Coping with Harmattan in Ibadan.

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Harmattan has actually taken over here in Ibadan, and honestly, this weather is something else. Just last night, I had the most uncomfortable experience. I forgot to switch off the fan before going to bed, and when the power came back in the middle of the night, the fan started spinning at full speed. To make things worse, the windows in my room were wide open, and I wasn’t even covered with a blanket. The cold was unbearable, and it completely messed up my sleep. By the time I woke up, shivering like crazy, I had to quickly close the windows and turn off the fan. It was such a mess, and all I could think was, “Why didn’t I prepare for this better?”

That’s the thing with harmattan—it’s so unpredictable. The nights and early mornings are freezing, but by midday, the sun starts blazing, and you might even need to turn on the fan to cool down. It’s like we’re stuck in a weather seesaw, and there’s no way to predict how you’ll feel at any given time.

But you know what’s even worse than the cold? The dust. Living close to the road makes it unbearable. On a normal day, we deal with dust sneaking into the house, but harmattan multiplies it by ten. The dry wind blows nonstop, and it feels like the entire house is coated in a layer of dust no matter how much we clean. It’s frustrating because you could clean in the morning, and by evening, the place looks like you haven’t touched it in weeks.

I remember deciding to play football on a nearby street one day, thinking it would be a fun way to enjoy the day. Big mistake. The dust was everywhere—blowing into my eyes, my nose, and even my mouth. I could barely breathe after a while and felt so dehydrated and gassed out. I had to give up and head home. It’s almost impossible to enjoy anything outdoors when the harmattan dust is this bad.

And then there’s my health. Ever since this weather started, I’ve been sneezing non-stop, and the catarrh hasn’t let me rest. It’s like my nose has turned into a war zone, constantly battling with the dust. Sometimes, I sneeze so much that I can’t even focus on what I’m doing. It’s exhausting.

We’ve had to come up with ways to deal with all this. For the cold nights, I always make sure to have a thick blanket nearby so I can stay warm. And for the dust, we’ve started covering the windows with whatever we can find to reduce how much gets inside the house. It helps a little, but honestly, the dust is still everywhere—it’s just something we have to deal with.

Harmattan is no joke. Between the cold, the dust, and the constant sneezing, it’s a season I can’t wait to see the back of. But for now, we’re just trying to get through it one day at a time, keeping warm and doing our best to keep the house clean. I just hope it doesn’t last too long because I’m already over it.