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Located in the northern part of Awgu local Government of Enugu State. Ugbo, formally known as Ogulugu is a very unique and fascinating town as it stands out among others towns in Enugu state in so many ways. Ugbo is home of nature and culture with the most amazing and breathtaking landscapes and celebrates one of the most famous cultural festival in Awgu and Enugu state at large.
There are many reasons why Ugbo should be in your bucket list of places to visit and explore but here are my Top 10 reasons why you should visit Ugbo.
Also See: Top 10 Most Lively Towns in Awgu LGA During Christmas season
1. To Witness The Famous Aju Festival (Iwa Akwa).
Aju Festival is a week long triennial cultural festival in ugbo, Enugu state. The Aju festival (Iwa-Akwa) is a ceremony where young men who has come of age are been initiated into manhood and given the opportunities to make their contributions in social cultural and political affairs of the community. Aju festival will be held this year between 3rd to 7th of August 2021 and no fewer than 200 youths will be participating in this year’s Aju Festival amidst cheers from friends, families and spectators. The Aju Festival is indeed a colourful event which has become a major tourist attraction. For lover of tourism and cultural enthusiast, this is a festival you would want to miss.
2. To visit and hike the hills of Ugbo
Ugbo as a community is situated on top of a range of hills and has a very unique landscape, some of the most beautiful things about Ugbo are her breathaking hills and green area. Over the years Ugbo has become a choice destionation for for hikers who come in their numbers to hike and explore the hills of Ugbo. If you haven’t visited Ugbo before, this should be a reason for you to visit.. Some of the major hiking destinations in Ugbo includes Ofesi hills, Nkume nshi, Mpu, Ezi Ugwu, Egu Ebe among others.
Also See: Top Five Towns in Awgu LGA with amazing Hills
3. To Enjoy The Local Food of The People
If you are a foodie this will interest you, as a matter of fact you should visit this community. One thing Ugbo people don’t joke with is food and this is one of the communities you will find the most rare Igbo dishes and delicacies. Ugbo is home to many verities of foods such as Abacha (Jigbo) in their local dialect, it is said that Abacha Ugbo is the most nutritious and sought after Abacha in Awgu and arguably the best in Enugu state. Other dishes are Ji na Ede, Achicha, Asaja, Edugbu, Ighu, Ono, Ekiji among others.
4. To Visit and Explore The Famous Ululo Waterside
Currently being transformed into a resort and training institution for Fisheries and Aquaculture related studies, Ululo is one of the many bodies of water in Ugbo that have over the years attracted tourist and researchers to the community. When fully developed, the center will boost tourism not just in Ugbo but Enugu state and the country at large.
Read: Things to know About Mmaku
5. To Meet and Interact With The Locals
The people of Ugbo are very welcoming, accommodating, charming, polite, loving and cheerful. Ugbo people are of the Ewe sub-ethnic group of Igbo Nation, Although the local speaks and understand the central Igbo language, the natives speaks ”Ugbo Dialect ” their own native dialect of the Igbo language. It will be interesting to visit the community, meet the people, learning their language and experiencing their culture. I assure you that a moment with them will leave you in awe.
6. To Visit Waterfalls and Explore the source of Oji River
Here is another great reason why you should visit Ugbo especially if you are a lover of nature and waterfalls. There are good number of Waterfalls in and within Ugbo. For years these waterfalls has been serving as a destionation for tourist in Ugbo. If you love chasing waterfall, why not go chasing waterfall in Ugbo. Some of the waterfalls you can visit while in Ugbo includes, Ogbajibe Fall, Ogbangwu waterfalls, Nwonwo waterfall, Ogbaagu fall and pool. It will also interest you to know that the famous Oji River has its source at Egu Ewa in Ugbo. The river which traverses through the entire town before flowing to the neighboring communities is a great place of interest in the community.
Read: Reasons Why You Should Visit Mmaku This Festive Season
7. To Study The History of the land and her people
If you are a historian or a student of history, this should interest you. Do you know that Ugbo double as the ancestral home of the Ewe people and that of Ogulugu ( present day Ugbo and Obeagu)? Ugbo is also home of a lot of communities in Enugu, Abia and Ebonyi. I once came across a document about this ancient people at Enugu state archive that marveled me, although the information was sketchy but i was able to get enough that propelled me to do more research..
8. To Visit and wander in Ugbo forest and Wild life environment
Forest and wild life environment in Ugbo town includes Onu- ajanu, Ofia-umuaniegbera, Mgboko-ogba natural stone features, Nwa-ogbo water fall, Ukpoku-uhuogba-obeagu wet land and Oshisi-okpo stream. The natural environment is really of aesthetic value, cool, pleasant and a wonderful tourism/recreation centre. Within the forest environment, trees are formed in canopy layers, flowers, birds, squirrels and monkeys make the environment more absorbing. The sung of the birds and squirrels are so amusing that it soothes the nerves from stress in the natural environment. A visit to Ugbo wild will always convince the visitors/Tourists of what paradise looks like.
Read: Exploring Awgu: Things to know About Awgu Local Government Area
9. To Learn the local trade of the people
This might not make much sense to some people or interest a lot of people but after some documentaries was done in the community by Bbc Igbo, i was surprised by the number of people who picked interest in learning some of the things shown in the documentary especially the process of Making Igbo black soap, palm kernel oil and palm oil processing. So if any of those interests you, then it should be one of the reasons why you should put Ugbo in your bucket list.
Read: My Visit To The HillTown Of Ugbo
10. To witness the new yam festival of Ugbo people.
There is a reason why i chose to leave this at number ten but i hope that soon, Iri Ji Ohuu in Ugbo will be one of the reasons why tourist would want to visit Ugbo. The New Yam Festival is an annual cultural festival by the Igbo people held at the end of the rainy season between early August to October. Just like every other Igbo community, Ugbo community celebrates her new yam festival every August. The aim of the New Yam Festival is to officially present the newly harvested yams to God and the ancestors of the land. The festival is also an avenue to thank God for sustaining the life of the farmers, the indigenes of the land and the farm product (yam) through a successful planting season.
