For Sam and Iyobosa, the stars didn’t need a glamorous setting to align; the chaotic ambience of the infamous Obalende Bus Stop in Lagos Island was more than enough. On a January morning in 2020, Sam spotted Iyobosa from behind a bus window and instantly knew that he had to grab her attention, even if it meant screaming out her name and banging the Danfo window.
While they insist theirs wasn’t love at first sight, the Obalende meet was definitely the start of a slow-burn forever. Over weeks of converging and diverging at Obalende for the classic Mainland-Island work commute, a beautiful friendship blossomed. Life has since taken them to Dublin, Ireland, where their love story has evolved from Danfo and Keke rides to getting married and raising a family. This is their journey—across continents, through bustling streets and into each other’s hearts.
How did you guys meet?
Iyobosa: We had actually known of each other for a while before we officially met at Obalende. We got into Babcock in the same year, graduated in the same year and had lots of mutual friends. But I was really focused on my studies in school, so I didn’t really pay attention to him. I also felt like he wouldn’t really look at my side since I was so serious. Anyway, we left Babcock without actually talking to each other, but we followed each other on social media.
So what changed?
Sam: I moved from Abuja to Lagos for my NYSC and one day…
Iyobosa: It was January 15, 2020 to be precise.
Sam: Yes, January 15. I was waiting for the bus to fill up at Obalende bus stop when I noticed Iyobosa passing. I was excited to see her because I was like, this is that girl who’s always announcing that she passed one exam on Twitter, let me say hi. For some reason, that side of the glass didn’t open, so I kept banging on it and calling her name but she didn’t hear me. I sent her a DM afterwards to explain what had happened.
And how did you respond, Iyobosa?
Iyobosa: My interest was piqued, so I asked if he would be at the bus stop the next day and suggested we link up there. It worked out because Sam was going from Surulere to work in Lekki, while I was going from Yaba to work in Ikoyi. So at Obalende, I would need to get a keke from Obalende to Ikoyi and Sam would need to board the Lekki bus. We met up almost every work day for about 3 weeks.
Why just 3 weeks?
Iyobosa: I think Sam’s job moved to the Mainland. I also quit that job I was working on the Island after they banned Kekes in Ikoyi.
Sam: Iyobosa doesn’t like stress.
Iyobosa: I don’t like stress at all o. I know it’s giving trust fund baby, but the keke ban made the commute too difficult so I couldn’t do it anymore. Then the pandemic happened and I moved to Ireland for my Master’s degree in September 2020. We didn’t really see each other before I moved, except for those few days at the bus stop and the one time he came to visit me at home. We would text often though, basically every day.
But did you guys start dating within those 3 weeks?
Sam: No, and people don’t usually believe this, but I was only looking for friendship when I reached out to Iyobosa at the time. I just really wanted to be her friend for some reason.
Iyobosa: Yes, I was ‘seeing’ someone else and I think he was seeing someone else too.
Sam: Not immediately, but I started seeing someone else later and Iyobosa was even one of the female friends I would ask for relationship advice, just to get the female perspective.
When did the shift from friendship to romance happen then?
Sam: I was looking to do a Master’s program abroad and I found out that the university Iyobosa was going to attend was actually good for my program, so I asked her to put me through some stuff. I think it was when I moved that we started getting attracted to each other.
Are you sure your move to Ireland wasn’t influenced by your feelings for Iyobosa?
Sam: I actually still didn’t have any romantic feelings for her when I initially considered going to Ireland. It was purely coincidence. I had told her I was looking at Cyber Security programs in Canada and she mentioned that her sister had done a master’s program in Cyber Security in Ireland. I looked into it and I saw that it offered everyone everything I needed.
I had even wanted to start the program around the same time that she did, but I couldn’t due to family reasons. So she moved in September 2020 and I didn’t get to Ireland until January 2022. We were good friends for those two years, but I think it was in the time leading up to my move in 2022 that we started seeing each other in a different light.
How did you know when the switch flipped?
Iyobosa: A major sign was definitely when I got in a nearly 2-hour bus ride to go see him shortly after he had moved to Ireland.
How come you needed to travel so far? Weren’t you attending the same university?
Iyobosa: Yes, but I had finished in 2021 and by the time Sam started, I was already working and living far away from where the university was. I lived in Dun Laoghaire, which was in the suburbs of Dublin county. By car, it would have taken about 35 minutes to get to his place from mine. But Dublin’s public transport system is very interesting—I would say—because I had to take a one-hour bus to Dublin City Centre from Dun Laoghaire and then from the city centre, take a 45-minute bus ride to where Sam lived. It could be up to an hour depending on traffic and the particular bus that you use.
Wow. And did you do that regularly?
Iyobosa: Very regularly. Honestly, thinking back now, I don’t understand why I ever did that because if anything is a 2-hour commute now, it’s like, Ok can we just fly there?
You were definitely hooked at that point, so did you start dating then?
Sam: No, not for a while. The thing is our friends were even wondering what was going on, because we hung out a lot and it was starting to look like something more than friendship was happening. But at the time, we were both very serious about our Christian walks and we felt like we didn’t want to enter a relationship just like that.
Iyobosa: Yes, we knew that we liked each other but Sam had told me that he didn’t want to ask me out until he got divine leading from God.
And how did this divine leading come?
Sam: In April 2022, I had a very clear dream, and I usually don’t have meaningful dreams, so I felt like this was the sign I was looking for. In the dream, there was a romantic setup in the room, with rose petals on the bed and a specific song playing in the background as I asked her out. I decided to replicate the setting in the dream and planned with Iyobosa’s sister so I could pull off the surprise.
Iyobosa: When I saw the setting and heard the song that was playing, I knew it was the sign I was looking for too because I had never actually voiced out how I wanted to be asked out to anyone. But Sam nailed it to a t. It was a very beautiful day and I’m glad we still have pictures and videos from it.
That’s beautiful. And how would you say your journey has evolved—both literally and metaphorically—since that day in Obalende?
Iyobosa: I mean, we were two young people in 2020 trying to figure out life. One person was doing NYSC. The other person was just confused. And now, we’re both, you know, established. We both have thriving careers, a thriving marriage. We have a healthy baby. It has blossomed. Yes, I think blossom is the word. From a caterpillar to a butterfly.
Now that you’re in Ireland, do you still take the bus together?
Sam: We used to before—the bus, the train, the tram, sometimes taxis, anything that was available. But when the birth of our son was approaching, we decided to get a car as it was just more practical. Sometimes, the tram and bus are packed and it’s not convenient so we just didn’t want to have that experience with our son.
That makes sense. And do you think getting a car has also helped to build intimacy on the move?
Iyobosa: 100% yes.
Sam: Yes, because we can have conversations without people interrupting. We can have deep conversations since it’s just us in the car. We can play our music out loud.
Iyobosa: Yes, the music part especially because loud music is not allowed on public transport in Ireland.
From the days when you were still using public transport, do you have any special spots that—like Obalende—you feel are important to your love story?
Iyobosa: Well, I think I would say O’Connell Street in Dublin city centre. Because at some point when we were dating, I was on my way back from work. And O’Connell Street is like Obalende in Lagos because most buses would pass through O’Connell Street. So there was a day I was on my way back from work and Sam was around O’Connell, so he said I should wait for him and then he came with some very nice flowers. It was such a beautiful gesture. And then another time was when I was pregnant, the Luas (tram) had broken down. I was tired, my bag was heavy as it had my office laptop and all of that. So Sam rode his bicycle from home to O’Connell to come and pick up my bag and ride the bicycle back home so that I could just hop on the bus freely.
Wow, that’s really sweet. How long did the bike ride take?
Sam: About 20 minutes to her and then 20 minutes back home.
Iyobosa: Yeah and it was very hot that day. Being hot and being pregnant, those two things don’t go well together. But him coming really helped and I think he even brought me a snack. It was really lovely.
Beautiful. What advice would you give to people who feel like very special moments—like meeting the love of your life—can only happen in glamorous settings?
Sam: I’ll just say enjoy every moment. Like I didn’t plan for Obalende to be my spot or anything. I was just enjoying the moment. I just wanted to meet up with my friend and just have conversations. So, I think, enjoy every moment is what I would say because you don’t know what might come out from the relationship. It doesn’t have to be anything so fancy. It could even be as simple as just meeting somewhere for coffee, having conversations and just hoping for the best.
NB: Some of the content of this interview was reworked from Sam and Iyobosa’s YouTube channel.
