7 Mutual Myths Nearly Traveling Africa Dispelled
Kristin Addis from Be My Travel Muse writes our regular column on solo woman someone travel. It’s an of import topic I can’t adequately cover, therefore I brought inward an skillful to portion her advice for other women travelers to assist comprehend the topics of import together with specific to them! She’s also amazingly knowledgable nearly traveling around Africa. This month, Kristin breaks downwardly some of the most persistent myths when it comes to traveling Africa.
When I told my friends nearly my showtime solo trip to Africa, they persuasion I was crazy.
“What nearly Ebola?”
“You can’t move to Africa alone! It’s likewise dangerous!”
“You’re going to teach eaten past times a Panthera leo or something!”
This is a mutual reaction from those who receive got non been to the continent together with are used to seeing it portrayed inward a real negative calorie-free inward the tidings together with pop culture. We oftentimes take away heed only nearly the bad side: corruption, war, disease, crime, together with poverty. With niggling else to function past times away on, most people naturally receive got a negative impression of Africa.
The reality is that Africa is a continent alongside incredibly varied cultures, landscapes, together with activities that you lot tin flaming only sense there. Safaris are for sure a large draw, but there’s therefore much to a greater extent than to Africa than that. Africa is where I saw my showtime whale shark, where I spent to a greater extent than fourth dimension staying inward the homes of people I’d exactly met than paying for hostels, together with where I safely hitchhiked from beautiful beach town to beautiful beach town. It’s a continent filled alongside people on the move, a thriving cinema industry, growing tech centers, together with lots of evolution projects. I am soundless continuously humbled past times the hospitality together with uniqueness I abide by in that location on every visit.
Yet each fourth dimension I function past times away back, I take away heed the same concerns, worries, together with misperceptions. Today, let’s address them. Here are 7 mutual myths nearly traveling inward Africa — together with why they’re wrong:
“Africa is exactly i large place.”
Africa is oftentimes persuasion of as a unmarried identify in the media and pop culture, similar when Australia’s shadow unusual affairs spokeswoman Tanya Plibersek referred to Africa as a country. But the continent contains 54 countries, thousands of cultures, an estimated 2,000 languages, together with widely divergent landscapes. Africa is abode to the largest desert on Blue Planet (the Sahara) together with the highest free-standing mountain inward the public (Kilimanjaro). More than 600 novel species receive got been discovered inward Republic of Madagascar inward exactly the concluding decade.
I’m constantly blown away past times how much variety in that location is inward Africa. I’ve sandboarded downwardly giant orangish dunes inward Namibia, walked along white sand beaches inward Tanzania, trekked alongside gorillas inward Uganda, together with eaten at BBQ joints inward the South African townships (and fancy restaurants exactly a few miles away).
Talking nearly it similar i large identify is form of similar maxim that Europe or Asia is i large place. With Africa, you lot can’t generalize.
“Africa is dangerous.”
Recent terrorist attacks inward Kenya past times the extremist grouping Al-Shabab, the ongoing conflict alongside Boko Haram inward Nigeria, the difficulty establishing a enterprise government in Somalia, civil state of war inward South Sudan, together with the whole Kony 2012 movement hasn’t helped Africa’s image. Combined alongside our cultural retention of “blood diamonds,” the Rwandan genocide, together with Black Hawk Down, most people’s mental icon of Africa is that of a identify teeming alongside conflict together with danger at every corner.
It’s truthful that some — but for sure non all — of Africa is real unsafe to move through at the moment. But this is some other instance where you lot can’t generalize. There are many, many prophylactic parts. According to the Institute for Economics together with Peace (which bases its rankings on such factors as trigger-happy crime, terrorism, together with internal together with external conflicts), Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, Madagascar, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, together with Republic of Malaŵi (just to refer a few on the list) are all safer than the United States.
“Traveling inward Africa is only for voluntourism or safaris.”
I scream upwardly sitting inward a eating theater inward Namibia alongside some locals when i of them asked cheekily, “So what are you lot hither to save?” After all, Africa sees a large release of voluntourists who come upwardly to salve something together with attempt to benefit (though oftentimes create the opposite). 47% of Peace Corps volunteers serve inward Africa and, inward 2014, South Africa solitary welcomed 2.2 i 1000 k volunteers!
As for tourism, most people intend that inward guild to consider Africa, you lot receive got to proceed a safari together with receive got everything planned out for you. Very few imagine “backpacking” through Africa as viable together with safe, but exactly similar Asia or South America, Africa has a backpacker’s trail as well, together with it’s total of people who are neither volunteers nor safari seekers.
There’s therefore much else to create together with consider inward Africa, similar touring the Pyramids of Giza inward Egypt, lazing away on the famous beaches of Zanzibar, climbing Kilimanjaro inward Tanzania, exploring the ancient cities of Marrakech together with Timbuktu, scuba diving inward Mozambique, exploring the townships inward South Africa, together with bungee-jumping at Victoria Falls inward Zambia, i of the natural wonders of the world.
“You demand a lot of coin to move through Africa.”
Since most people assume they receive got to proceed a safari, they intend it’s expensive to move inward Africa. But Africa doesn’t receive got to live the reason of safaris that toll several 1000 dollars per solar daytime together with beach hotels alongside individual butlers.
The reverse is truly true. I was surprised that I could drive myself through Kruger National Park inward South Africa or Etosha National Park inward Namibia, without paying tiptop dollar for a tour. Between those ii parks, you lot tin flaming easily spot “the large five” (the lion, elephant, buffalo, rhinoceros, together with leopard) on your own.
I was impressed past times the neat value for accommodations as well. In Mozambique, I was able to rent a beach hut for only $15 per night, together with you lot tin flaming abide by budget accommodations ranging from $10 for a dorm room to $20 for a individual bungalow (in South Africa, Namibia, together with Morocco, as well). I couldn’t believe how unique together with funky the accommodations inward South Africa were, from campsites to self-contained opor-garai rentals. In Tanzania, the campsites were commonly inward beautiful locations, alongside hot showers together with cooking areas together with sometimes fifty-fifty swimming pools!
Transportation doesn’t receive got to live expensive either. For example, in that location are budget safari options as depression as $80 per solar daytime including food, accommodation, together with activities (or receive got yourself on a self-driving safari); Baz Bus (aimed at backpackers inward South Africa) offers $10 brusque rides or a three-week function past times for around $325; together with machine rentals inward Namibia together with South Africa run around $25 per solar daytime for a basic vehicle.
Africa doesn’t receive got to live super luxury to live enjoyable!
“Africa is muddied together with underdeveloped.”
As I drove into Rwanda, I couldn’t believe how build clean everything was, alongside almost null trash on the side of the road. I was every bit amazed past times the sprawling mansions I saw upon entering the capital, Kigali. Since the mid-’90s, Rwanda has pulled over one i 1000 k people out of poverty together with maintained peace, as good as involving to a greater extent than women inward politics (64% of people inward parliament are women) than whatsoever other province inward the world.
This is exactly i of many countries that are doing good inward Africa, including Botswana, which chop-chop outgrew its ranking as i of the poorest countries afterwards independence from United Kingdom of Great Britain together with Northern Ireland inward 1977; it has had i of the highest average economical growth rates inward the public (averaging nearly 9% per twelvemonth from 1966 to 1999 together with 5% since then). The Cote d'Ivoire is also experiencing heavy growth, alongside a GDP growth of 8.5% inward 2016 compared to 1.6% for the United States.
Cell telephone ownership is skyrocketing inward Africa. I couldn’t believe that inward Tanzania, inward the Serengeti of all places, I soundless had total 3G service. My coverage was mode meliorate out in that location than I oftentimes brand it the United States!
I was similarly blown away past times how goodness the roads were inward most of southern Africa together with parts of due east Africa, including Tanzania together with Zambia, for example. There are for sure enough of roads riddled alongside potholes or merely made of dirt, but that wasn’t the bulk of my sense on the roads there.
While in that location are many (very many) evolution problems that demand to live solved, the notion that the bulk of the countries inward Africa are barely developed, misfortunate backwaters is exactly real far from the currently reality.
“Africa is total of diseases.”
The Ebola scare a distich of years agone prompted my friends to worry that heading to South Africa mightiness pose me inward danger. The reality was that Europe, where I was living at the time, was truly closer geographically to the epidemic than South Africa. (Again, people are geographically challenged when it comes to this continent.)
Malaria is some other large concern; however, in that location are major initiatives inward identify to eradicate it. While bespeak your doc nearly preventative measures similar malarone or doxycycline is soundless absolutely advisable, betwixt 2000 together with 2015, cases of malaria on the continent receive got dropped an estimated 88% cheers to an growth of insecticide together with musquito nets. There’s been a 60% driblet inward mortality! Here’s a chart:
HIV together with AIDS is also a major problem, specially inward South Africa together with Botswana, where over 19-25% of the population are infected. That said, the charge per unit of measurement of infection inward the part has fallen past times 14% from 2010 to 2015. Elsewhere inward Africa, such as inward Madagascar, Morocco, together with Tunisia, amid others, the infection charge per unit of measurement is below 0.5% of the population.
“Traveling solitary there, specially as a woman, is a terrible idea.”
Tell anyone that you lot conception to move solitary to Africa together with you lot mightiness live met alongside horrified reactions, due to all of the perceptions listed above. I was admittedly a little fleck afraid to move solo inward Mozambique, by together with large because I couldn’t abide by much data nearly it that was positive, but I went anyway together with came out of the sense alongside tons of novel friends together with wonderful memories.
I receive got found that solo woman someone move inward Africa is exactly similar anywhere else — you lot definitely receive got to live careful non to walk solitary (especially at night), should non teach likewise intoxicated, must remain aware, together with demand to trust your intuition, but it’s non a large disadvantage to live solo there. The locals oftentimes took me nether their fly more, together with per usual, I was surprised to abide by that in that location were enough of other solo travelers around, too.
Africa is has therefore much to offer, it has chop-chop function past times away my favorite continent to move through, cheers to the friendliness, the warmth, together with the adventures. But don’t receive got my give-and-take for it, function past times away together with consider for yourself together with attempt non to autumn inward love.
Kristin Addis is a solo woman someone move skillful who inspires women to move the public inward an authentic together with adventurous way. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 erstwhile investment banker who sold all of her holding together with left California inward 2012, Kristin has solo traveled the public for over 4 years, roofing every continent (except for Antarctica, but it’s on her list). There’s almost aught she won’t attempt together with almost nowhere she won’t explore. You tin flaming abide by to a greater extent than of her musings at Be My Travel Muse or on Instagram together with Facebook.
Sumber https://www.nomadicmatt.com
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