Nigeria’s longest river, the River Niger meets the Benue River here at a point that forms the Y-shape that is seen on a map of the country.

An amazing sight, one of the best places to see this natural feature is the famed Mount Patti.

There is one distinguishing feature that is easily prominent when viewed from this elevated position – their colors can be easily seen.

Whereas the River Niger water appears muddy, that of the Benue appears light blue in color.

It is claimed that it was here, filled with the beauty of the two great rivers and its confluence, that the Lady Flora Shaw had the idea to name the country Nigeria after the River Niger.

The river Niger remained a wonder to the first Europeans who set foot on Nigeria’s soil until John and Richard Landers passed through the confluence on October 25th 1830 thereby completing the journey that Mungo Park had started.

Rivers Niger and Benue are the two largest rivers in West Africa.The two rivers meet at Lokoja in Kogi state, forming a Y-shaped structure in what appears to be a magnificent union and draining southwards into the ocean.

While River Niger is brownish in colour, River Benue is light green in colour. Fishing is carried on extensively on the rivers.

There are ferry and boat services plus cruising facilities within view of the confluence.

The sole aim is to make it a pleasurable delight to visitors, both foreign and local, thus boosting the tourism industry, the economy and the level of social interaction in the state. Lokoja is mostly known and celebrated for is its confluence.

Lokoja, it is, where the two great rivers: Niger and Benue meet. Whichever means the great geographical wonder is accessed – it is a beauty to behold.

Two giant arms of water spread-eagled on an expanse of land dotted with green vegetation.

The array of settlements around the confluence which they sprout from have probably made aerial approach to Nature’s wonder more enrapturing.For those who do this either from aircraft or choppers, it is sheer bliss.

Those who could not afford this should, however, not allow their enthusiasm to be dampened. There are other elevated landscapes around where the confluence could be viewed aerially. These also dot the site of the confluence.

The significance of the two rivers to the socio-cultural and economical wellbeing of the country cannot be overemphasised.

The Niger snaking its way through the upper part of the country down to Lokoja and even threading to other parts of the land especially the South West where it is revered and even deified. Yoruba call the Niger River Oya.

The Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge is a historic and very famous bridge that spans over the Drina River in the town of Višegrad, in the eastern part of the Republic of Srpska, within the eastern part of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Having a length of 180 meters (589 feet), there are 11 arches that span over the big river, and there are additional arches that can be seen over the river’s left bank.

The bridge is considered to be one of the greatest Ottoman monumental and architectural landmarks, since the chief Ottoman architect and civil engineer for sultans Suleiman the Magnificent, Selim II, and Murad III, the architect Mimar Sinan was in charge of the design.

The Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire, Mehmed Paša Sokolović, who was born in Ottoman Herzegovina into a Serbian Orthodox Christian family, ordered the construction of this magnificent architectural masterpiece, and the construction took place from 1571 and 1577 when it was officially opened for use.

Built in the eastern architectural style, it is a very nice masonry work in stone, and there are interesting features that should be mentioned. The most important is that there was a wooden house in the middle of the bridge with bridge guards, where passengers could rest, however, nowadays only the guard’s post at the middle of the bridge is visible.

Despite its longstanding history, the bridge gained popularity in recent years due to the historical novel by the Yugoslav writer Ivo Andrić, ‘The Bridge on the Drina’ where the author tells the history as the bridge stands as a silent witness to history from its construction by the Ottomans until its partial destruction during World War I.

From the more recent history, the bridge is unfortunately infamous for the massacre that took place during the Bosnian War, where the Bosnian Serb paramilitary leader Milan Lukić used the surrounding area as headquarters for his camp, and the bridge as the main site for the Višegrad massacres.

Nowadays, the bridge still famous and better remembered for the novel of Ivo Andrić was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007 which made sure for Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge to be more popular.

Sadly, the construction of two hydroelectric power plants and a reservoir nearby has caused the river’s water level to rise, straining the load-bearing capacity of the bridge pillars, and the sub-surface instability definitely is not so helpful.

There are still some threats to the stability of the entire structure, however, with the help of the Turkish government and careful preservation, we shall certainly continue to enjoy the magnificent architecture of this great Bosnian monument which tells the sad history that happened in the past.

All in all, a monument to the past which brings a heavy burden to some people, but inspires foreigners to come here, see it in person, and learn everything that needs to be learned about this great Ottoman memorial.