Road Trip Photos || Kano, Katsina, Daura and back

So back in July our little family unit went to visit the grandparents in Kano and Daura with a little detour to Katsina to see the elder sister. 

We were already in Kano for sallah, so we took a day out for zumunci (kinship)

Zumunci is always lauded in my culture, especially us from Daura. Keeping the ties of kinship alive is a very vital part of our identity.

Apparently a person from Daura never forgets their roots. It's in your blood. At any moment, Daura will call you and you must heed the call. Hehe. 

Read more about the ancient Daura Emirate. We are pretty cool people *wink wink*

So yeah, I'm just sharing photos from July *covers face*

Hope you enjoy my amateur photography skills.

Traveling by road with a toddler isn't easy, but Baby R seems to be getting used to it. 

The OMG-I'm-locked-in-a-small-box tantrums have greatly diminished over time. 

As long as there's milo, bobo and crackers then we are good. 

On this trip she seemed more interested in the quick succession of trees and people. 

She just soaked in the landscape like a good little girl.

Ramin Doya

Another vital part of zumunci is to bring gifts for the people you're visiting, so we stopped at the outskirts of Kano in a small village called Ramin Doya (The valley of Yams, Hehe!) to get some Yam for the oldies.

Negotiations

I guess the Yams didn't look as great as Gwari and Taraba Yams we get in Abuja, but this is as good as it gets in this part of the country. 

It was pretty cheap too. I think we got a full boot for about 4500.

And then we hit the open road...

First we went from Kano to Katsina  (173.km) which took about 2 and a half hours.

Spent half the day in Katsina before heading to Daura (125km) and it took an hour and 15 minutes.

Are we there yet?

Katsina state is very green in the rainy season. I got these shots right after some rain had fallen and on our way to Daura, there was actually a thunderstorm.

Katsina is a lot more green than many people think. 

Some people may think the vegetation of northern Nigeria is arid with no greenery. But we are farmers in KT, so while its drier than some parts of the country, it's green enough in the rainy season to produce your tomatoes and peppers and rice and corn and many more staples.

We stopped to buy some kilishi and I couldn't resist this view.

Love the juxtaposition of natural, modern and traditional structures.

Awesome wallpaper, no?

Wider shot. I love the clouds.

Roadside commerce

Tasting Platter (Katsina Kilishi)

You can't leave Katsina without having some kilishi (spicy beef jerky). 

Our kilishi is LEGENDARY. 

The only kilishi that may try to rival ours is Sokoto kilishi but it doesn't even come close! 

Kuli kuli, Dabino and Aya kilishi

Katsina Kilishi is known to have an understated sweetness, thanks to the addition of dates and tiger nuts.

We bought a wrap of everything and headed off.

Winter is coming.

I love this shot!

The calm before the storm

Windbreakers

Its not uncommon to see trees planted in a grid pattern by the road sides. 

They are called windbreakers and they help prevent dessert encroachment from the Sahara to northern Nigeria.

They are usually turare trees (literally; perfume trees) and their barks are often used for making traditional incense.

Shelter

Some flooding after a heavy downpour.

Hello Daura

Welcome to Daura. 

Kofar Sarki Abdurrahman literally means King Abdurrahman's Entrance and was named after my Great uncle Sarki Abdurrahman who was the 2nd to last past Emir of Daura and ruled for 55 years.

There are three other city gates all named after kings and heroes of the Daura Emirate. 

I guess at this point I was so excited to be in the motherland and seeing so many cousins and aunties and uncles that I didn't get many photos of the town.

Sheep at my aunt's house. 

More sheep!

By the time we finished our zumunci it was 7:30pm! and thats when started our trip back to Kano. 

All in all it was a tiring day, but we had a lot of fun.

When I'm in Daura with my parents we usually visit family in neighbouring villages like Mai Adua, Zango and Karkarku. 

I'll be sure to have my Camera with me next time. Perhaps I can give you a glimpse of our Emir's palace in Daura or show you how daddawa is made in Mai Adua or even how the Fulanis extract and process fresh cow's milk in Karkarku.

Until then, manage this road trip.

Hope you enjoyed the photos.

Which was your favourite?

Lots of Nomadic Love,

Ummi

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