Why You Should Travel To Africa

Why You Should Travel To Africa

Thinking of where to take your next vacation? Check out these reasons why you should travel to Africa this year.

When it comes to Africa, people in the west often think that they know what life is like over there. They have an image in their minds of a vast desert filled with villages where the people have little to eat and less to drink. We’re fed images of poverty every day on TV and online, and it drastically changes the way that we see the country as a whole. However, the truth about Africa couldn’t be more different. Sure, there are places where people struggle, but the truth is that Africa is simply too huge and diverse a continent to be defined in such a narrow and close-minded way. With that in mind, here are some things about Africa that you might not be aware of.

Incredible wildlife

Let’s start with the thing that most people would probably be aware of. The wildlife in Africa truly is some of the most incredible in the world. And the wonderful thing is that there are some genuinely fantastic conservation efforts going on in Africa all the time. From Mombo Camp Botswana to the variety of National Parks all over the continent, the populations of many endangered species are being protected by the people of Africa.

Vibrant culture

The people of Africa are often the ones most heavily misrepresented by the images that most people in the west see on TV and on the internet. When many people think of African people, the images in their minds are of people in huts with pots on their heads struggling to get by and desperately in need of the help of westerners. The truth is that Africa has many incredibly vibrant cultures all across the continent. They have their own arts, music, and literature. Not only that but there are huge differences between many of the cultures even within the continent itself.

Industry and innovation

There are actually a lot more industries in Africa than many people assume. Sure, there are the obvious things like mineral extraction that many people in the west might be aware of. But many parts of Africa also have a thriving film and TV industry as well as areas of innovation in many engineering and science fields. The assumption that people in Africa are somehow behind the west in terms of industry and innovation is based in harmful and false ideas about the continent as a whole, and the effects of those ideas are still being felt by the people of Africa.

Now, you might be thinking to yourself, well what’s the harm? So people in the west have the wrong idea about Africa? Surely the important thing is that people who need charity and assistance get it, right? Well, the truth is that this attitude that many westerners have towards the continent of Africa can be incredibly damaging to the people in it. It presents Africa as a place that needs to be saved by us rather than as an independent place with a life of its own and a whole variety of different cultures that should be learned about and understood.

Have you been to Africa? Share your exciting stories in the comments below

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