The Best Way To Interact With African Locals
May 18, 2012
Many people travelling to Africa for the first time think they are going to fall in love with the wildlife and the rolling landscapes, yet strangely enough it’s the people who seem to grab their affection. The people of Africa are generally given a pretty bad rep, labelled as poor, backward and corrupt. In reality this proves rather different as they are not an amorphous mass, but an extremely diverse range of people. Africans can be incredibly warm and hospitable, and have a great capacity to be able to deal with adverse situations.
There is a massive difference in the way that many groups of Africans live their lives in comparison with a lot of us living in the modern world… but that doesn’t mean to say that they are any poorer than us as they still have a vast array of richness in their cultures, much of which has been lost elsewhere.
The only real way for many people to meet the local people of this wonderful continent is on an African safari. There are a variety of different ways this is possible, through authentic and unauthentic measures. Many resorts across Africa will invite tribe’s people into their camps and lodges to perform tribal rituals in return for being able to sell their gifts and curios to visitors. This is typically not an authentic experience and we would certainly advise against it, if at all possible.
On many safaris in Tanzania (which you can research by visiting us), you can step out of the tourist spotlight and really immerse yourself in Africa. By taking a day or two out at the beginning or end of your safari, you are able to visit the more remote parts of Tanzania to meet and greet the local Masai tribe. Embark on a Ngorongoro safari by clicking here using a self-drive option, and then drive outside of the park in search of local Masai villages. It’s extremely important to always approach with caution, and when driving always park your vehicle some 200m/300m away and approach on foot to save causing a scene. Make sure you don’t go around taking pictures unless you have permission from a tribe elder, and definitely don’t go snooping around, wait until you are shown around.
