Elizabeth Agboola: Tasting the World Without Leaving Nigeria

If you’ve been following my Purposeful Travel journey, you know that I’m always seeking ways to connect across borders through culture, strategy and story. But on June 26 in Abuja, something beautiful happened: the world came to us.

In the middle of a week filled with high-level diplomatic events, I attended Around the World in a Bottle—One Sip at a Time, hosted by NTT Global Destinations in collaboration with the Embassy of Brazil. It was an evening that reminded me why I love what I do: travel isn’t always about hopping on a plane; sometimes, the journey begins with a single shared experience.

Embassies participated, alongside Nigerian creatives, business leaders and culture enthusiasts. Each sip, whether from North America, Africa, Asia, Oceania, Europe, or South America, offered a story. And in that space, I felt like I was visiting six continents at once, no visa required.

The blindfolded tastings were a personal highlight. With your sight taken away, your other senses awaken. You pay attention. You guess, reflect and connect. It reminded me of travelling without expectations, just presence and curiosity.

There were no speeches, no panels, just moments. Music played. Glasses clinked. People laughed, exchanged numbers, and danced. In that mix of cultures and conversations, I saw diplomacy at its purest—not the formal kind, but the human kind, the kind built on shared experiences and mutual respect.

This event, for me, was the physical expression of the Purposeful Travel journey I’ve shared with you. Across the series, I took you through multi-country adventures on every continent from a Schengen loop across Europe to a cross-border Kazungula safari in Southern Africa, even a leap to Antarctica via South America. Every story was rooted in one idea: that purposeful travel is possible for Nigerians with the right strategy, mindset, and a bit of creativity.

Sometimes, purposeful travel can happen right where we are when embassies open their doors, when creatives share stories, and when we build bridges with every shared meal, song, or bottle.

Around the World in a Bottle was more than a themed event. It was a reminder that even with a green passport and a long visa queue, Nigerians can still see the world. Culture is a passport. Curiosity is a visa. And together, they can take us further than we ever imagined.

So here’s to the journey, both physical and imagined. One sip, one story, one continent at a time.