By Aayat Irfan
The gorgeous continent of Africa is embellished with fifty-four diverse countries. Each of their cultures and traditions contribute to making Africa whole. Africa is home to the heartbeats of various indigenous people, ethnic groups, tribes and races. More than fifteen-hundred languages are spoken across the continent. The African climate is as unique as its languages.
Africa allows you to merge into its miscellany of customs and values. It wraps you like an affectionate hug. Most importantly it makes you feel at home with all its abundance of nature and wildlife, it disconnects you from your daily office calls and deadlines. It brings peace to your heart. It’s all you need to pause the hurriedness of your life and to live in the moment.
Many underestimate it for its lack of advancement but they forget to appreciate it for its strong attachment to biodiversity. Africa is known for the world’s longest river – the Nile River, for its stunning coastlines, for its profusion of natural resources like gold and diamonds, for the world’s largest desert – the Sahara Desert and for its exceptional wildlife like giraffes, chimpanzees and gorillas.
In addition to being a photographer’s paradise, it is also a traveler’s dream. It’s where every tourist gets the golden opportunity to experience unfiltered richness. It’s where the sky unclothes itself from an azure blue hue to a burnt orange one. It reveals its elegance with gentleness as the clouds gracefully dance away. The African sunset allows the silhouettes of animals to appear, making the entire scene look picture perfect.
An African safari brings combined emotions of thrill and joy. It allows knowledge and awareness to flow in. It inspires art and music. It allows you to explore. It helps you to learn the importance of wildlife. It brings the urge of supporting causes that work towards the welfare of animals and restore natural ecosystems. A successful example of a restoration project would be the Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique. The park was damaged and shut down during the civil war but later on after the war ended, it was effectively restored.
Africa is a place of all sorts of natural wonders such as mountains. The most famous being Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania – the highest mountain of Africa and the highest free-standing mountain in the entire world. A country in Southern Africa called Lesotho is highly recognized for its awe-inspiring mountain ranges. Another beautiful South African mountain range would be Drakensberg which has a natural amphitheater.
Apart from being a kingdom for biodiversity on land, Africa is also greatly known for its biodiversity in water. It consists of a number of water bodies all with a wonderful variety of luxurious marine life. The largest alkaline lake is located in Kenya. It is called Lake Turkana – this lake has crocodiles, hippos and snakes. Another example of an extraordinary lake would be Lake Malawi. The lake lies between Malawi, Tanzania, and Mozambique. It is also one of the deepest lakes in the world. One of the world’s largest wetlands is the Okavango Delta. It is found in Botswana. It is where countless animal species meet and interact such as buffaloes, elephants, cheetahs, zebras, rhinos, hyenas and many more. Africa has an impressively smooth and straight coastline which has a myriad of marine animals like whales, dolphins, dugongs, sharks and turtles.
Africa is a journey, it’s an experience and a way of connecting yourself to mother nature. It’s where you can rhythmically feel the waves kiss your feet and it’s where the music of nature is the loudest. It’s a place where all your stress slowly peels away and your mind is refreshed. It’s a place of love, warmth, acceptance and beauty. It is where you actually feel the feeling of hakuna matata. Welcome to Africa.