Rise and shine! Have you ever wanted to wake up to an epic sunrise? Or take an astonishing trek through tropical rainforests, rippling dunes, jagged mountains, and lush highlands?
Africa, with all its beauty and personality, inspires an ecstatic state of childlike wonder. As the natural birthplace of civilization, it’s accentuated by a rich, diverse culture. And there’s so much more.
For you all you motivated adventurers and passionate volunteers, we present you with 4 African Countries that Shouldn’t be Missed:
- Ghana
- Egypt
- Tanzania
- Madagascar
Ghana
The heart and soul of any country lies with its people. Many of you aspiring college students will have the good fortune of rooming with an international student. I’ve been incredibly lucky to have a fantastic roommate from Ghana, and he loves talking about home. Building real relationships with natives can help make any traveling experience much more meaningful and authentic.
What Charles (my roommate) goes on and on about, besides soccer and the latest Chief Keef Album, is how delicious Ghanaian food is.
So if you ever plan to visit Ghana, definitely sample the local cuisine and perhaps even volunteer to help prepare it!
Egypt
You have probably heard of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. What you may not know is that Dubai is actually building life-size replicas of all seven in their Falconcity of Wonders by 2220.
If you want to see the only wonder still standing today, then be sure to check out the Pyramids of Giza.
Tanzania
Now that you’re completely stuffed with Ghanaian food and blown away by seeing the pyramids firsthand, I personally invite you on a hiking trek up Mount Kilimanjaro.
This is the highest free-standing mountain in the world and certainly the highest in Africa. If you’re up for the rigor and adventure, then consider this as your once-in-a-lifetime challenge. If hiking up gigantic mountains isn’t really your thing, then you can still check out the view from Moshi town as you can see below. You can sip your cold beverage in complete leisure as those silly people go running up mountains.
Madagascar
The beautiful rainforests, colorful and lavish plant-life, and the unique variety of animals are plenty of reasons to check out this island country.
If nothing else, visit it because there are lemurs (you know you want to!).
Contributed by Nick Fochtman