of the slaves died due to suffocation. According to the tourist guide, the chief Sunbu Mobee traded many of his people with the Portuguese in exchange for these slaves with umbrellas, ceramic plates, etc until his son ascended the Mobee throne and abolished the trade in 1886. It felt horrified when I got to see and feel the tools used to enslave people. The experience was quite jolting. It made me wonder at the level of inhumanity in people, But this trip helped me to realize the Agony people had gone through before,freedom was restored to Nigeria . We move to the spot where Christianity was first preached in Nigeria: under an Agia Tree,and Christianity was first preached under the tree by Rev Birch Freeman of the Methodist church,The tourist guide took me to the first storey building In Nigeria,according to the tourist guide the building was built by the Anglican missionaries. Visiting Badagry was an unforgettable experience for me. I was able to learn about people's beautiful cultures and traditions. Truly the unknown calls our attention to things we are ignoring or refusing to acknowledge and it has pulled us through life experiences. The unknown is just the name we give the experience and knowledge we are yet to gain. This tour captured my mind. My trip abruptly came to an end as I boarded a bus back home.