One of the main questions I have received is, why have I chosen Africa? surely it would be safer to go to Asia or the Americas. And a good question considering that we rarely see positive information about Africa. People are either dying of an epidemic, or being exploited, or at each others throats about money or some ancient grudge. Put that way, I don’t think I would much want to spend time in Africa either.
I do have insight, however, as I was born in Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia), and lived there until I was 11 years old before my parents moved to the UK. I have visited Zimbabwe, South Africa and Mozambique since, however, after 30 years of european indoctrination, I can safely say that I am very much a Brit. What hasn’t left me though, is that insight into the continent that very few people get to see unless they stay an extended period of time.
People in Africa are generally no different from any other place on the planet. You will find good people and bad people in equal measure (what ever your parameter of measurement) to the rest of the world. However, that said, the bad can be really bad very quickly and for this reason, it is not a continent I would recommend to anyone who wants to travel nomadically off the beaten track. A reasonable amount of travel experience is necessary to be able to anticipate situations, and be savvy on how to deal with them appropriately should the need arise. Even with my history, we will still be doing expedition training with Trail Quest so we are well versed before we set off.
What is undoubtedly true about Africa though, is that who ever goes, in what ever 
capacity, ends up falling in love with it. It is to great credit to the people who live there that this happens and for no other reason. So my question would be, why anywhere else?
It helps that I know people out there, and this is important and what really makes Africa
stand out for me, because when you are travelling with autism, having back up is going to be important. Sofia’s autism is argumentative and contrary, and this will wear thin for both of us, so knowing where there will be points along the way where we will be with friends and family is going to be an important aspect to getting through the trip. It will not be possible to achieve this level of support in any other part of the world, and it is critical to making the journey possible for Sofia.
We still have some way to go with fundraising – so please donate something today on our GofundMe page – http://www.gofundme.com/africawithautism
Sponsors:
AdventureWithAutism 