If you’ve decided to visit East Africa, some of your decision may have been driven by your interest in experiencing the vibrant culture grounding everyday life. And for those who just came for the scenery and wildlife, you can’t help but be conscious of the strong cultural influence that dominates where you are travelling.
Africa is not a living museum; this is everyday life. So as much as you might want that photograph, please consider the context. Would you like it if a stranger just took a photo of your family member or friend? Over the years, we’ve come to know various people and local communities that have built up tourism businesses focusing on cultural experiences that educate visitors and allow you to respectfully understand daily life through the eyes of one of its many tribes.
The sound of singing and chanting drifting up from amid the herds of livestock will reach you before you actually see the Singing Wells at Sarara in Namunyak in the Samburu area in northern Kenya. This is an ancient tradition adopted by the Samburu during times of drought to keep their livestock watered. Each chant is unique to a family, and their livestock recognises their particular song and come to drink from the family’s well. Families dig out these wells and the songs are composed as they work. It’s an extraordinary practice, made more poignant by the harsh droughts that often affect this region. This timeless bond between man and beast is difficult to explain and makes one reflect on how we are all interconnected.
The easiest way to understand a culture is to have the privilege of being invited into someone’s home.The Sasaab lodge in the Samburu region of northern Kenya will arrange such a visit for you. The permission of the elders is sought first and you will visit with a guide. Many of the staff working at the lodge come from this village and this community visit is done only on request, ensuring a respectful and low-key visit where you will learn about the daily life of the Samburu in the 21st century.
A cultural visit can be arranged from Kleins Camp in the Serengeti in Tanzania to meet the Maasai of Ololosokwan on their terms in their home environment. The Maasai are one of the most well-known tribes in Africa and have traditionally always roamed with their livestock following the rains and the resulting grazing lands. Today, most Maasai live in permanent homesteads known as manyattas, but still live a traditional pastoral life. They still follow a diet of mainly milk, blood and meat, but this is now supplemented with grains. A visit to these homesteads will include a tour of daily life and possibly a visit to the local school or clinic. For those who would like a deeper immersion, a full-day excursion can be arranged where you will go onto the plains with the young Masai herders and witness a blood-letting ceremony with their cattle.
Quietly make your way through the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest following your Batwa guide into the green realm shaded by age-old great trees. Visiting a Batwa homestead in Uganda is a cultural experience created by the Batwa people, not just for tourists but also to keep the traditional way of life alive for their children. The Batwa were moved out of the national reserve and now live on adjoining. Your visit to their homestead will include a walk into the forest to learn about trees and small animals they hunt, a visit with the medicine man to learn about medicinal properties of the flora, and possibly a cooking experience.
Zanzibar is known as the spice island and you can immerse yourself in the taste and smell extravaganza of a spice tour. Zanzibar is a fertile home for spices including cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon and cardamom, among others. The first spices arrived in the 16th century and the island became a major supplier to the rest of the world. This has continued today and spices are exported internationally. Many of the smaller farms are slowly converting to becoming organically certified and grow a wide range of produce including turmeric, vanilla, chili, black pepper, lemongrass, coconuts, papayas, jackfruit, cassava, and oranges.
