Memory Lane

Yemi and his sister Funmi

It's no secret that Yemi is very adaptive to new environments - so much so that it is easy to forget that he left home when he was at the tail end of his teenage years for a country where he had no close family or friends. Jan has called him the mayor of many of the cities we've visited on this trip because in a matter of days of arriving in a new city he is exchanging greetings to everyone on the street as if they're old friends.

However, watching Yemi reunite and interact with actual old friends and family in Nigeria was even more fun to see.  He took a great trip down memory lane during our two weeks in his home country.

Home is where you make it.

- Old Cajun man in the movie Joe Dirt

During our stay in Nigeria we visited Bereton Nursery School where Yemi started his education in Port Harcount, eastern Nigeria. Jan could feel his excitement as he struggled to summon memories of himself crying after being dropped off by his mom. 

He was even more giddy when we visited the University of Lagos, the last school he attended before moving to the US. Here his memories were a lot more lucid as he excitedly showed Jan around the Engineering Department where he spent much of his late teenage years. "My name would've been #40 on that list," he exclaimed as we scrolled down the alphabetically arranged name list of the examination results board.

Outside study area of UNILAG's Engineering Department

Yemi had only been back home to Nigeria once in 2006, so most of our time was spent reuniting with family and friends that he hadn't seen him for eight, or sometimes even 14 years. Yet, their love for him was palpable and it seemed like they just picked up from where they left. The way they welcomed Jan was so genuinely warm that it was overwhelming at times.

Yemi's Uncle Ayo

Yemi's real cousins.  All close family friends are referred to as cousins in Nigeria, which understandably confused Jan on many occasions.

The UNILAG crew