I came across this wrestling arena in an outskirt village of Bauchi on Wednesday evening when the sun was lowered and the atmosphere was golden with magnificent views. The wrestling competition is done every Wednesday among the villagers and the last man standing after different fixtures would be crowned the winner as the villagers informed me. I loved the environmental setting with great sounds of local drummers. They further informed me that they do the festival is done once in a year after the harvesting season; when all their farm products are harvested and taken home. The super champion who always wins the crown explained to me that he inherited wrestling talents and stamina from his dad who used to be the champion during their days. He further said that his dad married his mum after winning one of the strongest championships, and she was given to him as a gift for being a super champion consecutively in those years.
It was really amazing watching them performing, and the super champion guy won it again. Would you like to watch their wrestling performance?
Thank you for sharing your photos with us. The cultural diversity is amazing. It was so interesting to read about the wrestling and traditions of your hometown. What else will you suggest to visit or see there?
By the way, I relabeled your post to Local Stories, as it fits better there.
Yes, there are other great things to do in Bauchi which includes safari to view the wildlife animals, swim in a natural warm spring water which is very crystal clear, hike on beautiful mountains and hills for a magnificent view especially during sunset or sunrise, visit ancient monuments and palaces, and many other adventures.
@InaS The best time to travel is all the months except August, September and October because of heavy rains and difficult to see the wildlife animals during that period. Yes, I have been to safari many times, it’s a great experience.
Thanks for sharing, @Dr_Mohh . This is indeed a very particular custom. Do the participants hurt themselves for real? I guess it’s just for the custom sake or they get competitive? Is this how they decide who they get married or the story you tell is unique?
@IrrPavlova The participants sometimes do hurt themselves but the rule of the game is not really hurting each other but taking an opponent to ground level (falling him down) in whatever way: that justifies the winner. No, that is not how they decide who to get married to, the story was a unique one. However, it does happen to the great champions of the games because they are regarded as role models in the community, so every girl will love to be with a champion.
Thank you for your reply @Dr_Mohh . I learned interesting facts about the traditions in your hometown. Hope to see more posts from you. Keep up sharing and contributing!
