Friday Night Live!

My Friday nights in Lagos just seem to be getting better and better and better!

I came on here to talk about the brilliant time I had two days ago, but then realised I never blogged about the Friday before - Halloween!

On October 31st, I put on my daddy's black bowler hat and bright red tie, drew a moustache onto my face with some eyeliner, and headed out to meet up with friends (prizes to anyone who can guess who/what I was meant to be). I picked up my friend Carmen who had drawn a nose and whiskers onto her face, and wore a pair of ears made out of a black alice band and some paper. We looked ridiculous!

Auto Lounge
(Lounge/Night Club)
Agoro Odiyan
Victoria Island

First we went to Auto Lounge, because I had never been before and was curious to see this relatively brand new place that had received such lukewarm reviews from friends. Walking in though, I understood why. Auto Lounge tries too hard to come off as cool and classy, and so ends up looking disjointed and a little confused. Each individual piece of furniture is cool to look at on its own, but when put together with the others, the collective result fails to impress. Needless to say, as soon as the friends we were waiting for arrived, we were off... to Piccolo Mondo.

Piccolo Mondo
(Restaurant/Lounge/Night Club)
Idejo
Victoria Island

Piccolo Mondo had gone all out for Halloween, with plastic cobwebs and all sorts dangling from the ceiling. Pity it was almost completely empty, apart from a group of very young white kids dancing to some very bad music. Upstairs in Piccolo, we chatted with friends for close to an hour and then decided Suites XVIII was the place to be... and how right we were!

The Penthouse
Suites XVIII
(Boutique Hotel)
62 Adetokunbo Ademola
Victoria Island

If you've never been to the penthouse at Suites XVIII before, then my poor attempt to describe what it looks like probably won't do you much good. The penthouse is split over two floors, with a bar and lounge on the top floor overlooking the main floor of the penthouse, which has been divided into clusters of sofas, art deco coffee tables and quirky paintings (all painted by the owner Akhmed).

Apart from a few groups of girls dressed in bridezilla and Princess Barbie outfits, there was no other indication that it was halloween. (By this point though I really didn't care, and had wiped off my moustache seeing as Lagosians, being Lagosians, just weren't getting my get up!) And once the whisky began to flow and the DJ began to heat things up, I too kinda forgot why I was dressed up.

The DJ was absolutely amazing! My friends and I danced non-stop for two hours to songs as varied as Bille Jean, I'm Coming Out, My Dream is to Fly (no clue what that Bob Sinclar song's actually called) and Igwe. It was faaaantastic!

Calienté
Goriola Street
(Night Club)
Victoria Island

Roundabout 3am we decided to change things up a bit and head to Calienté, where a very grown up halloween party was in full swing.

Right from the gate we were greeted by an array of super heros, alcoholic beverages and furry creatures. However we ended up in what I call the old papa room (I know it has a much cooler name than that, something like Belvedere), sitting around yet another bottle of whisky and chit chatting. The DJ just wasn't good enough to get us going - He never is! I really think the good citizens of Lagos should put a petition together demanding his immediate dismissal! He is rubbish!

I say this after having subjected myself to his pitiful routine two Fridays in a row of course. Because where did I end up last Friday (i.e. two days ago) if not Ca-flippin'-lienté. It never ceases to amaze me that clubs in Nigeria give their bouncers, glorified gatemen, the power to decide who is worthy of getting in, and who isn't. It is ridiculous. I walked up to the gate on Friday and was subjected to a full body assessment before I heard the most local accent ever grunt, "Let her in". What's more, when you do finally make it into Calienté, you're met by a horde of working girls in tight nylon hotpants and shiny plastic bag weaves, and groups of gay perverts standing on tables, winding, grinding and stroking themselves!

It makes no sense!

Please don't get me wrong, I have absolutely nothing against homosexuals. My problem is with perverts of any sexual orientation. If it had been women dancing the way those men were dancing on Friday, it would've been just as disgusting. Believe me!

I had wanted to talk about No. 10 next (currently my favourite club in Las Gidi), and about our brief run in with Sisqo (he of 'Thong Song' and 'Unleash the Dragon' fame) on Friday night, but this post is already too long as it is, and I'm running late for a very important date!