Bunmi Ajakaiye: ‘Exclusive Event’ Means Nothing To Lagosians

2014 was one heck of a year and I have to say that Lagos for me has been a cauldron of excitement, ridiculousness and late nights – stirred together by the “Lagos life” lessons I keep learning. December was been filled with so many moments and I quickly figured something out; “EXCLUSIVE EVENT” MEANS NOTHING TO LAGOSIANS.

I am so confused, all this time I thought that if an event was an exclusive affair, then there should be at least enough room for me to be able to turn around without totally invading the space of the nearest unsuspecting socialite! Such was the case at more than one event I attended. As a media person, you attend some events on account of what you are there to do; but there was this one that I was sure was going to be a hassle, so I made sure I had the organiser’s number on speed dial.

As I suspected, the security guy was being overzealous so I pulled rank, got in and guess what I found? Absolutely nothing!  It was just a handful of people, this was almost 11pm and you could literally imagine the tumble weed blowing across the room with reckless abandon. Bottles and bottles of champagne were already waiting to be served and yet there was nobody.

I set my gear down and resigned myself to a boring night. I will confess that a small part of me was busy judging the organisers for over using the term ‘exclusive’ to the point where nobody showed up. But me and my judgy self were unceremoniously flung to a corner as exactly 30 minutes later, the room was totally packed, and the mammoth crowd still waiting to get in was unbelievable and they were all determined to get in! All that idle champagne was gone and had been replaced just as quickly! It was like someone had been holding all the people up, maybe two streets away and then let them go all at the same time. I have to admit I was overwhelmed, and trust my Lagos people, whenever the event is tagged as exclusive event; their level of fronting for the camera is not here. It was a great night but I had to leave early because I kept falling alseep; I was already tired from the night before where a music show ended up turning into a night vigil! December events in Lagos will literally throw your body clock out of whack if you don’t watch it.
This brings me to the next thing I figured out, YOU WILL GO HOME…EVENTUALLY.

I don’t know about everyone else but since when has it become a norm to leave home at the modest hour of 10:30pm for an event that starts at 9pm only to return to your house at nearly 6am! Don’t get me wrong, some of our events end at the latest by 1am, which is not too bad because if I have to write about it, I need at least an hour to coordinate, so by 2am I’m snoozing. However, me and my puny 1am routine could have gone to blazes for all the organisers of this event cared. After arriving late and trying to have a good time, I realised by 4am that the show was still nowhere near the end! They were saving the best acts for last and because I was already there, I had to endure. I looked around and found people dozing off, kids sleeping on their parents’ laps and it was just a bit unsettling. Is this really a worthy price to pay for a few laughs and people gyrating enthusiastically on a stage? I was even more annoyed with myself because I stick to fashion related events; but this one time, my friends had me cornered.

Today, as I was grumbling to myself about what a whirlwind these past few weeks have been, I remembered one thing; I made it through the year! I actually survived this town! It’s not always been smooth sailing but I am thankful for grace and most of all safety because I do get home at some precarious hours and our neighbours are totally convinced that I am a runz girl (I can see it in their eyes!). But…have all the late nights, countless images, unsavoury moments and judgy neighbours been worth it? You bet!

Photo Credit: Dreamstime | Michael Zhang