Tanzania, Kenya & Zanzibar Blog

Whenever I’ve been asked my favorite destination I’ve been, it’s always been an easy answer without hesitation. It wasn’t because of the turquoise waters of Zanzibar, the elephants that visited our campsite during Safari or even the vibrant sunrises that would light up every part of the sky in different colors, but rather the culture that Africa holds. More smiles than I’ve ever seen. More laughter, connection and natural beauty in the faces of these people. I went to Africa to teach English, but the children and their community taught me way more than I could ever possibly teach them in return.

I started my solo trip to Africa when I had just turned 16. I volunteered through a program called “IVHQ” to teach English in the primary schools in the town of Arusha. The volunteer house was a bit difficult for me at first, because I was younger (by at least 5 years) than all of the other volunteers there. No one wanted to be responsible for the 16 year old alone in Africa, so it was really hard for me to make friends. Everyone else in the house seemed like family and had been there for many weeks. As it was, I was struggling with a lot of self-growth during this time, coming face to face with depression and realizing that travel wouldn’t magically solve all of my problems. I spent a lot of hours alone, sitting with my thoughts. Looking back, I realize that each of these hours was subconsciously changing the core of my being and the person that I would become. Luckily for me, a pair of Australian friends arrived at one of my lowest moments. They quickly became my best friends and completely turned my Tanzania experience around. We went on Safari together, this being one of the best experiences of my life.