Sunday, June 25, 2006

Was racing down from my office to the Femi Osofisan event at the National Arts Theatre when this house caught my eye on Queens Street, Alagomeji, Yaba-Lagos. Probably built when the Portuguese influence was still strong, (which must be close to a hundred years now), it is patterned after a style that is obsolete in the city. Most families that have lived in Lagos for more than 2 generations owned or inhabited houses in the Alagomeji/Montgomery/Yaba axis. Posted by Picasa

6 comments:

Aramide said...

Woww....fascinating....nice blog you have here :o)

TEMITAYO OMOLOLA said...

Lovely building i wonder what it must have looked like when it was in its hey day. i have a thing for old buildings i absolutely love them. they intrigue me.
Now if this building were to be restored wouldn't that be something? Pity Nigerians aren't into restoration.
By the way, nice blog

laspapi said...

thanks for the kind words, mona.

@adunni: That building thing-you're a kindred spirit. I look at some and I wonder what kind of people lived there once, what the history of it is, what it was like when it was the newest house on the road...

TEMITAYO OMOLOLA said...

Thanks for stopping by.
@my fascination with old buildings i've never quite spoken it out loud before(they already think im crazy enough no need to add to it).At least not to anyone i know. I guess seeing that picture kinda helped me realise just how much i love old buildings and history. Thanks

Anonymous said...

Interesting building.

Unfortunately well-built homes with distinctive characters as this are becoming fewer on the Nigerian landscape, many have been torn down for newer structures of lesser charm. Unlike most western societies, there are no municipal ordinance protecting historical buidlings from demolition or drastic renovations in Nigeria (if there are such ordinances they are yet to be enforced)

rethots said...

I think 'tis architecturally known as the brazillian house (style).
@ adunni, it sure would be nice if Nigerians embrace restoration of buildings -it's an aspect of architecture i adore. Only, 'em who buy these buildings would rather pull them down.....oh, for a change of (their) thots