Nigeria

The very thing that makes Nigeria so ornery and difficult to unite into a single peaceful republic is also its attraction. There are over 250 different peoples, languages, histories, and religions all rubbing shoulder to shoulder in this hectic, colourful and often volatile republic.

It is also the place to go if you're into music. Nigeria is constantly pounding to the rhythms of traditional African juju music, Afrobeat and reggae. This is by no means an easy destination, but if you're intrepid enough it can be highly rewarding.

During the 1970s, when oil prices rocketed, Nigeria looked set to become prosperous and democratic but perversely managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Its history is littered with tin-pot dictators, massacres, bloody civil wars, human rights abuses, and horrific famines.

It is now a country struggling to contain the sum of its parts within a democratic framework. A chronic crime problem, religious intolerance, large-scale unemployment and overcrowding in poor living conditions regularly push the rule of law to the brink. Despite this, there is still an unfaltering optimisim among Nigerians that their proud nation will indeed make it to the party.