Ijebu-Ode is a local government in Ogun State, South-West, Nigeria. The state is popular for being the home of the revered Olumo Rock and Lisabi Festival. The nomenclature, Ijebu-Ode is the combination of two great personalities and founders of the town: Ajebu and Olode. Both families were the first settlers in the ancient town. A total of 154,032 reside in the town. It is dominated by the Ijebus and Ijebu is their lingua franca.
Ijebu-Ode is easily accessible as it takes just 1 hour 30 minutes (100.4km) to drive to the town from the commercial city of Lagos. The town is peaceful, tranquil and receptive. It is blessed with so much history, culture, cuisine and hospitality that attracts tourists and visitors yearly to the town.
The Traditional Institution
Mention must be given to the traditional institution that oversees the affairs of Ijebu-Ode indigenes and kingdom. The respected and first class traditional ruler is His Royal Highness, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona. He is addressed as the Awujale of Ijebu land. The Oba is the custodian of the kingdom. He was crowned on April 2nd 1960. In other words, he has been on the throne for 55 years now.
The Ojude-Oba Festival
Perhaps, this is the most important reason why the town is very popular. Ojude-Oba festival is a widely and lavishly celebrated festival in Ijebu-Ode. It is a day set aside to pay homage to the king, commemorate the values, culture and traditions of the Ijebus as well as pay homage to the founding fathers of the town. Hotels in the town are fully booked, homes are filled with visitors and tourists come from far and wide into the town to experience the festival. Key highlights of the festival include the horse displays by the various horse-riding families, the dancing competitions among the various regbe regbe i.e age grades, the beautiful attires and deftly plaited hairdo of the women. The festival is held opposite the Oba’s palace. It is a place to relax and have fun. Assuredly, the festival would offer you the best of Ijebu-Ode!
Cuisine
How will you feel if you left a town without tasting their traditional cuisine? It will be a fairly ridiculous visit. So, it is very essential that wherever you visit, you should at least have a taste of their food. For the people of ijebu-Ode, Ifokore is a highly cherished cuisine. Ifokore is porridge prepared from water-yam. It is yummy, tasty and the Ijebus don’t joke with this food. Therefore, you must not leave Ijebu-Ode without eating or tasting this local delicacy.
Unwinding
There are so many places to indulge and have fun in Ijebu-Ode. Click here to see some of these hotels and other places to unwind in Ijebu-Ode.
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