Work

I worked together with a group of bachelor students on their student's project (comparable with bachelor theses). The task was to analyze water and sediment samples the students collected before my arrival. We did the basic physiochemical analysis, as well as grain size analysis. Since the equipment in the lab is very poor, in comparison to what I am used to, we had to send the samples to an external lab to do the heavy metal analysis. The scientific work is a lot more easy-going and I had to have a lot of patience since there is lots of waiting around ;).

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Experience

I lived in a students dorm with three other IAESTE interns and one student from Nigeria. Even though power supply was not very good we had a lot of fun in our room and in general on the campus with the other students. I made a lot of new friends here. I used my free time, from which I had plenty to learn more about the Nigerian lifestyle and culture. The food is almost exclusively spicy but very good. There are also many vegetarian dishes or at least you can order them without meat ;). On the weekends IAESTE Nigeria organized lots of trips e.g. to a holy river in the middle of the jungle, into the mountains, to a river beach resort, to Lagos,… This way I saw some of the very beautiful parts of this huge country and made some experiences I will never forget.

Discover

Since it was my first time in Nigeria and in Africa in general, this experience opened my eyes in regard to many things. For example, the Nigerian mentality and their view of the world. But also about what the real issues in this country are. It showed me that these problems are not always as easy to resolve as we think they are. It also showed me the responsibility that we as Europeans have, to help other countries (which we got into this situation and still keep them there (colonialization and neo colonialization)) to overcome the problems, that keep them from developing faster and in a more human way. On a more personal level, I learned that I should be more thankful for the way of life and opportunities I have, only because I was lucky to be born in Europe. Even though this might sound a little negative, overall it was a great experience which I recommend to everyone.

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