"Manahoana"
It seems here in North America, Madagascar is primarily known because of the animated movie of the same name. That movie introduced a lot of people to Lemurs. Two months of travel around Madagascar introduced us to a lot of lemurs as well. At times it was an up close and personal experience. Madagascar is an amazing delightful country, made all the more so because we were able to visit, one of my sisters, who lives there.
Madagascar lies about 250 miles off the East Coast of Africa, the Mozambique Channel on its West Coast and the Indian Ocean on its East. It is the fourth largest island in the world. Larger than England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales put together.
Madagascar lies about 250 miles off the East Coast of Africa, the Mozambique Channel on its West Coast and the Indian Ocean on its East. It is the fourth largest island in the world. Larger than England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales put together.
Known as the "Great Red Island" (due to its predominately red soil), Madagascar is the oldest island on earth. Its natural history, flora and fauna are unique. There are over 200,000 species on the island living in habitats ranging from rainforests to deserts and from mountain tops (where they do get some snow in the Winter) to mangrove swamps. Eight whole plant families exist only on Madagascar, as do close to 1,000 Orchid species, many thousands of succulents, countless insects, at least 350 species of frogs, around 370 kinds of reptiles, five families of birds and almost 200 different mammals.
"Madagascar has been designated a Biodiversity Hotspot by Conservation International and as hotspots go, Madagascar is considered one of the hottest. Biodiversity hotspots cover less than 1% of the earth's surface, yet are home to well over half of its plant and animal species."
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We spent 4 weeks traveling the Southern half of the island:
- Hiked slipping and sliding through rainforests on the lookout for lemurs. 
- Explored Baobob and Spiny forest, where it may not rain for 2 years and trekked in arid deserts reminiscent of the US Southwest.
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- Couldn't miss the coastal communities where they build sailing vessels exactly as they were instructed over 200 years ago.
- Climbed 150 meters up the limestone pinnacles of the Grand Tsingy National Reserve, a World Heritage Site.
- Paddled down the crocodile infested Manombolo River in a tiny pirogue (fortunately the crocs were sleeping). 
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- Followed winding roads through the Central Highlands, Madagascar's "rice basket", where almost every available arable plot of land, flat or up a mountainside is covered with rice paddies.
Most of our travels were in regions where the infrastructure is non existent, our 4x4 followed zebu cart paths, dry riverbeds, rice paddies and flood plains where we successfully avoided the quick sand.
The villages we encountered were comprised of subsistence farmers and zebu herders seemingly about a step and a half ahead of hunter gatherers - no running water, no sanitation, no electricity, no postal service and often no schools. In many areas these folks rarely saw foreigners and the cries of the children yelling "Vazaha" followed us through these remote regions.
* Vazaha - a general all purpose name given to any white foreigner
The villages we encountered were comprised of subsistence farmers and zebu herders seemingly about a step and a half ahead of hunter gatherers - no running water, no sanitation, no electricity, no postal service and often no schools. In many areas these folks rarely saw foreigners and the cries of the children yelling "Vazaha" followed us through these remote regions.
* Vazaha - a general all purpose name given to any white foreigner
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We spent 4 weeks in, Antananarivo, the capital of Madagascar. Like the rest of Madagascar it was a very comfortable place to be. In fact, Madagascar is the easiest Third World country we've ever been in and that is directly attributable to the people.
The Malagasy are a mix of Indonesian, Malaysian, Polynesian, African with a little Arab and East Indian. There are 18 ethnic groups on the island and they reside mostly in specific regions. The people are friendly and fairly easy going. Even the street vendors will stop pressing their sales after a few misaotra's. Misaotra, in Malagasy, means no thank you and thank you. |
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With its brightly colored houses stacked up and down the hillsides, their walls draped with magenta and gold bougainvillaea, the boulevards lined with Jacaranda trees dripping blue flowers, Antananarivo or Tana (as the locals call it), is a very enchanting sight. This is especially true in the late afternoon and early evening when the honeyed light makes everything glow. Madagascar is also one of the poorest countries in the world. When you look closer at the city, the poverty is quite evident and the capital like most of Madagascar's cities has that classic Third World dishevelment. What's really interesting is that both of these images exist side by side with equal weight in our memories.
Viewed from the top of one of Tana's hills the wide green ribbons of land winding through the city appear to be parks but aren't! They're rice paddies! And you never know when you'll turn a cornor and find yourself face to face with a Zebu. All of this right in the middle of the city!
The streets in the capital seem to have been laid out by a wandering Zebu. The avenues and boulevards do have names but no one knows them. It's a great place to get exercise as the city is nothing but hills. If you tire of walking there are always the fleet of 1960's tiny Peugeout, Renault and Citroen taxis. The 2 cylinder jobs often couldn't make it up the final hill to my sister's home.
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The climate, while we were there, was wonderful. We arrived at the beginning of their Spring - south of the equator their seasons are opposite ours. At 5,000 feet Tana doesn't have the humidity or heat of the coast and there are plenty of breezes in the evenings. We actually needed sweaters while we were there.
The Malagasy are masters at recycling everything. Nothing illustrates this better than their re-use of the 1.5 liter water bottle. Fuel is expensive and most taxi drivers rent their vehicles. No one wants to fill the tank up for someone else's use and so the water bottle becomes a portable gas tank. Taxis have a spot under the hood where they can route the fuel line to the bottle. They often carry their extra, full, bottle next to the passenger seat. Taxi drivers also know how to squeeze the last mile from a liter of fuel. Whenever they go downhill they turn off the engine and coast until the car slows down and then they start the engine up again. It's a little disconcerting at first but like most things in the Third World, if you're there long enough, it's just the way of life.
We have many mad, mad, mad Madagascar tales to tell, but for now we'd like to share just one very special memory with you. Ambositra is a picturesque town with a long and wide artistic streak. The local artisans are considered to be the woodworking masters of Madagascar and the Benedictine nuns make the finest goat cheese in the country. Ambositra also has an incredibly rich musical tradition. Their music is complex and layered, their vocalizations hauntingly beautiful.
We have many mad, mad, mad Madagascar tales to tell, but for now we'd like to share just one very special memory with you. Ambositra is a picturesque town with a long and wide artistic streak. The local artisans are considered to be the woodworking masters of Madagascar and the Benedictine nuns make the finest goat cheese in the country. Ambositra also has an incredibly rich musical tradition. Their music is complex and layered, their vocalizations hauntingly beautiful.
During dinner at our hotel, L'Artisan, two musicians arrived, one with a local stringed instrument (the Valiha), the second musician with a variation of conga drum. The Valiha is a long bamboo tube with strings running over its length and around its circumference. Fifteen minutes into the performance, our waitress began to sing along with the musicians. In moments another waitress joined in, then another and finally all the locals in the restaurant began singing along. The sheer joy with which they sang and the beauty of their voices kept us entranced long after the desert dishes were cleared away. We were the last of the tourists to leave, yet the musicians continued to play and the locals to sing. The restaurant was below our room and for several hours the music wafted upwards through our windows.
"For every difference that makes us unique, there is a common thread which connects us all. We share the need for home and community, for love and respect. May we always remember our common threads."