Hearty African Visit

At long last, one of my dream vacation came true last month; I already set my body in the vast African landscape. But aside from the majestic and magical sights that I've seen, I learned lessons that I thought never happens in real life. Thanks to my friend who works as a researcher-slash-biologists in a New York based company who was sent to Africa to search for clues on the would-be effects of global warming in the place. Knowing that it is my lifelong desire to visit the place, he gave me a ring on the 15th of May if I would like to join him in his research covering Tanzania tropical islands to Botswana mystical forests. Without any hesitation, I instantly agreed and immediately packed my clothes, socks, spellbooks, cloaks, and books again in my trunk, without folding them. I was really joyous about the trip that I barely slept and didn't ate supper and breakfast and due to my excitement, I was three-hour late for the scheduled departure.

Reaching Africa, we stayed in a cozy Tanzania hotel where I have to keep my window shut unless I want a croaking raven for a visitor. But the place is so beautiful that I stayed awake all night on our first day looking at the fantastic sight of various beasts and animals roaming around the place. I just notice that the temperature is so high in the place that turning on your air conditioner would not do any good. Accompanying my friend the next morning, setting off to a long journey, I realized that the rivers in the place seem like they're dehydrated, if you know what I mean. My friend with the British climate scientist who's name I can't pronounce even if I ask him to repeat it twenty times, said that global warming might cause the over reduction of river water in the continent. Without rainfall, water availability decrease can happen up to 25 percent of the whole place.

As we all know, river water is considered as a lifeblood for African people, that they would do anything to have it and kept for themselves and their families. I thought that drought in Africa only happen in hilarious movies like the Gods Must be Crazy, but then again I was proven wrong. They even said that in parts like Botswana where heat strikes the most, river water levels drop as high as 50 percent leaving a scarce source of drinking water for the residents there. I don't know if you'll consider this disgusting or disheartening, but as a matter of fact villagers opt to drink cattle urine because of the lack of water source. I just hope that the United Nations and other international organizations have the heart to address these sort of societal and health issues concerning not only villagers from Africa but as surely as people around the globe.