Colonial buildings are quite common A national park adjacent to Nairobi makes for views like this. Income inequality manifesting in slums beside a golf course

5. Lagos, Nigeria – Lagos is currently Africa’s largest city population-wise, after surpassing Cairo, and is a megacity in every right. It is as blessed with opportunity as it is cursed with all the challenges of every megacity in the developing world. Population censuses are notoriously outdated or inaccurate due to how fast Lagos is growing, but the current estimate is betweek 16 and 25 million. As with every other fast growing cities in its league, such as Mumbai, Dhaka or Rio, rural migrants are pouring in faster than government infrastructure or services can catch up, leaving many residents living in large swaths of slums. Lagos slums are characterized by standing on stilts above the lagoon. Poverty in Lagos, however, is also contrasted with luxury high rises of Ikoyi, a modern land reclamation project which can rival most of those of the Gulf countries’, and the skyscrapers of downtown Lagos. The multi billion dollar GDP of the city can be attributed to banking, finance, telecommunications and “Nollywood”, the Nigerian film entertainment industry. Much like Tokyo, Lagos is not actually a distinct city and is comprised of many municipalities comprising of the Lagos State. The municipalities are connected via roads(which are usually packed), commuter suburban train, and a new rail network that is currently under construction. Personally, I always thought of Nigeria as the India of tomorrow and Lagos, in my mind wouldn’t feel that different from Mumbai. It’s poised for the future and you might find yourself living there in the future to chase its economic boom.

PS. Do yourself a favor and follow @instalagos for some insight into Lagos life.