Travel content creator and vlogger Popi Sibiya does not shy away from exploring African countries and visiting places solo, where everyone is a stranger. 

The 28-year-old is known on TikTok for taking her viewers across the continent through her camera lens, documenting her experience on every road journey she takes. 

Sibiya said she started in 2017 after she bought a car, and her colleague advised her to drive anywhere she wanted to. Her first official trip was in Pilanesberg National Park in North West, where she said she experienced a game drive with her own vehicle and fell in love with it.

She then decided to travel to neighbouring countries such as Lesotho, eSwatini and Mozambique, where she was officially bitten by the travel bug.

Does travelling interfere with your daily job? 

No, it has never messed up with my job because I take leave and travel on weekends most of the time. I work as a full-time content creator and business analyst, but I studied electrical engineering and I have also taught English in China.  

What has been your best travelling experience so far? 

There is a place called the Floating Village of Ganvie in Benin-Republic. I found it fascinating that the houses were built in water. No-one has a car there because everyone owns a boat that helps them get by. The children row their own boats to even go to school or go to buy at a market. The people who are selling at the market are also sitting in their own boats. There is no land at all. I had to also learn how to row. I thought to myself that I cannot be the only person who does not know how to do it.

Which country do you feel has the friendliest people? 

I would say it is Nigeria. The people there are so kind and hospitable. Africans are known for being well-mannered, we have a lot of Ubuntu, but I have to say Nigerians took it to a whole new level. I stayed there for about two weeks, which was this year in September. I had never seen anything like it. 

What would you say is the nicest food you’ve tasted outside SA? 

I had a dish called saka saka; I ate it in Congo at Brazzaville. It typically incorporates fresh cassava leaves that are ground and combined with palm oil or palm butter, onions, garlic, peppers, okra, or other additions such as dry fish, meat, ground peanuts, peanut butter, or other greens such as spinach or collards. I absolutely love it.

How did you communicate with people in different countries and handled language barriers? 

I use a translator quite a lot. I have had experience mostly with Portuguese and French. I do this to get accustomed to the language. I have spent three months in central African countries, and I had to start speaking these languages. It’s broken language and it gets me around the area. I also try a bit of sign language to ask people for help or what I might be looking for. I prefer to learn languages haphazardly and naturally.  

What is the item you cannot travel without that you find useful?  

I always travel with a mosquito repellent spray. These countries are tropical and there are a lot those.

What are you hoping to achieve through your travels? 

I want to show people that Africa is safe and worthy of being in their bucket lists because our continent is a destination. I want to open Africa to the world, tell a different narrative. It’s safe and worth spending money on. 

What was your biggest cultural shock? 

People out there are very conservative in how they dress. No matter how hot Africa is, people cover up and hardly wear shorts and crop tops. Also, when you are in a public place eating, strangers who pass always say “bon appétit” and I felt disturbed because you must respond by saying “meci”, but now I feel offended when no-one says it to me.