Africa my Africa

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I live in a magical place at the tip of the great African continent. I love my birthplace with all my heart and would not like to live anywhere else in the world. I know there is talk of crime and there are images of protests.
I also know there are the same in every other country in the world. Yet visitors to our country discover something they find hard to describe. Our people are warm and caring and love sharing.

It is all contained in the word Ubuntu. It basically means a person is a person through another person indicating we are interdependent and our humanity is a shared one.

Through time I have toured this beautiful continent and have never set foot in a non-African land. I went to Namibia and Botswana, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi. In all my travels I have never encountered trouble of any sort. I have not been robbed; I was not hurt in any way.

I did however meet people that are proud Africans that love to share their beautiful land and are helpful in every regard.  It has to do with mutual respect. I respect them and their culture and they reciprocate

We have world class cities with all the amenities you would find in Cities all across the globe but we have so much more. Just a few hours’ drive out of Johannesburg you can find yourself surrounded by wild animals in the bush and you are in another world altogether.

You will find Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Rhinoceros and Hippopotamus along with antelope baboons, snakes and a myriad of other free roaming creatures.

It is oly dangerous if you do not obey the rules of the bush. Stay in your vehicle the animals have the right  of way. Respect them and mostly they shall respect you. They are wild and roam wild and can be extremely dangerous if you are not treating them with respect and do not observe the etiquette of the bush.

I travelled these places with my family and some of them all on my own. Yes we experienced excitement and was rushed by a mamma Elephant protecting her young and got rushed by a Black Rhinoceros but in each instance I kept my distance and was alert and could relatively avoid a close up encounter that could have been disastrous, Your massive SUV is nothing to an elephant that would mash and through it around like a toy.

Experience the peace drive slowly take in the splendour of nature. Our sunrise and sunsets are spectacular. Our people are friendly and helpful and knowledgeable and could tell you all you need to know to keep safe and enjoy your stay.

There are custom and it helps if you know the local custom it will make you feel like you are among friends. When people talk  loud it is out of respect so that anyone can hear they are not gossiping about someone.

The bush absorbs and envelopes you and truly makes you feel like mother earth is cuddling you in her warm welcoming bosom. You will forget about all your stress and start slowing your tempo to be in tune with African time that is never hasty.

Having a braai(barbeque) at sunset sipping your favourite drink with the people you love is something to enjoy and remember and you can do it every day. The quiet of the bush accompanied by bird song and later on the call of  a lone jackal or the mighty roar of a lion will be your constant reminder of where you are.

In Zimbabwe we made friends with a family and visited at their home. At Victoria Falls a young couple shared their flat with us when all other accommodation was full.

In Malawi I stayed with a friend and shared accommodation without prior booking. I merely told the host I brought a friend along and he was accommodated.

In the Kgalagadi you can stay with Bushmen in their Huts like they have lived for thousands of years and they will teach you how they hunt and how they survive in the harsh climate in the desert.

We crossed Lake Kariba on a ferry and I waded into Lake Malawi and we enjoyed the local fish that are plentiful and relatively cheap. Or  you can eat dried Mopane worms in the bush with the locals.

You can visit local market places where every shop sells everything and every stall has a speciality that is most delicious and healthy.

The people selling curios at the market places and next to the roads will barter with you for things like T-shirts and even shoe laces or batteries and soap.

African music is rhythmic and you shall experience the ancient rhythm of Mother Africa when they play their natural musical instruments and dance dressed in traditional attire.

You can walk in the footsteps of the great Madiba, Nelson Mandela that are revered across the globe as one of the greatest Freedom Fighters and African Leaders of his time and all time. You can visit Townships and historical places like Robben Island. Vilikazi Street is the only street where two Nobel Peace Prize Laureates lived in the same street.

Where else in the world can you swim with dolphins and dive with sharks than the coastline of Africa.

I Lived here for more than half a century and have not seen and experienced it all yet and I have no desire to travel anywhere else in the world but my beloved Africa.