“You’ve never traveled back home before? C’mon Helena!” was a sentiment that Brooklyn-born Ivorian, Helena Koudou heard several times over. Though her entire family hails from the Ivory Coast, Helena didn’t grow up knowing her homeland for herself. She’d only observed her culture from afar and never had the opportunity to meet her older brother or her grandparents. But now, for the first time, Helena would submerge herself in all that Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire had to offer, and more importantly, experience Ivorian pride for the first time. Here is Helena’s story:

“When my mother told me that my cousin in Côte d’Ivoire was getting married and that my sister and I were going to be her bridesmaids, I was so excited. Finally, I was going to meet my brother and other family members that I talked to on the phone but had never met in person. In the midst of my excitement, I was also nervous because though I envisioned that Abidjan was a beautiful place full of trees and vibrant colors, I didn’t know what to expect. To my elation, it was even more than I could have imagined.

My travel preparation began six months in advance. I followed all of my favorite online stores so that I could stalk their sales. I thought of everyone that might want a gift and added them to my shopping list, and I also made sure that I went out less and worked more hours — traveling is not cheap!

Before I knew it, I was in Côte d’Ivoire and being treated like royalty by my family and family friends. I was fed some of the freshest and tastiest food ever — the type of food that will leave you dreaming about it the next day. My favorite dish was foutou with sauce graine. Foutou is pounded fufu with sweet boiled bananas. You can eat it with any type of sauce, but the sauce graine or Palm Nut stew is my new obsession. I felt so much at home. I’m grateful that my mom raised me to speak French and be familiar with Ivorian food and music, so I felt like I was truly returning to my roots while in Côte d’Ivoire. Ivorian people are so sweet and kind, and they greet you every time that you walk into a room, unlike New York. My favorite memory of my trip was meeting my grandparents. My grandfather was dressed up from head to toe in a grey suit and a fancy hat, just to make a great first impression. It was the cutest, most heartwarming moment I have ever experienced and of course, we commemorated with selfies.

By the second week, I was ready to leave the family home and start to live my best life! Luckily, my cousins are around my age and we went out together. We went to Koral Beach, which is a beautiful beach resort in Grand-Bassam. There we ate some delicious sweet plantains with fish and chicken by the water and took a swim in the pool.

I also made sure to spend time at a few art exhibitions because I am an art lover and supporting the creatives of Abidjan was important to me. We also hit the 40/40 club, which was just as fancy as the one in New York, however, La Sunday was by far my best night life experience. To anyone who plans on traveling to Cote d’Ivoire, follow @LaSunday.Abidjan on Instagram to catch their next event. Their parties are full of dancing and good vibes. Everyone is down to earth and standing still is practically not on option.

I must admit that the departure back to New York was the saddest part of my trip, but it was time to get back to the grind. This trip taught me how important it is to spend time with my family and I also learned that you can never experience the beauty of a place through the internet, movies or even stories from others. You have to experience it for yourself. People in Abidjan and all over Africa are really living beautiful, full lives despite what western media shows us. Yes, there are some parts of Africa where people are struggling but you can experience that anywhere in the world. Let’s all take a trip to the motherland ourselves and get rid of the negative stereotypes of Africa. It’s time to taste and see how sweet it truly is. Abidjan est le plus doux au monde.”

See more of Helena’s Abidjan photo diary below: