Monthly Archives: February 2024

The island nation of Cape Verde off the West African coast has been a popular winter getaway for European tourists for decades.  Now residents of Houston and other Americans from across the country have also begun discovering the tropical archipelago in recent years, with the United States ranking as one of the country’s top 10 sources of visitors.  The nation also leads West African countries in tourism per capita.

Cape Verde (officially the Republic of Cabo Verde) consists of 10 volcanic islands covering more than 1,500 square miles in the Atlantic Ocean.  The archipelago was uninhabited until Portuguese explorers discovered it and made it the first European settlement in the tropics.  Centrally located west of Senegal, Cape Verde emerged as an economic center during the Colonial-era slave trade.  The republic achieved independence from Portugal in 1975.

The East African nation of Malawi has gained new attention as an emerging tourist destination for residents of the Phoenix area.  Known as the “Warm Heart of Africa”, the landlocked country lies in the Great Rift Valley and borders Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia.  According to The New York Times, “Most tourists come to Malawi to go on safaris among bulbous baobabs in Liwonde National Park or sunbathe on the sparkling yellow beaches of Lake Malawi, which stretches for two-thirds of the country’s length.” (https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/15/travel/rock-climbing-malawi.html). 

During the Victorian Era, missionary Dr. David Livingstone led expeditions throughout Malawi and Central Africa.  After decades as the British protectorate of Nyasaland, the Republic of Malawi became an independent nation in the mid-1960s.  English remains the official language of Malawi and almost 90 percent of its residents are Christian.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) – the second largest country in Africa and fourth most populous – offers Raleigh tourists and business travelers a range of natural tropical settings, unique wildlife, and cultural diversions not found in other parts of the continent.  From the mountain gorillas in the rainforest along the Congo River to its active mountain volcanoes, the DRC is one of a kind.

Formerly known as Zaire, the DRC (also referred to as Congo-Kinshasa) covers more than 2.3 million square miles—roughly the size of Western Europe.  It borders Angola, Burundi, the Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia, as well as the South Atlantic Ocean.  With more than 96 million residents, the Central African nation is also the largest French-speaking country in the world.

Omaha, the most populous city in Nebraska with more than 488,000 residents, is one of the largest cities in the American Midwest.  Greater Omaha – which includes neighboring Council Bluffs, Iowa (across the Missouri River) and other cities within a 50-mile radius – is home to some 1.5 million people.  The city is known best by many Chinese for being the home of global investor Warren Buffett, the “Oracle of Omaha”, and his Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate.  Berkshire is one of four Fortune 500 companies headquartered here, along with Mutual of Omaha, Union Pacific Railroad, and construction firm Peter Kiewit Sons.  Fortune 1000 companies based in Omaha include TD Ameritrade, Werner (logistics), Green Plains (ethanol), and metals manufacturer Valmont Industries.  Other major employers include Omaha Steaks, CHI Health, the Gallup Organization, Offutt Air Force Base, and the University of Nebraska Medical Center.  The services industry accounts for about 40 percent of Omaha’s jobs.  Other key sectors include agribusiness, finance, defense, manufacturing, and trade and transportation. 

China remains an important trade partner for companies in the Greater Omaha region, ranking second for imports and fourth for exports.  Top exports to China include beef, soybeans, corn, pork, wheat, ethanol, and livestock feed.  Berkshire Hathaway is also a major investor in China, with significant stakes in e-commerce giant Alibaba, Younhui Superstores, and BYD -- which recently surpassed Tesla as the world’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer.  A number of its U.S.-based companies also operate in China.  For example, Berkshire’s International Dairy Queen subsidiary has more than 1,000 DQ restaurants in mainland China and plans to open 600 more by 2034.

The north-central African nation of Chad is not a common destination for casual tourists from the Salt Lake City area -- even with considerable natural attractions and cultural treasures. “Despite being one of the poorest countries in the world, Chad is home to a variety of ecosystems, ranging from deserts to savannas to wetlands, making it a treasure trove for nature lovers ,” according to the travel site Mister Story (https://www.misterstory.com/p/discovering-the-natural-wonders-of-chad-a-journey-through-its-diverse-ecosystems/). “Chad is a country with a rich and diverse natural landscape that is waiting to be discovered.”

The Republic of Chad is the fifth-largest country by size in Africa yet ranks 18^th in population at 18.3 million.  The landlocked nation is bordered by Cameroon, the Central African Republic,  Libya, Nigeria, Niger, and Sudan.  The country is home to some 200 ethnic and linguistic groups.  Its official languages are Arabic and French, while the main religions are Islam (55%) and Christianity (41%).  Conquered by France in 1920 and merged into the colony of French Equatorial Africa colony, Chad gained its independence in 1960.

The small East African nation of Djibouti is an uncommon leisure travel destination for residents of Detroit.  The smallest and least-populated nation in Africa (population 1.1 million) is known mainly for its strategic military and geopolitical importance.  However, the multi-ethnic and multi-lingual country has welcomed foreign travelers for centuries with its warm hospitality and diverse natural features.

“Nestled in the Horn of Africa, Djibouti is a little piece of heaven for nature and history lovers, food enthusiasts, and anyone intrigued by the ethnic composition of this tiny land inhabited since the Neolithic Age.,” according to a profile on the Culture Trip website (https://theculturetrip.com/africa/djibouti/articles/12-reasons-why-you-should-visit-djibouti-at-least-once-in-your-lifetime ). “Djibouti is home to three ethnic groups that live side by side in harmony and peace.  Somali, Afar and Arabs have been coexisting together here since the Ifat Sultanate that dates back to the 12th century.”

While Uzbekistan is likely off the radar for most Oklahoma City area residents who are considering international travel, the country is considered the most popular tourist destination in Central Asia and is famous for its cultural sites, architectural treasures, and outdoor activities.  Many of its cities were important stops on the Great Silk Road, the vast caravan trade routes that linked Eastern and Western civilizations from 200 B.C. through the Middle Ages.  Recently, the World Tourism Organization opened its Silk Road Office in Samarkand in coordination with international efforts to promote Silk Road tourism throughout the region.  The city was selected as the 2023 World Tourism Capital by the UN World Tourism Organization. 

The Republic of Uzbekistan was formed in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union, ending more than 100 years of Russian rule.  Landlocked Uzbekistan is the most populous country in Central Asia with more than 34.5 million people.  Uzbeks make up 80% of a population that also includes Russians and Tartars.  Muslims make up 95% of its citizens, while the Uzbek and Russian languages are the most commonly spoken.

Tourists have begun returning to the African nation of Gabon as the country once again welcomes visitors following the COVID pandemic.  Located on the equator bordering Central Africa’s Atlantic coast, Gabon allows travelers to explore the broad savannahs, dense rainforests, mountain ranges, thundering waterfalls, and coastal plains of the Congo basin.  The nation is home to some of the most diverse flora and fauna in the world, including gorillas, chimpanzees, hippos, elephants, humpback whales, and more than 400 species of trees.   

While Gabon is not a common destination for the average American tourists, the country has been of interest recently among those in San Francisco who work for nonprofit organizations involved in environmental protection.  Gabon is the first country in Africa to get paid by international organizations for protecting its forests.  90% of Gabon is covered in dense forests, creating an excellent opportunity for the exportation of timber to industrialized countries that require this commodity to manufacture building materials, furniture, paper products and other consumer goods.  However, Gabon also has an opportunity to protect these forests and use the unharvested land as a product that can be sold as “carbon credits” to wealthier nations (these forests help absorb carbon and therefore have value in the marketplace for those countries needing to offset their “carbon footprint” by purchasing carbon credits).  This mechanism for trading carbon has been developed under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

The Republic of Mali -- a landlocked former French colony in West Africa -- is better known today for its continued civil strife than as a tourist destination.  The U.S., British, and other governments recommend citizens do not travel to Mali because the risks of crime, kidnapping, and terrorism remain high.  While civil unrest has closed some popular tourist destinations to the public, many other attractions remain open for cautious, adventurous travelers from the Houston area.

Mali is one of the most remote countries in the world and one of the hottest.  Covering 480,000 square miles, the country stretches from the middle of the Sahara Desert in the north to the more heavily populated Sudanian Savanna to the south.  Drained by the Niger and Senegal rivers, the remote country offers travelers cultural treasures, desert sand dunes, rolling plains, tropical savannahs, and woodlands.  Mali’s largest metropolitan area, the capital city of Bamako, offers a more Westernized alternative to the traditional villages found across the country.  

The West African nation of Burkina Faso – “the land of upright people” – is hardly a mainstream travel destination for people living in the Minneapolis area, with its harsh desert climate, lack of infrastructure, and continuing travel advisories (https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/burkina-faso-travel-advisory.html).

“Yet Burkina Faso remains an enthralling destination for intrepid travelers, thanks to its wonderful inhabitants and dramatic landscapes,” according to World Travel Guide (https://www.worldtravelguide.net/guides/africa/burkina-faso/). “As such, the country, though not frequently visited, is a fine place in which to immerse yourself in African culture.” Burkina Faso claims to be one of the friendliest countries on the continent, the report continued. “Burkinabe, as the people of Burkina Faso are known, are the exact opposite of the harsh land that they inhabit – and it is these cordial and courteous people who make it such a joy to come here.”

Landlocked Burkina Faso, located south of the Sahara Desert, is bordered by Mali, Niger, Benin, Togo, Ghana, and the Ivory Coast.  Formerly known as Upper Volta, Burkina Faso’s official language is French, reflecting its history as a self-governing section of French West Africa before gaining independence in 1960.  However, the country has suffered political instability, coups, droughts, famines, and terrorist violence in the decades since then.