Rooots & Routes

In June 2021, I set out on a road trip to learn, examine, and document how COVID-19 has affected the tourism, hospitality, and creative industries in Africa. My target was to visit 25 countries, but I ended up visiting 10 countries in just over 1,000 days. This is a visual diary of the journey.

Why Travel Africa

When I started thinking and planning on travelling Southern Africa to onboard suppliers for a project we were working on, COVID-19 struck and life as we know it changed forever. At a crossroads of uncertainty, and with no plan, business, or money I decided to take a leap of faith and travel to these suppliers with the aim to:

Witness the impact of COVID-19 on creatives, crafters, micro, small, and medium enterprises in the tourism, hospitality, and creative sectors.

Uncover investment opportunities and showcase the pathways for careers, and learnerships within the fields of tourism, hospitality, and the creative economy.

Capture the experience of remote work across visa-free African destinations, offering insights into diverse work environments and cultures.

Comprehend the demographics of current travelers in the destinations I visit and their preferences, shedding light on their travel experiences.

Explore how social content is aiding artists, tourism businesses, and hospitality stakeholders in engaging consumers throughout their purchasing process.

Where I Did I Go?

One of the things I loved about this journey is that each destination has been completely unique, with its own traditions, vibes, and typography. So naturally it was difficult to decide which destination I will be visiting next. My decision-making process of where to go over time came down to a couple of things; COVID-19, Entry and visa requirements, the logistics of getting around, how much cash I have, the opportunity for collaborations, work, people, and of course, food.

I took pictures as I travelled, and documented the stories of people, buildings, traffic, and all the things in between that make up the daily lives of the places that I visited.

Who Did I Talk To?

every day I talked to people and listened to stories, and sounds to get a better understanding of how they are navigating their lives amid the COVID-19 pandemic. sometimes I recorded these and shared them.

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently asked question

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