Port Harcourt is the third most developed metropolis in Nigeria after Lagos and Abuja. It’s dubbed Nigeria’s oil capital and can arguably be called the oil hub of Africa.
The city, also known as the Garden City because of its numerous avenues and ornaments, has over the years been rife with a number of misconceptions.
Jumia Travel, the leading online travel agency, with the help of the hotel manager of Hotel Presidential, reveals five misconceptions about the bustling city.
- It’s expensive to live in
Things in the city are not so cheap but they definitely are not as expensive as rumours tend to exaggerate. There are still places you can go to get a lot of affordable things; you just need to ask around to know these places.
- Things are unsettled
The city is actually quite laid back. You might expect to see the craziness of rushing for buses or cabs, but the commuters are most of the time calm and enter their means of transport in an orderly way. The transportation drivers, however, are another thing entirely. The people are generally quite laid back as they typically favour enjoyment over violence.
- It’s full of violence
The city experiences occasional bouts of violence, especially around or during election season. However, it is unfair to dismiss the city as one that’s full of violence. Admittedly, looting, cultism and violence are vices the city has to deal with but these are most of the time limited to specific areas that can be avoided. It certainly doesn’t mean that the entire city is unsafe or prone to senseless bouts of violence.
- The youths are juvenile
Juveniles are in every state across the country. They are not peculiar to Port Harcourt alone and they are definitely not the brand of every youth in that region. There are indeed some bad eggs among their youth who erroneously believe violence and crime is the way, but there is also a larger number of young people looking for legitimate ways to survive and achieve their goals. There are lots of smart youths there, who though might be willing to cut one or two corners to succeed, are brilliant and resilient enough to succeed without submitting to a life of crime and violence. This is one of the reasons the city is such a dynamic business domain.
- It’s sin city
The people of the city indeed love the night life. The city can, in all truth, be described as a destination for night owls as many places that are silent during the daytime come alive at night. However, this is mostly because the people are by nature inclined to luxury, enjoyment and relaxation. They love to have fun and enjoy themselves; they love the good life. But who doesn’t? We all do. Besides a good number of them work so hard during the day, it’s only fair they unwind whenever they can.
