Misconceptions of Kenya, Alexander

Misconceptions of Kenya

by Sean Alexander

I can understand why you are curious about traveling to Kenya. A lot of people do not know much about Kenya, if they even know about Kenya at all. Most Americans do not know even know what Kenya is like or even where it. They just assume it is like every other country in Africa, so they automatically assume that it is a terrible place to go to on vacation. Kenya is an amazing country, and I can show it to you by proving the three most common misconceptions of Kenya wrong.

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            My first misconception is that Kenya is a very hot and dry desert. The truth is that Kenya’s climate and temperature varies a lot. The reason is because Kenya is a high elevated country, filled with many mountains. At its highest peak, it reaches 5,199 feet above sea level. Due to the mountains, Kenya’s climate there is always cold. In all of the mountains there, they are snow capped. Some of the mountains are even permanently snow capped. The temperatures in Kenya vary a lot. One day it can be warm, and then the next day it can be chilly and windy. There also is heavy precipitation there, between the months of April to June, and October to December. The reason for this is because it borders the Indian Ocean. If a place is located next a large body of water, it will get a large amount of precipitation. One important facts about deserts, are that they are always dry and do not get much precipitation at all. Because Kenya gets lots of precipitation, it can’t be classified as a desert. Most people think it is hot because it is located between 4 degrees South, and 4 degrees North, so it is right on the equator. If something is on the equator, then it will be warm year round, without much change to. Kenya is not a hot and dry desert.

            My second misconception is that Kenya is a dangerous and violent place to go. Most of the people think that not only Kenya, but most of Africa is an extremely brutal place. The reason they think that is because the only big news that comes out of Kenya is always very negative. The news is always about wars, pirates, revolutions, and most recently, child soldiers, which will definitely shock the world and scare away tourists. No one ever hears about the good things that happen here. Any good news that comes out of another country that Americans would hear about would have to be something huge and life changing. There is nothing like that that comes out of Kenya, so were stuck with the bad news all the time. It is much safer than people misconceive it to be. We think that it is filled with killers and animals. Most things are contained there. A popular thing that most people do there is going on safaris. Safaris can be extremely dangerous. If that is one of the most popular things to do there, then it is safe. Also, as you will find out in the next paragraph, people in Kenya love Americans. They think we are one of the richest countries in the world, so they admire us for that. No one there would want to harm you there. You will be perfectly fine traveling to Kenya.

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            My final misconception is that Kenya is dirt poor. This is a very common misconception, considering that when most Americans think that every country in Africa is filled with poor people and starving children. People thought that they did not have any toilets, that they lived in trees, and that they had to eat bugs to survive. All these misconceptions are huge lies. People can afford their own toilets, eat normal, healthy foods, and live in nice houses. Americans even think that they do not have cars, so they have to walk or ride a bicycle.  They have cars and even busses. The only reason that Kenya is not a fully developed country is because its economy is currently messed up. The money there is not balanced and distributed well. If its economy was to balance, Kenya would be one of the wealthiest countries in Africa. That proves that Kenya is not a dirt poor country.

When you travel to Kenya, you should not have to worry at all. They really like America, so you will feel welcome right away. The two official languages are Swahili and believe it or not, English. That means we could easily communicate with them, because we speak the same languages as them. The main religions are Protestant and Roman Catholic, which are two of the most common religions in America. They also admire Americans. They think we are one of the richest countries in the entire world, and they like us for that. We also have not gotten into any major wars or disputes with Kenya either, so they do not have any reason to dislike us. You should not have to worry about going to Kenya, because they like us as a country.

Kenya is a very beautiful country. Kenya is not a hot desert, due to its climate and mountainous region.  It is also not a violent and brutal place because the people there will not want to hurt you because you are American. Kenya is not really that poor, either. People think it is so poor, that they have to resort to living in trees or huts, and eating bugs and other strange foods to survive. They live in normal houses and have plenty of healthy, delicious foods. You will be welcomed a lot better there than you would be in most of the other countries, because they admire Americans for our wealth and because we have never had any problems with them.  Kenya would be a very safe and smart place to go to on a vacation. Kenya is one of the best countries in Africa, and if you go, you will definitely find out why it is.