In this series, Nigeria Info news manager Ufuoma takes us on his journey and behind the scenes as he travels to Doha, Qatar, for the World Innovation Summit for Health.
“I hope you are comfortable,” the beautiful Qatar Airways flight attendant said with a gorgeous smile as I sat on my seat on the flight scheduled to depart Lagos for Doha, the Qatari capital.
“I am good,” I replied as I settled in.
“Thank you for deciding to fly with us today,” she continued. “I am here to make sure you have an amazing flight experience.”
Those words were so reassuring as I had had a nightmarish last 24 hours prior.
For about a month now, I knew I was making this trip to Doha for the 7th edition of the World Innovation Summit for Health - WISH2024, but procrastination will not be the end of me.
It was two to three days before my trip – this past weekend – when I started looking for where my passport and yellow fever paper were.
By Sunday, I found my passport, but the yellow paper was nowhere to be found.
On Monday, I sent a colleague, Wonderful, to go look for it at my apartment, but she couldn’t find it. By the time I finally wrapped up that evening and got home, panic was already setting in.
Exactly two years ago, when I was set to attend this same event, I only realized the night before the trip that I didn’t have my Covid paper with me.
Guess what? I was not at home as I lodged at a hotel on Airport Road in Lagos since the flight to Doha was an early morning one.
I asked my then intern, Jessica (the babe na big babe now for one bank o) to help me search for it and she basically turned my room upside down and didn’t find it.
My saving grace was a picture of the card I had sent to my wife months earlier. She had to go look through her old phone and thankfully forwarded the picture to me.
Even at that, I wasn’t sure I would get through Immigration personnel at the airport. Luckily, the bar code in the picture was scannable and my data read.
“Ufuoma why you dey always do this thing to yourself,” I muttered as I walked tiredly into my apartment on Monday evening.
The panic attacks set in viciously afterwards. But thankfully, I found it after an hour’s search.
It’s 8:32am from the city of Doha, Qatar 😁
— Ufuoma Egbamuno (@Foskolo) November 13, 2024
I’m attending the World Innovation Summit for Health #WISH2024 #WISHSummit
Good morning pic.twitter.com/jC73V2SVi5
And then, the whole packing of my bags began in earnest. This is me who usually starts packing for trips like 2/3 days before travel date.
For some strange reasons, I didn’t do enough of that this time even if I put some things already in my travel box.
I didn’t sleep on Monday night until 2am.
Anyway, I got the airport just in time – three hours before my scheduled 12:10pm flight and that’s when sh** hit the ceiling.
“Let me see your VISA,” the Qatar Airways personnel asked as he looked through my passport.
“Let me check my emails,” I responded.
I remembered vividly that the #WISH2024 organisers had sent an email some weeks back with my VISA as I ran through my phone looking for it but got to the end of my official email and saw nothing.
Ha! Mogbe!!
“My Village people are after me,” I muttered again to myself.
I quickly called another colleague, Uche Nwanyiocha who I was sure was in the office.
“Uche, please, kindly help me open my emails and search for one from WISH 2024 that has my VISA”, I said to her as I tried hard to hide the panic in my voice
After about five minutes, Uche called back with the least words I wanted to hear:
“Boss, I can’t find any email with VISA on it…”
My heart sank…
It’s 8:32am from the city of Doha, Qatar 😁
— Ufuoma Egbamuno (@Foskolo) November 13, 2024
I’m attending the World Innovation Summit for Health #WISH2024 #WISHSummit
Good morning pic.twitter.com/jC73V2SVi5
To be Continued.
