One of the neatest ways to really express your love of world culture is to learn to play an African musical instrument.

There are thousands upon thousands of African musical instruments, and each one has a unique and beautiful tone. My favorite African musical instrument is called the dono drum. The dono drum is one of the most expressive African drums. It is also known as the talking drum, and essentially consists of two heads at either end of an hourglass shaped body. The heads are connected by strips of hide. The whole African musical instrument is held under one arm, and the strings are tightened and loosened by squeezing it with the arm. This changes the tone, allowing this African musical instrument to “talk.” But of course, there are thousands of other African musical instruments to chose from, and each of them definitely has its strengths.

A really great African musical instrument is the Djembe.

It is a bowl shaped drum, with a cone projecting out from the underside. I have loved playing this African musical instrument in drum circles since I was very small. It has this powerful, high, ringing tone that is perfect for playing with other people. Not only does it have that great high end, but it has a booming bass that is just amazing, and that is no joke. It is probably the most popular African musical instrument in America, and perhaps the best known one around the world, and there is a reason for that. It just has an incredibly powerful tone, that is almost guaranteed to cut through other sounds to create a really driving percussion.

Of course, not every African musical instrument is created equal.

When you are buying one, you have to make sure that it is of the highest quality, or you are sure to run into a bit of disappointment down the road. For example, some drums have their heads attached in flimsy ways that make sure that they will fall apart sooner, rather than later. Other times, the head of the African musical instrument is itself of low quality, so that it will rip when it is played aggressively. If you do not like the tone, this can be another problem. There is no bigger disappointment than playing on an instrument with a lousy tone. It can really make any jam not as fun, and any player sound lousy, even if he really has a good bit of talent.

Africa is a huge continent and it does have some common, staple foods, but it's really an area of distinctive regional differences.

African food is a mixture of indigenous dishes and the import of food from colonizing countries and immigrants. It's a country that has seen much movement and the influences are everywhere. In the West, we're probably most familiar with Northern African cooking, especially thru Moroccan restaurants. Africans also introduced many ways of cooking to the American South that are familiar today in grits, flatbreads and fritters etc.

In general, Africans like to eat fresh fruit and vegetables, game and fish.

The chief root vegetables are yams and cassava. They like to steam their vegetables and they use hot spices and marinades. Meat stews are usually based on chicken. Peanuts, known as groundnuts in Africa, are popular in garnishes and soups. Melons and in particular watermelons are common African food. African villages tend to use a lot of whey, curd and milk. They also like vegetables, cereals and sweet potatoes.

The coastal regions use chillies a lot and fish marinated in ginger and cayenne pepper is very popular.

West Africans like to eat black eyed peas and use okra in soups and stews. They mix fish and meat together in their stews. The French brought their cuisine to Senegal, particularly garlic, scallions, lime juice and the method of marinating. Bananas and coconuts are another popular African food here. Ethiopian dishes usually contain meat and they also eat raw meat. They like flatbreads, hot peppers and hard cooked eggs.

South African food is a combination of indigenous Bantu traditions and the influence of the British and Dutch settlers.

The French also played a part, starting up many vineyards, and immigrant workers from Malaysia brought curries. The Indians sent by the British to work on the railway construction also brought their cuisine.

East African food does not involve much meat as livestock is used for trading purposes and not for food. The only strong influence here from outside is the legacy of the Arab settlers who brought cloves, saffron and rice pilafs.

Angola and Mozambique were both colonized by the Portuguese, who brought limes, lemons and oranges. The Portuguese from Brazil took pineapples, bananas and pigs. Most dishes in Mozambique are based on fish and they have a lot of hot pepper dishes.

African dishes are very often accompanied by alcoholic drinks, except for the Muslim North.

South Africa of course, is world famous for its first class red and white wines. Kenya has a local beer called Tusker which is exported. There are many bee keepers in Ethiopia and they make a drink called Tej from the honey which is similar in taste to mead. Ethiopian coffee is also well known in the West. The Tusker goes particularly well with African food.

There are many countries in Africa that I'd like to visit but my favorite would be Kenya.

An Africa vacation with so many opportunities to see wildlife would be terrific. The heart of Africa is in the Bush. I would love to go on safari on an Africa vacation and there are several companies specializing in Kenyan safaris of different types. The one we're most familiar with is the vehicle game safari, where you are taken by Land Rover thru the game areas. If you prefer something more sedate, there are walking safaris. Air safaris are another choice, which offer spectacular aerial views of the scenery and the movement of game.

The main reason to visit Africa for me would be to get as close to the animals as possible.

I'd make sure I was fully capable of shooting some good video footage of my Africa vacation too, to back up the stories I'd tell when I got home! There are companies which offer accommodation in lodges and tents right in the midst of the Bush. They're much more comfortable than they sound and I'd prefer that to some impersonal hotel chain or gated apartment complex.

The lodges and tent camps are staffed with cooks, so you have excellent food and you get to meet the African people.

A lot of them are on the riverside, and you'd probably get to see hippos and crocodiles. There are game drives organized from the sites but you don't have to leave the site to see animals. Many of them are unfenced, so animals just wander in and out. There's the chance to see leopards, chimpanzees, elephants and lions. Some of the nearby waterholes are lit up at night, and you can see animals even then.

The food is more likely to be local dishes than the food in hotels which caters for the European tourist.

I'd like to try the national dish of Kenya. An Africa vacation wouldn't be complete without Barbecued Goat and vegetables. Sometimes it's made with antelope or zebra. There's a strange local drink which the Maasai tribe likes, to wash it down but I don't think I'd be brave enough to sample it. It's called Mursik and it's made from fermented milk, ash and cow's urine!

Some of the lodges are based on African traditional tribal huts or are houses built on stilts.

Facilities may include en suite bathroom and a mini bar. There are organized activities such as nature talks and hot air balloon trips with champagne breakfast. You can go horse riding or bird watching. Another fantastic Africa vacation opportunity would be a camel ride. There are some golf courses and scuba diving schools. My favorite location for an Africa vacation would be in the lodge complex which sits in the forest on the slopes of Mount Kenya.

I have been a big fan of African safari hunts for a long time – ever since my grand father first took me.

Of course, my grampa was the real deal. African safari hunting was not something that he took lightly – not at all. You see, good old gramps was a British civil servant, and part of the long tradition of colonial rule that prided itself on its marksmanship as much as on its professionalism and its service to the crown and country. You really could say that African safari hunting was in our blood, ever since my great grandfather worked for the British East India tea company.

The fact is, for members of the British nobility, hunting has always been a whole lot more than just simply a matter of sport. It is a tradition which dates all the way back before the mob rule more popularly known as democracy in this insane modern rule. Although fox hunting is an older, and in some ways a richer tradition, for many Brits, African safari hunting has become just as key a part of their lifestyle as has the older form of hunting.

Really, you can not beat African safari hunting for the thrill anyway.

The fox hunt does come close to African safari hunting, but in the end it does not compete. There are all of the jumps and courses, the baying of the hound, the tricks and dodges of the fox, and so on. But none of these facts compares to the terror and awe of facing off against a full grown African rhino with nothing but a high powered large caliber rifle and your wits about you to defend yourself against the wrathful brute.

If you have never tried African safari hunting, my god are you ever in for a treat.

Everything about the land – its climate, its people, its animals – has a heated, and feverish temper, even up to this day, and you really can not find such excitement among our own cultured and sedate countrymen. Just think about African safari hunting – the hot day dawning over the barren veldt, gazelle busy running frantically away from wild tigers in the distance, your guide with his silent, instinctual knowledge of the landscape.

African safari hunting is really a terrific game, one which brings back the best days of the empire. There is just no substitute, as far as I am concerned.