In Dependence

CHAPTER 2

       Dear Baba,
      Greetings from England and dry land! And what a journey it was, Baba, with that mighty sea constantly slapping against the ship and spraying the deck with salty water. There were many days when we saw no land at all and no other ships, just dolphins and flying fish, and once a group of sharks attacked our dolphin friends, turning the water red. Occasionally, we passed another ship and our captain would blare his horn loudly, saluting the vessel while we waved, but usually it was just us and that endless, frightening sea.
The waters were particularly rough when we entered the Gulf of Guinea, and the notorious Guinea current. They were also rough in the run up to the Bay of Biscay, but the worst was entering the Mersey Estuary from the Irish Sea. From a distance, the Irish Sea was cloaked in fog so that we could not see the rough, heaving waves that are legendary among mariners. Mind you, this was the only time when I succumbed to seasickness (and everyone suffered from motion sickness that day!).

On board the ship, I made friends with two students, Mr Lekan Olajide from Ogbomosho and Mr Ibrahim Mohammed from Kaduna. The three of us were well received by the Captain, and even invited to the first-class cabin where the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) was making a film about Nigeria. Perhaps we are already famous! Sadly, Mr Olajide and Mr Mohammed were not Oxford-bound, but we have exchanged addresses, and in this way we remain in touch. The boat made several stops along the way at Takoradi, Monrovia, Freetown, and the lovely Las Palmas. Once in Liverpool, they tugged us into the harbour and I travelled to London, and then up to Oxford where I am now in my college rooms.