Why Visit South Africa?
If you just asked that question… that’s why!… perhaps you’re from California, like me, and all you know about traveling is going to Las Vegas or Hawaii… or you’re from ________ (fill in the blank)–but it’s all the same… you go to the same old, tired, humdrum, typical places because your town folk have conditioned you to do just that (by their word of mouth or by their invitation). Besides, with many of your friends endlessly going to those places, and with just as many flights there making it cheap… you have ample opportunity to go the next time… because there always is a next time.
If you just asked that question… that’s why!… perhaps you’re from California, like me, and all you know about traveling is going to Las Vegas or Hawaii… or you’re from ________ (fill in the blank)–but it’s all the same… you go to the same old, tired, humdrum, typical places because your town folk have conditioned you to do just that (by their word of mouth or by their invitation). Besides, with many of your friends endlessly going to those places, and with just as many flights there making it cheap… you have ample opportunity to go the next time… because there always is a next time.
But not following the traditional, yet mindless, migration patterns of your town folk (because that’s not you)… will land you in a country with eight places listed with the United Nations World Heritage Sites, one of the new seven wonders of the natural world, Table Mountain and one more for cities, Durban as well as one of the best cities for nightlife that you never knew about, Cape Town–along with so much more beauty that cannot be found anywhere else on this Earth (especially Vegas and Hawaii, although Hawaii is nice)… like the majesty of the Cape of Good Hope… or the bounty of nature and wildlife of Kruger national park (also click here for more)…. Moreover, as with any place… the inhabitants make it what it is, be that good or bad… and the people of South Africa make this place great with their welcoming and hospitable ways (I made friends out there that I am still in touch with)… and it’s why South Africa is the only place I have ever visited that made me sad to leave, and for that I still often think about it.
How I found out about South Africa was through one of my town folk… back when I thought the world beyond my town only consisted of Vegas and Hawaii. She went there with her partner to see the FIFA 2010 World Cup, and when she returned, she brought back pictures of her trip unlike any I had ever seen; if it wasn’t for the World Cup that year, she’d not have known about South Africa, much less had gone there at all, and nor would I. However, now, not only have my travels included the typical places (Vegas and Hawaii), but I am beyond most of those around me in terms of travel experience for having done more–and by extension, life experience too. By going to a place that I knew nothing about, it schooled me on my own ignorance, fortifying me with a more open spirit; it also helped me to realize how much I would miss out on if only sticking to routine, both in visiting places off the beaten path, but also in trying new things in general. Therefore, South Africa wasn’t just a trip, it was a priceless experience from which I grew…
If nothing else, here are just a few more (from the countless) pictures I took of South Africa…
