Africa Travel Guide

Overview
Africa is the second largest and second most-populous continent in the world. It comes after Asia. It occupies 30.2 million sq km including the adjacent islands; covers 6 percent of the Earth’s total surface area and 20.5 percent of the entire land area. With a billion people in 61 separate boundaries, Africa accounts for close to 14.8 percent of the World’s human population.

Africa, central eastern region in particular, is extensively regarded scientifically to be the origin of humans and the great apes, as proved by the discovery of the earliest hominids and their ancestors, as well as later ones that have been dated to roughly seven million years ago including Sahelanthropus tchadensis and Australopithecus africanus.

Geography

Africa, one of the three giant southward projections from the large landmass of the Earth, is the biggest. Separated from Europe by the Mediterranean Sea, the ‘Dark Continent’ is joined to Asia at its northeast extremity by the Isthmus of Suez (transected by the Suez Canal), 163 km wide. (Note, Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula east of the Suez Canal is often considered part of Africa, as well.)
The continent is surrounded by the Indian Ocean to the southeast, the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and both the Suez Canal and the Red Sea along the Sinai Peninsula to the northeast. Not counting the disputed territory of Western Sahara, there are 53 countries, including Madagascar and various island groups, connected with the continent.

From Cape Verde, 17°33’22″ W, the westernmost point, to Ras Hafun in Somalia, 51°27’52″ E, the most easterly projection, is a distance of approximately 7,400 km (4,600 miles); and from Tunisia’ Ras ben Sakka- the most northerly point (37°21′ N), to Cape Agulhas in South Africa, the most southerly point (34°51’15″ S), is an approximate distance 8,000 km (5,000 miles); The coastline is 26,000 km (16,100 miles) long, and the absence of deep indentations of the shore is demonstrated by the fact that Europe, which covers only 10,400,000 km² (4,010,000 square miles) – about a third of the surface of Africa – has a coastline of 32,000 km (19,800 miles).

Sudan is the continent’s largest country, and its smallest is the Seychelles- an archipelago off the east coast. The smallest nation on the continental mainland is The Gambia. According to the ancient Romans, Africa lay to the west of Egypt, while “Asia” was used to refer to Anatolia and lands to the east. A definite line was drawn between the two continents by the geographer Ptolemy (85–165 AD), indicating Alexandria along the Prime Meridian and making the Isthmus of Suez and the Red Sea the boundary between Asia and Africa.

Geologically, Africa includes the Zagros Mountains of Iran; the Arabian Peninsula; and the Anatolian Plateau of Turkey mark where the African Plate collided with Eurasia. The Afro tropic ecozone and the Saharo-Arabian desert to its north unite the region bio-geographically, and the Afro-Asiatic language family unites the north linguistically.

Climate & Vegetation

Africa straddles the equator and encompasses numerous climate areas; it is the only continent to stretch from the northern temperate to southern temperate zones. The ‘Dark Continent’s’ climate ranges from tropical to sub arctic on its highest peaks. Its northern half is primarily desert or arid, while its central and southern areas contain both savanna plains and very dense jungle (rainforest) regions. In between, there is a convergence where vegetation patterns such as Sahel and steppe dominate.

African Wildlife

Africa boasts perhaps the world’s largest combination of density and “range of freedom” of wild animal populations as well diversity, with wild populations of large carnivores such as lions, hyenas, and cheetahs; and herbivores such as buffalo, deer, elephants, camels, and giraffes ranging freely on primarily open non-private plains. Africa is also home to a variety of jungle creatures including snakes and primates and aquatic life including crocodiles and amphibians. Africa’s wilderness pride is also exhibited in its large number of mega fauna species, as it was least affected by the extinction of the Pleistocene mega fauna.

Religions of Africa

Africans profess a wide variety of religious beliefs and statistics on religious affiliation are difficult to come by since they are too sensitive a topic for governments with mixed populations. Accordingly, Islam is the largest religion in Africa with 45% of the population being Muslims; this is followed by Christianity which makes up 40%; less than 15% are non-religious or follow African religions. A small number of Africans are Hindu, Baha’i, or have beliefs from the Judaic tradition. Examples of African Jews are the Beta Israel, Lemba peoples and the Abayudaya in Eastern Uganda.

Recommended African tours:

East African Safaris:
• Climb Mount  Kenya and go on an adventure to see Kenya’s wildlife
• catch sight of Gorillas in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
• Tracking Mountain Gorillas and Golden Monkeys in Rwanda
• trek Uganda’s volcanoes
• Trek Safari on Mount  Kilimanjaro in Tanzania through Marangu Route

North Africa:
• Tour Egypt & the ancient Pyramids
• travel the deserts, bazaars, pyramids and tombs of Egypt
• take safari tour to the Imperial cities of Morocco
• discover Libya’s historical sites
• Take Desert walks through Western Sahara, Mauritania, and Senegal

Southern Africa:
• Journey through Namibia to Cape Town
• Explore South Africa’s green coast
• take 22 Days and go from Vic Falls to Cape Town
• Catch a glimpse of Zambia’s Victoria Falls
• Travel from Johannesburg to Cape Town via the Kruger National Park

West Africa:
• explore the city of Timbuktu
• Travel through West Africa from Dakar to Douala
• take in the voodoo trail of Burkina Faso