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Africa Local Customs

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Lunch is ready
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Venceremos
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university graduation celebration
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university graduation celebration
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Most Viewed Local Customs in Africa

Dress Codes for Women Cairo

17 Reviews It is important to understand that regardless of how you are dressed you can still get harassed, this goes for any country whether it be the UK, America or Spain.. A 2008 survey by the Egyptian...

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Djellabas and kaftans Marrakesh

6 Reviews The traditional Moroccan dress for both men and women is this long hooded garment known as a djellaba. It seems very practical – the body is protected from weather and from the dirt of the street,...

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Ethnic / Cultural Diversity Johannesburg

16 Reviews The selection and performance of national anthems must be one of the most emotive of cultural issues. To my mind, national anthems are meant to be rousing and inspirational pieces of music that...

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ALEXANDRIAN culture Alexandria

5 Reviews Alexandria is blessed by a long Corniche, and this, of course, gives rise to a very healthy café culture. In the areas of the city such as Montazah, where there are many tourists and locals who come...

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Bargaining Cairo

10 Reviews Bargaining. Us Anglo's just don't get it, do we? In England about the only time we enter into any negotiation over price is when we buy a car or a house. Here' it's different. A love of the deal is...

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Bargain! Marrakesh

9 Reviews When in Marrakesh expect to have to haggle for everything! Some general tips: - Have a maximum price in mind for the item and offer slightly below it. - If they offer you a ridiculously high price...

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Food & Drink Johannesburg

4 Reviews if your'e into wines , as so many are or you want to be seen or you want to meet the Cape's best winemakers. or you want to taste the top wines of the year or Platter's 5 * star wines or just have a...

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Islam Cairo

20 Reviews Islam is the main religion of Egypt with almost 90% of it's population practicing the religion. Other religions are Christianity, who form about another 10%. The city of Cairo has very beautiful...

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Henna Ladies Marrakesh

3 Reviews Moroccan ladies desperate to paint henna designs on foreigners' hands and feet seem to be everywhere in the Medina, with the biggest concentration in el Djemaa el Fna. There are two types: natural...

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Traffic Cairo

9 Reviews The automobile traffic and rules on the roadway in Cairo is unlike any conventional heavy traffic. a. donkeys, camels and donkey drawn carriages hauling garbage share the roads with cars b. the...

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Moroccan Wine Marrakesh

2 Reviews Despite the huge growth in tourism in Marrakech, it's still surprisingly difficult to find places selling alcohol, especially in the medina. On our last night in the city, we wanted to get some wine...

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Moroccan music Marrakesh

3 Reviews The Jmaa El Fna square is a UNESCO heritage site, largely due to the story tellers that pass on stories in Arabic, but also note the musicians and various other stalls. However, be prepared to pay a...

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Water man Marrakesh

1 Review Around the Medina and some of the historical sites you will see men in funny looking attire with brass cups hanging off them. These are water men who supply the locals with water usually from local...

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Public Baths Marrakesh

2 Reviews Hamman Ziani is just down the road from Palais Bahia. It is a traditional style Hamman catering for tourists. 80Dh for Hammam, Steam, Gommage and Soaping - compared to 150 Dh at our hotel spa. I took...

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Taking Photos Marrakesh

1 Review This advice isn't unique to Morocco, but it's the first time I've been brave enough to try it and it worked a treat: I always look in travel magazines and books and am amazed at the magnificent...

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16.

The Pink City Marrakesh

1 Review Well all the houses inside and, nearly all outside are pink ... why??? well the material with wich the outside wall makes the wall be pink, ... nowadays people MUST by law paint their houses that way...

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Reviews from VirtualTourist Members

BEER CELEBRATING BEING TRAMPLED TO DEATH

by DAO

On December 8, 1922 Kenya Breweries was founded by brothers George and Charles Hurst. They had previously worked as gold prospectors and farmers. One week later they brewed their first beer and bottled the first 10 cases by hand. They were delivered to the famous Stanley Hotel in Nairobi and their brewing business had begun. In 1923 George was killed on a hunting expedition by a male Tusked Elephant, which is indigenous to East Africa. Charles decided to name the beer they brewed ‘Tusker’ in honour of his brother. Today the brewery is called East African Breweries and they sell over 700,000 hectolitres ( 596517 barrels,18 million US gallons) in Kenya alone. Tusker is still their biggest seller. They like to explain that Tusker is made form the finest local ingredients. This includes barley from the Savannah and the Maasai Mara, sugar from the Rift Valley and spring water from the...

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MYSTERY! THE BRITISH HIGH COMMISSION - MOZAMBIQUE

by DAO

Ever wonder why some countries have Embassies and some have High Commissions? A High Commission (with the attendant High Commissioner) means that the country is a member of the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth was the Former British Commonwealth that was formed by nations that were former British Colonies and Possessions before individual dates of Independence. In addition to being former colonies they have many things in common like the English language and driving on the left-hand side of the road. So why is there a British High Commission in Maputo - the capital of Mozambique?Because Mozambique became the Commonwealth's 53rd member (and the first not to have once been associated with the British Empire) in November 1995. Mozambique, despite being a Portuguese speaking former colony of Portugal, had long been interested in Commonwealth membership. They had to gain the agreement of all...

THE FLAG OF CAPE VERDE

by DAO

The current Flag of Cape Verde is relatively new (1992) and is very befitting an island nation. It has 10 stars on it represent the 10 islands making up the county – which are clearly to one side. That’s because the stars are on the hoist side of the flag making it a flag for land and a naval ensign all-in-one. It was officially adopted when Cape Verde dissolved its political ties from Guinea-Bissau on the mainland. It is derived from the flag of the Partido Africano da Independência da Guiné e Cabo Verde (P.A.I.G.C.), the liberation movement which successfully gained independence for both countries (Guinea-Bissau in 1974, Cape Verde 1975). The colours and symbols represent:Blue: the Sea and SkyWhite: PeaceRed: Hard work/effort of the nationStripes: the road to construction of the nation10 stars: the 10 islandsThe circle of stars: represents everything from unity to the globe and even a...

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THE TIRE GAME

by DAO

I first really noticed this on the island of Zanzibar. During my stay in Jambiani Village I kept seeing kids playing with old bicycle tire rims. They would use a good stick and propel the tire along the road at great speed with the stick pushing along the groove. Not only is this not easy to do – these kids were amazing fast. If you think its easy – give it a try. I have also seen children across Africa using larger tires, even car tires in a slighly differnet fashion. This is a game where children with little or nothing, find perfectly fun toys using what is to hand and some imagination.

ANIMAL CONSERVATION - SWAZILAND

by DAO

THE REILLY FAMILYThe Reilly Family created Mlilwane Game Sanctuary in Swazialnad to help restore the wildlife that was depleted in Swaziland in the past. James Reilly settled at Mlilwane in 1906 and began to mine tin. He became the largest employer of industrial labour in the country and introduced electricity to Swaziland. He was known the locals as “Machobane”. His son, Ted Reilly was born at Mlilwane in 1938 and still runs the sanctuary today. The Reilly’s saw the demise of Swaziland’s wildlife which included the rinderpest (or cattle plague) in 1896, excessive & illegal hunting, the ‘wildebeest plague’ in the 1930’s, poison, traps, herbicides, pesticides, and wholesale depletion of Swaziland’s game and flora over decades. Ted Reilly decided to turn the family farm into a sanctuary for indigenous wildlife in 1963. Mlilwane, which means Little Fire, became Swaziland's first organised...

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African tattoo's

by Wafro

African art is more than wooden masks and sculptures alone. The local youth is trying to express themselves with a western art form such as tattooing. They have very basic instruments but the results sometimes are fascinating.

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THE SINK EXPERIMENT

by DAO

What is the sink Experiment? Scientifically water going down a sink will rotate counter clockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere. I set out to conduct this experiment for Virtual Tourist here in Zimbabwe, which is in the Southern hemisphere. This is due to the Coriolis Effect, a force caused by the rotation of the Earth. Guess what? IT’s A MYTH! I found that I could get the water to go in either direction just by diverting the water slightly. Often it ran in the ‘wrong’ direction. Don’t believe it? Come for a visit and try it for yourself!

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GATHERING WATER

by DAO

If you really want to see and understand the real Africa, you need to get up early and get onto the road. Many people live in homes without running water. So every mooring you have to get up early and take a large plastic container and walk to the village well. Then you have to carry this now very heavy container back to the house. OK, that’s the morning bath. What about dishes? Laundry? Baths for other? Children learn this endless daily routine and literally carry this lesson through life. It’s not easy. So get out on that road and appreciate how life is not easy, but you can still always get a smile and a wave.

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NOT GOOD - SLASH & BURN AGRICULTURE

by DAO

You are looking at a crime. This is both against the law and an environmental disaster. Slash & Burn agriculture is just like it sounds. It happens all over Africa, but my pictures and story are from Madagascar (Photo 5 is in Burundi). In Madagascar this traditional way of clearing land is called ‘Tavy’. Local farmers mark of a few acres of, often rain forest, and literally burn it all to the ground. They do this to plant rice field mostly. Rice is harvested for 1-2 year from the now cleared land and then left alone, or fallow, for 4-6 years. The process is repeated through 2-3 more cycles until the soils nutrients are destroyed. Then little can grow on it except scrub and rains bring erosion and further damage to the land. As poor farmers exhaust the flatter land, they then move up increasingly steep slopes over the years and this causes even worse environmental disaster. Why do they do...

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African dances

by Wafro

Dancing is a common activity in Sub- Saharan Africa, there are so different African dances as there are cultural differences. Many dances have a social connection they dance to learn patterns in life, to praise and pray, they use it to celebrate weddings and maturation,….. Most of the dances are accompanied with African drums and music. The modern city youth also dance in discos with a western character.

Top 3 Hotels in Africa

Four Seasons At The First Cairo

4 Reviews and 247 Opinions You must go through a street barrack and through metal detectors just to get to the elevator and get...

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La Maison Arabe Marrakesh

4 Reviews and 507 Opinions This riad is consider the oldest- may be the fiart- and best riad in Marrakech. Hoever. it is a bet...

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Cape Grace Hotel Cape Town

5 Reviews and 580 Opinions Rooms are very nice, and service is spendid. However, the hotel is simply too expensive.

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