Myth 1: Africa is always hot and one big desert

While Africa is home to the Sahara, the third largest desert in the world (about the size of the United States), that is only 10 percent of all of Africa. Africa is also home to the Serengeti, which is a large plains area that is home to a variety of animals. Temperatures in parts of Africa can rise to up to 136 degrees Fahrenheit (this is record setting) the average is between 90 and 95 degrees Fahrenheit. However, there have been recorded temperatures of -11 degrees Fahrenheit.

Myth 2: Africa is one country that is not very big or diverse

The continent of Africa contains 54 internationally recognized individual countries. It is 11,730,000 sq miles and is second in size only to Asia. The US, China, Japan, UK, India, all of Eastern Europe, and most of Western Europe can fit in Africa with room to spare. It is estimated that Africa is home to 1,250 to 3,000 native languages. This doesn't include the number of languages of European and Middle Eastern origin. The African people consist of at least 3,000 ethnic groups.

Myth 3: Africa is lacking innovation and modern technology

In a 2015 study, it was found that 89 percent of American adults own cellphones. This number was compared to a number of African countries. In South Africa 89 percent of adults owned cellphones. Ghana 83 percent; Kenya 82 percent; Tanzania 73 percent; Uganda 65 percent. In my time in Kenya, I lived in a small town 45 minutes outside of Nairobi and there were phone shops on every single block and at least one in each mall. In Kenya, finding internet cafes wasn't very difficult. In my small town, I lived across the street from a restaurant that offered free Wifi and in Nairobi a lot of people had personal Wifi as well as free Wifi at the mall.

Myth 4: Everyone in Africa is poor and disease-ridden

While Africa does have a very high poverty rate, there are also many people who live comfortable or even luxurious lifestyles. Most of the poverty in African countries is found in rural areas, much like the United States. Due to the high rate of poverty and HIV/AIDS in Africa, they have a much higher rate of disease. That being said, there are many, many healthy people in Africa. The American media broadcasts a lot of the very dangerous and deadly diseases in Africa, giving the perception of a very sickly continent.

Myth 5: It is unsafe to visit Africa because of corruption and war

I will personally say that there are very safe places in Africa. While in Kenya, I felt safer than in parts of the U.S. Like any other places, there are safe and unsafe places of Africa. The amount of security in many countries makes them safer than America and Americans perceive them to be. Less than a 1/3 of African countries are at war or in post-war conflict. It is estimated corruption cost about $3 billion per country per year in Africa. The University of Illinois at Chicago estimates that corruption costs the state of Illinois $500 million, assuming every state is similar this totals to $25 billion in corruption costs for the USA.

Myth 6: There aren't any arts or history in Africa

Personally, I can say the hair and clothing industry are huge in places like Kenya. Nigeria's Nollywood produces the second largest amount of movies per year, behind Bollywood. Jewelry making is a huge source of income for many women. especially in the tribal and poorer communities. Africa also offers a large variety of music and dance spanning from tribal traditions to modern pop. Africa is thought of as merely being the home of the Ancient Egyptian and Carthaginian empires which had a major impact on its history but there is more. Africa is thought to be the starting point of human civilization and comes with a rich and diverse history. However, much of it is unwritten and is either passed by word of mouth or has become lost.

Myth 7: African men always carry machine guns

This is mostly an American media perpetuated stereotype. The only people in Kenya I ever saw with guns were the police and military. Unlike the U.S., I never saw a civilian carrying a gun.

Myth 8: Everyone in Africa lives in a mud house in the middle of nowhere

While I did visit some mud houses in the middle of nowhere, we had to drive five hours away from Nairobi to get to them. I stayed in both a house and an apartment and other than rural tribal communities, never saw a mud house. Just under 7 percent of all of Kenya's population live in the city of Nairobi, this does not include the surrounding suburbs.

Myth 9: Women are repressed

Traditionally women were held in very high esteem in many African tribal cultures. Sexism still exists in Africa but it still exists in America too. About 17 of the 54 African countries have had female heads of state and many more have had females in a position to the vice president position. The United States has had zero females heads of state and zero female vice presidents.

Myth 10: Everyone practices voodoo

Most Africans practice Islam or Christianity. Traditional African religions (which are separate from voodoo) are third after those two. Voodoo is thought of as a combination of African, Catholic, and Native American traditions and there is no accurate count to who practices voodoo and where the live.

Myth 11: Everyone owns a pet [insert Savannah-dwelling animal]

Wild animals are not everywhere in Africa. In cities, you are most likely to see monkeys which are comparable to small rodents or raccoons in the United States and nobody owns them. Many Africans do not have any pets because of the costs of having pets.