Steem4nigeria Accelerator Contest Week 91: My worst Traveling Experience.

Traveling is one major part of life. There is possibly no one that have not travelled. There are various reasons which can cause a person to travel. It could be for fun, holidays, work, etc. irrespective of the reasons for doing so, sometimes, it could be demanding. It could either be a source of joy or unhappiness to us. The thought of packing and unpackings a result of traveling and settling in our new environment can be challenging too.

However, this contest is about my worst traveling experience. I will be sharing one with you all.

Do you also love traveling and what kind of traveling do you do? (Business, vacation, visit etc)

I love travelling as a person and as a family especially for vacations or visiting family relatives. Going on vacation helps you explore new places, their food, the people, important places, etc. I also love traveling with some good extra cash on hand. This will add spice to the vacation or visit too.

Sometimes, I travel due to work and business. When it relates to business , i don't enjoy it. I just get the job done and find my way home. I enjoy travelling most when I do so with my family or close friends.

What is your worst traveling experience, share with us.

One of my nightmares while travelling is my car breaking down in the course of the journey or being attacked by robbers on the way. I have being a victim to both and it was never funny.

It was on a Wednesday morning. I usually leave the house as early as 4 am in the morning so that I can arrive early in the office. I shuttle from where I live to another state. The journey is usually hectic, not because it is far but because of the bad road. A journey that should take only an hour, usually takes about 3 hours.

That day was a famous market day in the city I was working which usually attracts so many buyers and sellers outside the city.

Many buyers go to the market with reasonable sums of money which attracts undue attention. So we left the bus terminal by 4:15 am and headed towards the high way.

It was still dark and the road was foggy, even the driver cannot see well. So he reduced his acceleration and moved more slowly. We noticed that no bus or vehicle was coming from the opposite lane which was unusual. So he became more cautious.

Suddenly, some meters from where we are, we saw headlights being directed off the road and inside the nearby bush and then gunshots. Because of fog on the road, we did not see them early.

Our driver quickly started reversing the bus as the gunshots increased. When we got back to a reasonable distance from them, all the passengers left the bus and ran into the bush.

Just imagine running into a thick bush in the dark, abandoning every luggage of yours, oblivious of the dangers in the thick bush. All ran in different directions and laid down on the bush floor. The attackers came and shot several times into the bush and left after about 10 mins. Those 10 minutes seemed like eternity.

I came out when I started hearing the weeping and wailing of other passengers. Some ran so deep into the bush that they couldn't find their way out. We did a headcount and two passengers were not accounted for.

Some now went back to the bush, calling out to them until they used their calls to find their way back.

Happily no one was hurt. Nobody was bitten by snakes or other dangerous reptiles and insects.
We boarded the bus once more and continued on our journey. Some passengers in two other buses were hurt and injured but no life was lost.

I also ended up going to work late that day. I was visibly shaken by that experience.

Was the cause of the experience something you could have avoided or it's something you didn't see coming at all?

While I was aware that ugly incidences like that occurs on that route, but I never saw that coming. There was nothing that I could do to stop it from happening. It was just like any other day of work.

Is there any advice or tips you would love to give to your readers about traveling?

Whenever we are traveling, dress in a way that you will have free movement and be smart. Know about the route you will be taking and avoid dangerous routes if possible. Always be alert and avoid sleeping most of the time. Travel with less luggage, with the things you really need for the journey. Always have an extra cash with you while traveling.