ABOUT THIS BOOK
Description
The City of Abuja
The city of Abuja, as everyone knows, is a place that brings together some of the finest and most prestigious estates—neighborhoods worth seeing and discussing. As the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria, it boasts numerous grand and refined districts. Yet, despite the beauty, structure, and elegance of each estate, none has lived up to its name as impressively as Sunset Estate, located at the heart of Guzape.
“Asokoro Extension,” more commonly known as Guzape, is often nicknamed “The Beverly Hills of Nigeria” because of its layout, beautiful architectural designs, and the magnificent tall buildings resting on the hills. Residents know that the entire Guzape district sits firmly on elevated hills.
Once you approach Guzape, Sunset Estate is the first landmark you’ll notice because of its towering gate. It stands out as the iconic symbol of the district—a tall, beautiful building positioned in the center of Guzape Main.
It is almost unbelievable at first sight that such a stunning estate exists in our country, especially if seen through photos or videos rather than in person. Even more surprising is the fact that the architectural design came from a young man of Hausa-Fulani origin—one of the exceptionally gifted youth in architectural drawing from Northern Nigeria. A product of the region, well-trained in one of Nigeria’s finest universities, he completed all his education without ever stepping into an airport or traveling abroad to study architecture or estate design.
It is widely agreed that his talent did not come merely from classroom learning but from a divine gift—special wisdom and ability bestowed by Allah (SWT). His fellow university students even nicknamed him “The Protégé of Zaha Hadid,” referring to the world-renowned British-Iraqi architect, because of how brilliantly he handled architectural sketches. His drawing skills reminded many of Zaha Hadid’s futuristic style.
For over three years, he kept creating, modifying, and upgrading his ideas for Sunset Estate—trying to make the design match the modern era and his imagination as a skilled architect. Though he had long been involved in architectural contracts within Abuja and across many Nigerian states, receiving weekly commissions for estate and building designs, Sunset Estate remained his masterpiece.
By the late 2000s, he finally completed the master design of Sunset Estate. The structure and every component emerged exactly as he envisioned. The most astonishing part is the age at which he did it—his early thirties, still a young man. Whenever he remembers that he is the architect behind Sunset Estate, he finds himself unconsciously praising Allah for such an exceptional gift—feeling blessed and deeply proud within himself.
Even though everyone knows he inherited his architectural skills—it runs in the family—he still studied formally. Zaha Hadid was not his mentor, of course; he inherited the talent from his father, the late Arch. Bello, himself a respected architectural guru
Sunset Estate
The Estate is surrounded by tall, elegant palm trees that form a natural canopy over the area. At night, everywhere shines with decorative lights—multi-colored bulbs that transform the estate into something magical, almost like daylight. Especially around Maghrib time, the lighting gives the atmosphere a resemblance to Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt.
The estate does not experience intense heat due to the tall trees shading it.
During the rainy season, the entire environment becomes lush and green, filled with the fragrances of fresh flowers.
The entrance gates are large, deep-red automated metal doors that open and close on their own. The surrounding estate walls are secured with electric fencing.
At the center, between the entrance and exit gates—between the left and right sides—the name “Sunset Estate” is boldly written in gold, mounted high on a white, glassy wall with a shimmering finish, inscribed beautifully in large elegant letters.
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