17 Fun ‘Maps’ of Africa (and we love the last 15!)
Photographer Mirella Ricciardi once said “when you have been born in Africa you are marked by Africa and wherever you go, you are a displaced person, for you have two identities.” It is true of many South African expats. No matter where they are or how long they have lived in their newly adopted country, they will […]
Photographer Mirella Ricciardi once said “when you have been born in Africa you are marked by Africa and wherever you go, you are a displaced person, for you have two identities.” It is true of many South African expats. No matter where they are or how long they have lived in their newly adopted country, they will often long for and dream of Africa…
And sometimes…quite unexpectedly…they will see the shape of Africa where others may not have noticed it – in a coffee cup, on a plate of food, on the path ahead of them – and their soul will smile and their heart will skip a beat…and in that moment they will feel instantly connected to the continent they continue to cherish (sometimes even more than when they lived there).
It seems when we’re out of Africa, Africa appears out of nowhere!
17 Memorable Portraits of Africa…
1. So this is how many (but not all) foreigners view Africa…
2. Some (a few) even confuse the Africa of today with the Africa of the past…
3. But for those of us born in Africa, we see the real Africa, the place we call home:
4. And sometimes we yearn for it so much than when our coffee cup looks like this in the morning, we take it as a sign that it’s time to pack our bags and move home.
Marco Bruzzo lives “six months in Italy and six months in South Africa. Now I’m ready to fly back to Jo’burg as my Cappuccino cup is telling me so…”
5. It’s there from the moment we wake up…
Sharon White Corsar started her day – totally unexpectedly – with this lovely vision on her breakfast cracker…
6. And it’s there at the end of a long day…
Alan Rudnicki discovered this African steak on his plate. (And he’s not even an expat! But he is passionate about his country.)
7. And sometimes, when we’re trying so hard to make it through the day…suddenly there it is on our path, transforming even a pothole into something beautiful to brighten our spirits…
Dale Goss and her daughter “came across this small pothole in Wiltshire” in the United Kingdom.
8. Africa even appears to us when we step off the beaten track, as if waiting to be seen and noticed…
Chantal Bell’s daughter found this Africa-shaped stone on the beach in Cornwall.
9. Because Africa is under our skin
Anmar Odendal in the UK has Africa tattooed on her heart and on her skin.
10. It is in our DNA…
We see Africa everywhere because Africa lives in us. As Kwame Nkrumah says “I am not African because I was born in Africa but because Africa was born in me.”
11. You can take us out of Africa, but you can’t take Africa out of us…
And it applies to our food too. Show us an Ouma rusk, Mrs Balls chutney…or a piece of biltong, like the one Bruce Lauderdale’s son found in the UK…and you are showing us Africa.
12. And if we don’t happen across Africa by accident…there’s always the kindness of a stranger…
A very lovely waitress in London, who overheard Nicky Affleck’s South African accent in a restaurant, surprised her with this gift of Africa in her coffee cup.
13. If nobody is around to give us a little Africa in our coffee, then we pass this Facebook photo around.
Nobody seems to know where it started but most of us have shared it!
14. When we’re really desperate we photoshop it so we can see Africa!
15. When we visit South Africa, we go and visit maps like the Portrait of Africa in Durban.
This beaded portrait was made by 150 females of different ages, and can be seen in the foyer of the Moses Mabhida Stadium in KZN.
16. And if we’re really lucky, we even visit our country’s very own real-life Map of Africa!
The Map of Africa is about 7 km from Hoekwil in Wilderness. It has a great lookout point and fantastic views of the beaches.
17. But, of course, there’s one part of the map that remains our favourite…
Yes, it’s a thumbs up for South Africa!
