Millennium Park Abuja is the largest public park in Abuja covering, approximately 32 hectares. It is located in the Maitama district of the federal capital territory. The Millennium park was designed by he Italian architect Manfredi Nicoletti,commissioned in December 2003 by Queen Elizabeth II.
Its a lovely place for bird watching, a picnic, walks, jogging, other outdoor and group activities.
Photo Credit: Travel Start Blog
This is definitely a spot to visit while on your elective in Lagos as a group or even by yourself. I went with some lovely friends and we easily arrived at the centre by taxi. The cost of entry and canopy walk is relatively inexpensive N2000 (approximately £4-5/$5-6). We enjoyed the grounds and canopy walk with another group, friendly and informative guides.
The grounds have some beautiful birds including peacocks, we were told the swamp region had snakes, to be honest I was glad I did
not see this! There were many areas we could relax and play megasized
board games like chess.
I enjoyed the canopy walk the most. The view was beautiful! The canopy is quite high (one of the highest in Africa), so its best to avoid if you have a fear of heights. Always stay hydrated with a bottle of water, although there is a small canteen you can buy some refreshments from.
Also remember to take an extra something in
case it rains, like an umbrella or foldable raincoat – in my case I had neither
and got wet, but the showers didn’t last too long. Also appropriate shoes would be best, otherwise you’ll feel the need to wash your feet at a tap at the end of the walk like we all did! haha
Website: http://www.ncfnigeria.org
Written by Wumi Oworu
This is definitely a spot to visit while on your elective in Abuja or Gwagwalada. After shopping at the at Shoprite in the Central Business District, Abuja, I visited the Abuja Arts and Craft Village, just few minutes walk away.
There are many beautiful authentic, hand crafted jewellery items, small furniture items, baskets, mats, sculptures, pottery, paintings, other art pieces and fashion items which vary in price. This is a great spot to buy for holiday souvenirs and gifts for your loved ones at home. Definitely bring your A game and be ready to bargain!
Written by Wumi Oworu
Most medical schools or hospitals have clear guidelines on the vaccinations they expect their students or employees to have received. Therefore I would advise you to look at the guidelines of the medical school/hospital/other medical environment you belong to and those of your desired elective location.
I’d advise the following vaccinations: Cholera, Diphtheria, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Meningococcal Meningitis, Poliomyelitis, Rabies, Tetanus, Typhoid, Yellow Fever (Yellow Fever certificate is required at the airport and will need to be shown at passport control)
There are a variety of anti-malarials available, some more specific for Nigeria, its important you receive advice from a doctor or pharmacist before making a purchase. Make sure you are fully aware of the course for the specific antimalarial you have chosen, side effects and drug interactions if you are taking other medication.
Once you know what antimalarial you would like to buy consider buying the generic medication rather than the brand name – this will save you money! You can also calculate the exact number of tablets you need (included before and after travel needs) so you won’t have left over medication.
It may also be helpful for you to purchase some anti-emetics, anti-diarrhoeal, simple analgesia (such as paracetamol) and antihistamines. Getting diarrhoea within the first few days of arriving in Nigeria because your GI system is getting used to the pepper, leaf soups and heat is not the best welcome gift!!
Other resources (mostly relevant to the UK, so please look for the equivalent for your country):
If you have any medical or mental health conditions, seek medical advice from your local doctor before making any definitive plans or payments towards your Nigerian elective.
All medications should be purchased after a medical consultation and with a prescription. All medications should be used as prescribed by your medical practitioner.
As a student doctor (and potential student doctor) you have developed skills and acquired knowledge that can benefit many people around you, you do not have to travel to the other side of the globe to have a positive impact! It is amazing the opportunities you have as student doctors to support the health of our local community and other communities around the world. A medical elective placement is part of almost all medical degrees around the world, and once you have found what you would like to spend your time doing, the next step is to source some funding!
How are you going to raise the money for this!?
Here are a few suggestions:
1. Search for grants, bursaries (and low-interest loans) offered by your medical school, college, university, local authority, charities, businesses, etc.
2. Go Fund Me – although, to really get people (and strangers) to part with their hard earned money, you really need to:
a. Clearly layout the purpose of your fundraising and show a breakdown of your costs
b. Justify why you are deserving of their donation.
c. Explain how this experience will truly benefit not just yourself but the community you are going to help.
d. Demonstrate your own personal efforts to raising money i.e. part-time work, etc.
e. Consider, the evidence will you be able to share with your supporters, i.e. a written report, weekly blog post, pictures and videos, etc. See this as a ‘thank you’ for their support.
3. Part-time work for several weeks/months.
4. Create an eBay account an sell unwanted items and new products.
5. Auction or sell you gifts/talents/skills with in your community (i.e. family, university, church, etc); i.e. put on a small talent show; offer to baby sit, do household chores; cake sales, car boot sales, etc. for an hourly wage.
These are just a few of our suggestions; please help others out by commenting in the comment box below if you have any other ideas too! If you have instructions or a secret formula, even better! Lol
Photo Credit: PhotoPin
Medics’ Inn
When you are in Abuja Nigeria, consider exploring these places!
Gurara falls
“This impressive waterfall, an hour’s drive from Abuja, is 30 metres tall with a span of up to 200 metres across, dependent on the season. There are two main streams of water crashing over the cliff face, however during the height of rainy season the whole cliff face is engulfed by a formidable curtain of white water.
The Gurara river is a large tributary of the famous River Niger and is most impressive after the rainy season when the water becomes a raging torrent while in January, during the dry season and when water levels are low, there are clear pools at the bottom of the falls in which visitors can swim.
As well as being an area of outstanding natural beauty the area surrounding Gurara Waterfall is also a fantastic place for bird watching.”
Source: My Destination
Photo Credit: Visit Abuja
Millennium Park
“Millennium Park Abuja is the largest of the green areas and parks in Abuja covering a land area of about 32 hectares. It is located in the Maitama district of the federal capital territory. The Millennium park was commissioned in December 2003 by Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.”
Source: Abuja-ng
Photo Credit: Travel Start Blog
Yankari Park and Wikki Warm Springs
“Yankari Park and Wikki Warm Springs are located around the Gagi River, approximately one and a half hours by road, southeast of Bauchi Town. The best time to visit is between November and May, when tourists are likely to see more game since the dense vegetation has dried out and the animals congregate around the rivers. The reserve habours over 50 wide range of prized indigenous wildlife, including Baboons, Monkeys, Warthogs, Hippopotamuses, Lions, Elephants and Leopards.Other animals include Buffalo, Gannet, Roan antelope, Bubal Hartebeest and spotted Hyena in addition to African hunting Dogs, Cheetahs, western Kobs, red-fronted Gazelles, Waterbucks, Grimm’s Dockers, Oribi and red-fl anked Dockers. The reserve also hosted more than 350 species of indigenous birds, 26 species of fish, 7 amphibians and 17 species of reptiles.”
About 7-8 hours drive form Abuja, so head out early!
Source & Photo Credit: The Green White Green
Usuma Lake/Usuma Dam
Photo Credit: Sky Scraper City
Golf at the IBB Golf Course
“ General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, as the then Head of State relocated the Federal Capital from Lagos to Abuja, which could not boast of a golf club. As a result, many key Officers of the government, who were of course avid golfers, desert the City at short notices to Lagos to enjoy their game of golf. In order to solve this problem of unusual trips to Lagos to play golf, the idea of providing a befitting golf course in the City was conceived by then Col. John Nanzip Shagaya with Alhaji Kazaure, Chief C. A. Mbanefo, C. N. Chigbo, B. I. Eze, O. O. Odunuga Nana H. Aliyu and S. O. Jones. The golf course concept was packaged and presented to General Babginda, who as a lover of the game enthusiastically approved it.
The categories of members of the club include ordinary, honorary, overseas, corporate and junior members. It has Ladies and Lawn tennis sections and regular Wednesday and Sunday kitties apart from other small and big tournaments that are organized frequently by the club and outsiders. The club also regularly organizes public lectures on various issues to keep its members abreast of current national and international issues. The club has a well equipped workshop and modern clubhouse with a pro-shop, two standard car parks, six locker rooms for males and females, administrative offices and standard Bar/Restaurant managed by the popular Sheraton Hotel and Towers.”
Source & Photo Credit: IBB Golf Club
Carnival
“Abuja carnival is a yearly program that hold in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria most in the month of November. It feature road shows, musics, cultural dances, masquerades, durbar and lots more with participants from all the states of Nigeria. It’s a great occasion and has spectators from around the globe.”
Source: Abuja-ng
Photo Credit: African Spotlight
Art Galleries
There are numerous art galleries to be inspired and entertained by!
Look out for part 2 and 3! Please tell us in the comment box below where you would encourage others to visit!
medicsinn.com 
