Where Do you imagine Yourself?

If I may I would like to ask you a Quick question. One that most travelers don't know the answer to. This is also a question that unless you have been to Kenya or Tanzania you wouldn't have an answer to.

By answer i mean the right answer. In fact you can go ahead and check it on wikipedia and guess what? You will get the wrong answer. I know this because the last time i was there i was disappointed. This is one of those things you will not get any where. Why? Well because the people who should be telling you this don't know or they would rather keep their mouths shut.

Ok i know by now you are dying of curiosity so here is the question. When are you on safari? Take a minute and "mentally answer" that question. Think it over if you have to. I'm not kidding. Think about it. What do you come up with?

To most people especially visitors to this rich and lovely continent called Africa, the word safari simply means watching the big five or something of the sort. If you gave me that as an answer would you be right? Well you are close but, the answer to my question doesn't lie so much on what you are doing but where you are.

Still not following? Let me ask it differently. Can you be on safari in Thailand? or Afghanistan? by the way I'm just trying to make a point here i have nothing against these countries. I'm sure you'll tell me Off course not, Africa. Ok so where in Africa? Egypt, Morocco, tunisia? I'm Hoping you are not one of those people who think Africa is a country. It's not. Africa is a continent.

My grandpa used to say, if you want a woman to fall in love with you, tell her that she's lovely. The first time she may dismiss you but say it long enough and she will fall in love with you. My point? People tend to believe what they hear often. That's what branding is supposed to do right?

Give a nice name to a lousy product and repeat it long enough with a little packaging and what do you know, suddenly that floppy disk now has got sex appeal!

Do snails taste better when called escargot? What would happen if you walked into a French restaurant and asked for snails? If you speak English you would be dismissed as ignorant and in need of an education that the word is escargot and mind the pronunciation. "Waiter can I have a plate of escargot please." That sounds better and it should also cost you more because on your bill it is now escargot. By the way I have no problem with escargot I just prefer to call it a snail meal.

As i said earlier, we humans have a tendency of twisting things all in the name of marketing. We do so and what do we call all this repackaging and name changing? Do we call it deception? Oh nooo we wouldn't wanna use such a word. Why not just call it branding. But does branding change the product? Certainly! In the mind of the one to whom all that repackaging is meant to entice. This is what has happened to the word safari.

Safari is being used to make a web browser more sexy. (That is if it even had sex appeal to begin with) If you haven't heard of the safari browser check it out. This word is being used to sex up all kinds of travel packages because it sells.

In fact safari as a word when it comes to travel in Africa is so hot today that it is now used to market areas in Southern Africa, Central Africa, you name it. Most of these places would have the sex appeal of a floppy disk. Most of the travel packages they offer would be dead in the water, but now they have a new lease of life.

Now I'm not here to bash those who have to package just about anything with the name safari in order to put food on table. After all a man has got to eat. And if eating means sticking a name to something to make it sell then so be it.

Truth is you haven't been on safari until you have been on safari in East Africa. Plan and simple. It doesn't matter what you heard on Oprah. I know Oprah refers to her wildlife viewing as safari but you haven't been or experienced a safari until you have been to either of these:

1.masai mara
2.amboseli
3.serengeti
4.serengeti

Just to name but a few. So the next time someone talks to you about a safari somewhere in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana or even egypt. Spare a though for East Africa the safari Capital of which all other game and wildlife viewing is named and packaged after because imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.