We left for the airport Friday January 2nd at 1:30pm having spent the last seven weeks visiting family and friends, traveling the States and now with 8 full suitcases are back in Lagos Saturday 11pm January 3rd. It’s 82 degrees and balmy weather.
We awoke Sunday morning to the sound of the fire alarm going off in the apartment. We had gotten about 5 hours sleep at this point and it would have been nice to sleep in. After calling security to let them know about the alarm, we discovered water on the floor of 3 bathrooms and the guest bedroom and not a little water but water an inch deep. One of the hot water tanks (we have 2) had burst. Here the tanks are located in the crawl space above the bathrooms. Once again we called security and someone came round to turn off the water to the 2 bathrooms and the kitchen. We won’t be doing any laundry!
It’s Monday 1:30pm and a new water tank has arrived and is being installed. Of course there is now rust colored water on the floor and grimy fingerprints all over the walls. The plumber had to remove the wood frame around the crawl space to get the new hot water heater in, but at least we have hot water! Watching workers in Nigeria is always interesting: Plumbers, Electricians, and Carpenters – all show up with no tools whatsoever! They arrive, and then go in search of a ladder, (we do not have one), then they ask to borrow a hammer or wrench, or must go off again to borrow one from somewhere. If parts are needed, the leave and come back days later with the part to pick-up where they left off. Therefore, simple jobs drag over either all day long, or over multiple days, and even then will only get completed in a timely fashion if they are called and cajoled on a continuous basis.
To be safe, we have asked to have the other hot water heater replaced before it might burst! So the plumbers will return. Welcome to life in Nigeria!