Obama Tango’s in Argentina

President Obama and his family arrived Argentina for a 2-day state visit immediately after the historic Cuba trip. In Buenos Aires President Barack Obama and first Lady Michelle Obama were hosted to a State dinner by Argentine President Mauricio Macri and his first lady Juliana Awada. Obama participated in a round of Tango dancing just as Michelle cheered on.

Photo credit: Getty Images, AP

Timeline of Obama’s historic visit to Cuba

Sunday, March 20, 4.20pm: Barack Obama becomes the first President for almost 90 years to set foot in Cuba, bringing along the entire first family, including Michelle's mother Marian Robinson. He is greeted by a host of dignitaries at Jose Martin International Airport with one notable exception, Raul Castro.

5.50pm: Obama speaks to a few dozen staffers from the newly reopened US embassy at a Havana hotel. He says his trip is an 'historic opportunity to engage with the Cuban people'.

6.55pm: The Obamas embark on a tour of Old Havana amid a heavy downpour, all clutching black umbrellas. A few hundred people who gathered in the square erupted in applause, with the president spending a few minutes greeting onlookers before entering Havana Cathedral to see Cardinal Jaime Ortega. 

Monday, March 21, 10.30am: Obama visits the José Marti memorial, honoring the hero in the Cuban revolt against Spain, laying a wreath at his memorial, a 358 foot tower,in Havana's Plaza de la Revolución. Behind the President were striking steel sculptures of Cuban Revolutionary heroes Ernesto 'Che' Guevara and Camil Cienfuegos.

10.45am: Obama and Raul Castro shake hands and smile for the cameras as they greet each other at the Revolutionary Palace, the first meeting between the pair in the country.

1pm: Google announces the opening of a cutting-edge technology center at the studio of Alexis Leiva Machado, a sculptor known as Kcho, offering free internet at speeds 70 times faster than currently available to the Cuban public.

2.10pm: Castro calls on Obama to life more restrictions on Cuba and urged the return of land used for Guantanamo Bay. Obama later says the pair had a 'frank and candid conversation' on human rights and democracy after the pair had a private meeting.

7.25pm:  The president and first lady will participate in a State dinner hosted by the Cuban government at the Palace of the Revolution.

Tuesday, March 22, 10.10am: Obama will address the Cuban people at El Gran Teatro de Havana in the morning and then meet with dissidents and civil society leaders.

11.20am: Obama meets with members of Cuban Civil Societies at the U.S. Embassy in Havana.

2pm: The whole family will attend an exhibition game between the Tampa Bay Rays and Cuban National Team at their stadium before leaving for Argentina on Tuesday afternoon.

3.50pm: The First Family departs Cuba from the Jose Marti International Airport in Havana, heading for Argentina. 

British artist Kelvin Okafor extraordinary pencil drawings

Lots of hidden creative individuals are being exposed all thanks to the power of the new age media.  British artist Kelvin Okafor, 30, spends an average of 80 to 100 hours to create a portrait. The artist’s story is almost as sensational as the pictures he has been producing. As a teenager, he was too poor to leave his house to socialize. Instead of drinking and clubbing, Ofakor stayed at home in Tottenham, North London, and seeking solace in drawing. All of these extraordinarily detailed pictures are pencil drawings, created purely by hand — with no digital trickery.

Kelvin Okafor

Photo Credit: Kelvin Okafor

A Co-Tenants Dilemma

We feel obliged to inform you of a rather troubling incident which happened to Dr. Theresa, a Senior Registrar 1 in the department of Psychiatry of Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital (Ile-Ife) and a dear friend to us all. She is a very gentle, easy going, ever smiling and hardworking resident doctor, but even if she didn't possess any of the aforementioned attributes, she didn't deserve any of what occurred in the duration of this incident.

It all began on Thursday 25th February 2016 at her service apartment building located outside the hospital. It seemed like just another day- a quiet morning with the dew still on the cars parked in the compound and chirping of insects the predominant sound till it was shattered by the shrill shouts of Dr. Okpara. Dr. Okpara is a Wing Commander in the Nigerian Air Force, a resident Doctor in the Dept of Community Medicine in the same hospital where Theresa works, and also resides in that compound. So what could make this man, slightly overweight and bespectacled, irate early on a Thursday morning?

The obstruction of his car in the parking lot within the compound; that's the simple answer, but as it sometimes happens in life, even simple things can devolve into ugly scenarios. As is common in some buildings, the parking space is inadequate and as such tenants have to park behind other cars within the compound. This doesn't constitute the end of the world and tenants occasionally call each other- through the security guard- to move their cars in the morning so that individuals are able to drive out.

According to an eye witness (who is a doctor in the same hospital and also lives within the same compound), Dr Theresa's car was obstructing Dr. Okpara's car and he called her out to move her car. She had told him she was dressing up and would soon be out. It would seem like the problem was settled but that wasn't good enough for him; he kept shouting and verbally abusing her. He didn't stop even when she came out to move her car. Perhaps affronted by her calm despite his torrents of abuses, he physically attacked her as she got into her car to make way for him.

Truth be told, saying physically attacked is sugar coating things. Truth is- and in the manner of calling a spade a spade- he beat her, with a succession of punches, each one meted out with the intent to humiliate her and put her in her place. And when the punches weren't doing a good job of that, he reached for a metal pedal lock as a coda to the lesson he was meting out. Thankfully he was restrained by some of the co-tenants but he did leave a mark, several marks actually, on her.

Theresa has a right nasal bone fracture, cerebrospinal fluid- the liquid which keeps the brain protected within the skull- leak, a deformed face, several bruises, and that's just listing the physical injuries. As it is, she has to decide if she wants major surgery to correct the facial deformity or live with a disfigured face for the rest of her life.

Life is a lot of things and sometimes we get a choice to either look the other way as though nothing has happened or stare tyranny in the face and make our voices heard. Maybe being a member of the Nigerian Air Force is a powerful intoxicant and what better way to demonstrate this than by beating up a woman- one defenseless woman, one who has overcome several odds to be who she is today, one who has lived with sickle cell disease all her life, one who is your sister, daughter, friend, and companion. Maybe it is easier to look the other way but in this fight, I stand with Theresa! ‪#‎justice4drtheresa‬.

Thank you all.
CMUL, 2008 Graduating Class of Medical Doctors & Dentists.

Posted by Funmi Falade Alao on Saturday, February 27, 2016

Posted by Funmi Falade Alao on Saturday, February 27, 2016

Smart Phone Movie

I captured this image while shooting a birthday party in Texas. The group of youngsters found the dance moves intriguing and in sync, pulled out their smart phones, and started recording.

Got a better Caption?

Photo Credit: Tosan Aduayi

Banana Island Cultural Festival

Banana Island; tapped as one of the most expensive real estate developments in Africa hosted a cultural festival that revealed the diversity of its residence. Banana Island is located in Ikoyi, Lagos Nigeria. Here, I capture a few thrilling moments by a cultural group performance.

Photos by Tosan Aduayi in Lagos

My Encounter with Pastor Dave Duell (1937-2015)

I sat on the front row in the sanctuary of the ultra-modern Arise and Shine Intl. ministries during their 10th year anniversary service. The Bedford Texas location was sprawling with VIP guests and internationally acclaimed ministers of God including Pastor Dave Duell. The host Pastor of ASIM; Nosa Onaiwu introduced Pastor Dave Duell as a spiritual father. 

Pastor Dave Duell

From the moment he got unto the pulpit, there was no dull moment. Dave Duell spent the first few minutes raining praises on the host pastor and at a point in time, dramatically knelt before him. I saw a man of God with pure humility and grace. His preaching was somewhat unusual but he conveyed the message in a unique manner.

On another occasion, he was a guest minister at ASIM where he deliver a message titled; “We are saved by Grace (Ephesians 2:8)”. As expected, he delivered an exceptional sermon and physically went round to touch every member of the congregation on that day. There was so much spiritual presence in the house of God.

I had just produced a special edition of Trendy Africa Magazine featuring the 10th anniversary celebration of the Arise and Shine Ministries and as a special guest; Pastor Dave Duell was prominently featured in the edition. Pastor Dr. (Mrs) Adesuwa Onaiwu, wife of Pastor Nosa Onaiwu deemed it fit to show a copy of the magazine to Dave Duell. At the time, I was on my way to another assignment when my phone suddenly rang out.

Guess who was on the line? It was Pastor Dave Duell who spent more than 5 minutes expressing his opinion about how impressed he was with the quality of the magazine and how much he would love to see it blossom beyond my wildest imagination. I claimed it. It was such a humbling experience to hear the great anointed man of God speak to me on my cell phone.

When Pastor Nosa Onaiwu called to invite me to the memorial service of Late Dave Duell, I was numb for some seconds. A great man who spoke to me just recently with extremely high spirit was gone in a heartbeat. Such is life. His legacy lives on.

Dave and Bonnie Duell

About Dave Duell

Dave grew up on a farm in Kersey, Colorado. The youngest of thirteen children, Dave learned many of life's valuable lessons through hard work and love. His strict father taught him discipline and his gentle mother taught him love. Dave says in his book 'Faith, Believe It or Not', "The training I received growing up on a large farm let me see how God operates through many practical experiences”. 

Two specific incidents influenced Dave in his early years to bring him to where he is today. One event happened when he was twelve years old. He spent a week at a Bible camp in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and heard the testimony of a missionary from the Congo of Africa. That week Dave accepted Jesus into his life and from then on had a heart for missions. The other event happened when he was fifteen years old. One day by a hay bale out in the field, Dave knelt down and asked God for the privilege of being wealthy enough to support five hundred missionaries and this prayer has stayed vivid in his mind and influenced his life to this very day.

Later, when he graduated from high school, he chose to go to North Park Junior College in Chicago, Illinois, to put some distance between himself and the farm chores and to find a wife! God answered his prayers and he met and later married Bonnie McCartney from Chicago, Illinois. He brought her home to live on the ranch in Kersey, Colorado.  God blessed them with three lovely daughters, Tamara, Juli, and Darla. Later they adopted a beautiful little Korean girl and named her Sarah. 

As Dave and Bonnie raised their girls, they taught them the love of Jesus and were very involved in their church. When Dave was thirty-one years old, his desire to know the Holy Spirit personally, began to increase. One night he was invited to a Full Gospel Businessmen's meeting in Denver, Colorado. That night he asked for the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the power of God actually came into his life. It was the beginning of many adventures.

In June of 1992, the Holy Spirit spoke to Dave and Bonnie to move to Denver and plant a church. The foundation was laid, a leadership team was assembled, and in February of 1993, Faith Ministries Church International began. He was an anointed with the gift of healing. 

Through supernatural events, Faith Ministries Fellowship began from a Bible study in Greeley, Colorado, in 1978 and grew to be an international church touching over 100 nations. Dave Duell and his Wife Bonnie founded the Faith Ministries Church International, Colorado.

Tosan Aduayi is the founder of Trendy Africa Magazine and writes from Dallas, Texas info@trendyafrica.com (+1 903 309 1172)