African Safari

Ghana's Atlantic Coast is lined with old forts (castles) built by various European powers during the 17th Century. Initially, the forts were used to store goods for export, later the slave-trade turned many into prison dungeons. The Cape Coast Castle is the most impressive of Ghana's old forts. It was originally built by the Dutch in 1637, later expanded by the Swedes, finally the British took control of it in 1664 and turned it into their colonial headquarters. It stayed that way for the next 200 years until they moved the capital to Accra in 1877.

The Cape Coast Castle is now an excellent museum with information about the history of Ghana, the slave-trade and local culture. President Obama visited the castle on his tour of the country earlier this year. Find out more about Ghana's top attractions...

_{President Obama visiting the Cape Coast Castle, Ghana -- © Getty Images}

Where to Go in Ghana originally appeared on About.com Africa Travel on Friday, November 27th, 2009 at 14:17:06.

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Highlights of our GrassTrack Safari to Botswana, Africa. Our mobile camping safari spent 7 days camping in the African bush while visiting the Victoria Falls, Chobe National Park, Moremi Game Reserve, and the Okavango Delta. We offer exciting, affordable camping safaris throughout northern Bostwana. Visit our website for more info:

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The African Kitchen: A day in the life of a Safari ChefAfrica is synonymous with adventure-a land of wild animals, colorful traditions and natural splendor. The African Kitchen is a culinary and visual fea... Read More >

'Tis the season for gift buying and I've put together a list of gift ideas that should appeal to anyone planning a trip to Africa. Gifts include CD's, beasts of burden, newspapers, air travel vouchers and more ....

Christmas is celebrated widely throughout Africa but for most Africans sharing a meal and attending church is what it's all about. But you will still see window shops decorated with fake snow and people dressed as Santa, so the commercial aspects of the holidays are somewhat alive and well.

_{Image of a Maasai Lade holding necklaces from the Leakey Collection (i.e. what I want for Christmas) -- © Leakey Collection}

Gifts Ideas For The Africa Traveler originally appeared on About.com Africa Travel on Sunday, November 22nd, 2009 at 10:24:03.

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Finally, it looks like Zimbabwe is getting out of its terrible economic slump. The coalition, forced on Mugabe after last year's elections, has helped stabilize the country and tourism is on the rise. According to a recent AP report, "The number of tourists visiting Zimbabwe this year has more than tripled". The initial number was so low, this probably sounds better than it is, but at least the trend is in the right direction. With the forced power sharing agreement many foreign governments have lifted their travel warnings, which has undoubtedly helped tourism. Zimbabwe was never very dangerous to visit, even during its worst times, but perception is everything and tourists are quite risk averse, after all they want to enjoy their holiday.

Mugabe's regime itself also put a lot of people off from visiting. The idea that your tourist dollars may end up in his pocket is not very appealing. But, of course, it's the ordinary man and woman in the street that really suffers when tourists don't come. No one to buy their crafts or stay at hotels where they work. Zimbabwe is blessed with the magnificent Victoria Falls, excellent national parks, beautiful landscapes, great fishing, golfing, rafting ... (you name it) and very friendly people. It has always been one of the safest countries to visit in Africa and one of the best to explore independently. Hopefully this recent upward trend will continue and Zimbabwe will be back on every tourist's Southern Africa itinerary. And hey, they're using the US Dollar as their currency now, you won't even have to change money when you get there.

_{Zimbabwean Pottery, Waiting For Buyers -- Getty Images/Neil Beer}

Zimbabwe on the Up and Up originally appeared on About.com Africa Travel on Friday, November 20th, 2009 at 08:11:28.

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Catch a glimpse of some of the greatest wildlife on earth – lions, cheetahs, elephants, gorillas, zebras and many other creatures of Tanzania and Rwanda….

There are plenty of good reasons to visit East Africa. So I thought it would help to give you my short list of  the 10 best reasons to visit Kenya. Kenya is blessed with some of Africa's finest national parks, mountains, beaches and its lakes are filled with flamingos and pelicans. No wonder it's one of Africa's most popular destinations. The country's natural beauty is also complemented by its proud cultural heritage. There are several tribes still living a traditional lifestyle such as the Samburu, Maasai and Turkana. Tourism is well established and there are some incredible eco-friendly boutique lodges and camps to choose from. In this way Kenya can really offer visitors a unique vacation despite its popularity. Check out my list of Kenya's Top 10 Attractions and make sure your itinerary includes at least some of them when you visit.

More About Kenya: Kenya Facts l Kenya Travel Tips l Swahili for Travelers

_{Samburu woman -- Getty Images}

Why Visit Kenya? originally appeared on About.com Africa Travel on Tuesday, November 17th, 2009 at 14:39:16.

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We All Went On SafariJoin Arusha, Mosi, Tumpe and their Maasai friends as they set out on a counting journey through the grasslands of Tanzania. Along the way, the childre... Read More >

When we least expected it we saw two big male lions right next to our lodge – Mpala Safari Lodge in South Africa. Our ranger Juan was very excited, as were we. Fantastic stuff….

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White Hunters:The Golden Age of African SafarisEast Africa affects our imagination like few other places: The sight of a charging rhino goes directly to the heart; the limitless landscape of bony h... Read More >

A taste of the exhilarating horseback safaris offered by Offbeat Safaris – if you are a rider, this is the best way to get up and close to Africa’s wildlife. For more see

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White Hunters:The Golden Age of African SafarisEast Africa affects our imagination like few other places: The sight of a charging rhino goes directly to the heart; the limitless landscape of bony h... Read More >

This is PT. III of a 3 parts video of our family Kruger National Park wildlife safari adventure. The colourful zebras, the cute little waterbok & springbok ( both are antelope varieties ) plus the rare striped kudoo ( a big specimen of the antelope ) will appear in this final part of our safari adventure….

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Blood SafariPublished to rave reviews around the world, Blood Safari is a harrowing new novel from acclaimed writer Deon Meyer. Like the best international myster... Read More >

My husband will probably get a donkey and my in-laws certainly deserve a camel, they've been through a lot this year. I'm of course shopping with Oxfam this Christmas season and their list of funusual gifts just keeps growing every year. My children may not appreciate a pile of manure in their Christmas stocking, but luckily for them they won't be smelling it. The beauty of shopping with Oxfam is that your gift will actually go to person who truly needs it elsewhere in the world, and you get to keep the bragging rights.

Oxfam is one of the best charities working in Africa, so you can be assured your gift will end up in the right hands. A camel won't suddenly appear on your doorstep, but the true gift of giving will. If you run out of ideas for teacher gifts, how about getting a pair of school uniforms in their name, it'll set you back just $20 and will truly help a family in need. It's certainly more valuable than adding to their collection of mugs.

More About: Africa Travel Gift Ideas l Christmas in Africa l Shopping in Africa

My Kids Are Getting Manure This Christmas originally appeared on About.com Africa Travel on Sunday, November 8th, 2009 at 19:48:52.

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