Awka Shopping Survival Guide: Markets, Malls & My Camera's Near-Death
so here i am, lugging my DSLR through awka’s humidity like a sweaty tourist god, hunting for shots that don’t scream ‘generic africa’. spoiler: mission failed. but man, the shopping here? it’s a fever dream of sensory overload. first stop: eke ukwu market. this ain’t your curated farmer’s market - it’s a warzone of yams and phone chargers. dodged a woman swinging live chickens like handbags nearly lost my lens cap. prices? wild. a bag of plantains costs more than my dignity at 8am.
“if you negotiate prices like you’re bargaining with ghosts, they’ll laugh you out of here. show teeth, man, show teeth!” - overheard at mama nkechi’s pepper stall while she glared at a tourist asking ₦200 for bitter leaf.
then there’s the paradox of luxury malls. like stumbling into a parallel universe at okpoko plaza. polished floors, ac blasting like a polar vortex, and stores selling ₦50k suits when you saw the same fabric being sold for ₦2k at the market. felt like a spy mission trying to document the absurdity without getting kicked out by security guards who clearly thought i was casing the place.
real talk: safety’s kinda chill if you’re not flashing gear like a christmas tree. saw zero muggings, but rent? ₦150k for a decent one-bed near the new tech hub - wild when you consider onitsha’s market is just 30 mins away where ₦20k buys you a whole floor. job market’s growing though, especially if you’re into trading - my cousin’s importing taiwanese phones now.
“don’t buy meat at the new mall food court. they recycle the leftover suya into the next day’s pepper soup. i’m not joking - my brother-in-law works there.” - drunk guy at the chop bar who offered me a suspiciously warm beer.
weather’s been doing that thing where it rains sideways for 10 minutes then turns into a sauna. perfect for getting lens fog in your face while trying to shoot ezeagu caves nearby. speaking of nearby: enugu’s a bumpy 2hr bus ride if you fancy escaping the chaos for proper coffee shops.
pro-tips i learned the hard way:
- wrap your camera in plastic when visiting markets.
- never pay first asking price unless it’s plantain chips.
- the ‘luxury’ mall ac will give you pneumonia - pack a hoodie.
- if a vendor says “this is my last piece,” they’ve got 47 more stashed behind the stall.
awkward moment of the week? getting mistaken for a wedding photographer at ziks arcade and nearly roped into shooting a 3-hour igbo wedding. dodged that bullet with some frantic hand gestures and muttering about “contractual obligations.”
so yeah, awka shopping’s a beautiful mess. where else can you haggle over bitter leaf at dawn and then instagram flat whites at noon? nowhere, that’s where. just bring deodorant. and maybe a spare lens cap.
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