CNN Travel publication, Time Out, recently compiled a list of what they think are the 50 coolest neighbourhoods in the world. The historic Onikan in Lagos state which houses the National museum made it to that list, sitting pretty at number 3.
According to Time Out’s description of cool neighbourhoods; they’re places to spend a vacation, that possess famous attractions or gorgeous natural wonders. Onikan was chosen due to the fact that it is home to artists, writers, designers and Nollywood actors.
The report stated; “But if you really want to get to know a city like a local, your best bet is to look for the neighbourhoods where they hang out, where the most interesting new restaurants, art galleries and coffee shops emerge. You might spot some of them hanging out in cool Onikan, where past, present and future collide effortlessly.”
Describing Onikan, the Time Out article read; “Past, present and future collide effortlessly in Lagos’s historic district of Onikan. A cool wind blows through the private green spaces of its military barracks and its narrow streets, which represent an architectural catalogue of the city’s history: the colonial houses of the pre-independence era, the boom of the ’70s and today’s Western-style steel and mortar structures.”
“The landscape is still changing: larger buildings are sprouting upwards, including a football stadium and multi-storey car park, even as creatives flock to the area in search of authentic surroundings. We know the story of rapid urbanization when we see it, but Onikan is weirdly different: the energy of this place is built on a cycle whose bedrock is community, constantly regenerating itself.”
See full “Time Out” list and article here;
By The Arubayi Keme