Forget Maui, I'm going to Africa!

So lately I've been thinking about my next adventure. Where can I go to get away for a while and find myself again? Right now I feel quite balanced and happy but just in case things go topsy turvey again, I want a safety net.
Earlier this week, I had almost booked a trip for Maui from the 12th of May to the 23rd. This would be during the break between level 400 and 500. There was a seat sale for $389 (as opposed to $600-700). I kept trying to book my flight and for some reason it would work. Either the site would crash (it was down for 1/2 the day) or it would send me back to start. Finally after trying for quite a few hours. I decided that this must be the universe telling me that this might not be the right thing right now. I had mentioned this to my best friend Maggie and she was interested but had to look into one of her programs to see if she can get away during that time. She hasn't gotten back to me. So maybe Maui wasn't meant to be. Maui would have been the safe choice being I've been there twice in the past two years.
Ever since I met Donna a few months ago, I've been reading her blog - Life, the Universe and Donna. She's just come back from Africa and while she was there she did some volunteering with African Impact. I took a quick glimpse at the web site and some of the volunteering experiences that they offer have really peaked my interest. Ever since I came back from Australia, I've always wanted to go to Africa. While in Oz, I met some really fantastic people. A lot of people who'd travelled the world and most of them said that Africa was their favorite place. As my grad gift to myself, I am going to go travelling. It's been a toss up between New Zealand, Europe (buying a van and spending 3 months there) and Africa. I think Africa will be the one. I don't know where I'll be able to find the money to go (could cost up to 10k CDN) but I am ready to eat sandwich lunches for the next year and a half.