The Holiday Eko Inn, Victoria Island, Lagos. Approach along the sandy esplanade, rather beautiful but for the lumps in the sand where folk who have been shot are buried - as well as the horse skeletons strewed around.
Phone the Holiday Inn Group and "We have no hotel in Lagos."
An American came in by Pan Am 1 - DC to the west coast of Africa and airport hopping down the coast to Lagos, then Lagos to Nairobi and then around the world, invariably late to Lagos. This one time it was on time, mid-afternoon before rush hour and then when the European planes land - when total chaos breaks out in the airport. I have been there at 11pm, 3 hours after landing, no aircon and the stench..... His first visit to the shyte-hole.
Anyway, his baggage comes up quickly, his passport is stamped, his chauffeur is there and off they go to the EKo ( can be a 3 hour drive - but for him 45 minutes). "All a bit Robin Hood from what I have seen so far."
Check-in is easy (It took 2 hours one time for me) and he's shown to his room - which is half okay.
Then his woes began. He tried to call his company but no joy with the Nigerian phones. He goes to look for a Yellow Pages to check the number. No book so he calls down for one. Nothing arrives.....so he gives up, knowing that they were supposed to be coming around for dinner. Decides to go for a shower and strips down to his shorts, takes his washbag, the water hot (as no one has used it)......
Twenty minutes later and back into the room and everything has gone, his cases, papers, clothers, passport, money, the lot except his shorts and washbag. Blind panic and he calls down, "Help, I've been robbed." Nigerian accent now - "We have no robbers in dis hotel."
That's an absolute joke with some of the unsavouries that you see around and prozzies everywhere......
Anyway, twenty minutes later, he discovers that as he had no yellow pages, a room attendant had been into his room and moved the mountain to Mohammed, despite him being in the bathroom - i,e, shifted him to another room with a yellow pages.......
Just imagine the blind panic that he must have had for that twenty minutes or so. Oh, the 'beloved' Hotel Eko..........