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living in Abuja with a 3-yo

Hi Everyone,

My husband seems like will be offered a job in Abuja and most likely he will take it and we're moving to Nigeria again. We've spent already a year in Lagos (me and my daughter only 6 months thankfully) but we got out and went back to civilisation. We have a 3-yo daughter and my main concern that it will end up like a prison sentence again.

Last time my hubby was at work all the time doing 16-hr days in 2 week streaks, I was pretty much behind bars (burglar guards) with my then 1.5-yo the whole time in the compound 'cause we never had a car to go anywhere (his colleague he was sharing with took it all the time) plus it wasn't very safe either. There were no playgrounds or any parks or anything where we could have gone out and perhaps meet with other expats. I'm very worried this will be the same in Abuja too. Fair enough it was mostly down to my hubby's employer/bosses that we had to live like that so now that he'll be on top, we might have better access to car/internet etc... I don't know...

Plus the living conditions were less than ideal for a toddler (I know we lived like kings compared to the locals but still....). I mean I found it very difficult to put up with power outages, generator breakdowns, flooding during the rainy season, giant cockroaches running around the place, no water and all that with a small child. I don't want to sound like a madame, I could have probably dealt with the whole situation a lot better if it was just the hubby and I living there. I think the last straw was when I had to bath my daughter by my laptop's light and after putting her to bed just sitting in the dark alone and waiting for the hubby to get home and hoping the laptop's battery won't die in the meantime.

I'm very concerned that we won't be able to go out again because of safety and lack of things to do with a 3-yo ever so lively little girl who loves to play with other kids.

Is there anyone who could put my mind a little bit at ease about Abuja? I really hated Lagos last time and the last thing I want to do is come back to Nigeria and find myself in the exact same situation with nothing to do, nowhere to go, locked up in a compound.

Thanks so much,

Orsi

Abuja Forum

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