SEC-S15W3: Growing up in a Rural or Urban Area"

If we are to ask people to choose between living in the rural or urban area? Many will most likely go for the urban.

This is due to the perception and what they know about the urban areas. However, there are some that will go for the rural areas citing some wonderful experiences enjoyed while living there.

The contest in @steem4nigeria is entitled Growing up in a Rural or Urban Area will help us to explore more on this idea.

Differentiate between urban and rural areas stating three major features

Urban areas	Rural Areas
Urban areas are characterized with high density and highly populated areas. The peoples homes and their businesses are very close to each other.	Rural areas are characterized by low density and low populated areas. The houses of people living there are not that close together even to their businesses. In those areas their major business is agriculture in it's various forms depending on the location.
They are known for their high buildings and enhanced infrastructural developments, good road networks and easy accessibility to Medicare.	They are characterized by poor infrastructure, bad roads, bad road networks and difficulty in accessing good Medicare.
The rate of pollution is very high due to large population of people, vehicle and production industries. This makes the level of greenery to be very small.	The rate of pollution is low due to lower population, low vehicular use and less number of industries there. So you have more forest and bushes contributing to a cleaner air.

Which area did you grow up and why?

I grew up partly in rural areas and partly in urban area. I was born in the rural area and that was in my own community where my parents were from. That was rural area because everything done there was rural. There was no pipe born water, no electricity, no good roads, no access to other social amenities. Before I could get to 5 years, I was taken by my aunt to another rural area where her husband worked with a construction company then.

I started School there. But we didn't stay at a place, sometimes the man will be transferred to urban area and sometimes he will be moved back to another rural area depending on their contract and the duration.

After my primary 3, I moved back to my own community and finished up my primary school there. Later, I went to the city, Lagos state where I enjoyed all the social amenities, electricity, water, good roads, and other things that was offered by the urban area. From them onwards, I have always lived in urban area till now.

I truly enjoyed living in all these areas where I have the experiences of what it takes to live there. This has helped me to be adaptable and accommodative.

	my community when I visited it last. River in the farm
	oil processing in the rural area

If you were told to go to the area you didn't grow up from, will you?

Like I said earlier, I have learned to adapt to any situation in life due to my exposure to both rural and urban region. If I have the option to choose where to live in, I will definitely choose the urban area and then visit the rural area as I am doing now.

But if I do not have options to choose from, I will readily accept to moved to those areas that I didn't grow up in because it will either be a rural area or an urban area. I have experience of how to live in both areas and as such, I will have no problem with living anywhere. As a matter of fact, where my house is right now is not even an urban area but it is semi rural and semi urban. We are enjoying some social amenities that are ment for the cities while there are things we are not enjoying to the full here like good roads.

So, will I be able to move to the area that I didn't grow up in if I am asked to do so? The only answer to this question is a 'YES'

What things are there in the area you grew up from that aren't in the other?

Like I said before, I grew up in both the urban and rural areas. So I have experiences from both sides of the coin.

In the urban area, I was exposed to carrying out the business of petty trading. That exposed me to high profile buildings, making use of the overhead bridges, to avoid road accidents, access to good roads, went to the beaches and played with friends there.

I also saw big international markets like the Alaba Intl market, good roads, airplanes that seems as if they are landing on the roof of our house, the Wharfs and Big ships that bring in goods from international countries etc.

These things are not seen in the rural area that I grew up in.

Now while living in the rural area, I was very close to nature, so to speak. I enjoyed fresh and unpolluted air. My food was more of vegetables and fresh foods. I had access to natural palm wine and bush meat.

I would also go to the stream for swimming and fishing sometimes. I used to catch big cat dishes then. I enjoyed living without fear of theft and everyone lived together as brothers and sisters in the community.

	swimming in the river

Living in the rural area is so calm and without the hustling bustling and noise experienced in the urban areas.

These are what I would like to be present in the urban areas.

Conclusion

The urban and rural areas have their own individual peculiarities which can not be changed. I believe each one has a problem solve.

So whereever we find ourselves, we should be able to make the best out of it.

I invite @kouba01 @nehela @irawandedy and @yancar to take part. The contest is here. All the best to you all!