David Aladegbaiye Patricks

Description

One man stood on top of another, spits on his face, and yells the word “Ama-kwe-re-kwe-re”. This was my first time to hear the word. As locals look from the enclave of their tiny aluminum houses as the so-called foreigners swamp the inner city to compete for the little hope of employment left.

Emigrating from your country of birth to an unknown country can be a thrill of mixed emotion, one of adventure, the feeling of freedom and loneliness. I arrived in South Africa at the end of winter in September 2004 at the heart of Johannesburg (Kotze and Claims Street).

Tired from a flight of 6 hours, I needed a bed and some warm shower but all I was given was a wooden chair. I had found myself in South Africa in the midst of raw crime by Claim Street in Hillbrow, Johannesburg. Worse in the hands and care of an acclaimed Nigerian mafia who had conned my parents into believing he was a successful Nigerian businessman. He had thousands of dollars for my tuition, housing, and the keys to a future I wasn’t sure of.

Different from other travelers who spent their first night on a comfortable bed, I spent my first night on the floor of a motel in yeoville. I had just graduated from college and traveled on an exciting 6 hours journey to start my university education in South Africa but I wasn’t ready for what South Africa had in store and no one or nothing could prepare me for what I was about to encounter.

In the weeks that followed I would be exposed to some of the biggest lessons of my life and some key experiences that would change my perception about humanity, and the world we live in.

This book is an account of my journey and the many experiences I am compelled to share in this book for immigrants and citizens alike.