Blogs from Antananarivo, Madagascar, Africa

After Baobab Avenue, we drove about an hour toward Morondava, a coastal town where we would stay the night. We made a stop at the local pharmacy in town - most of us had gotten sick at some point by the end of the trip. The town was bustling, and we turned on a beach front road where dozens of small hotels were located. We finally pulled into the Hotel Sun Beach and determined which rooms were which. I got the nice end room - and we had A/C!! For the first time all week! I almost did not want to leave my cool room, but I made my way to the hotel bar where I met up with Nolavy, ordered spaghetti Bolognese and a beer before heading off to bed. The next morning, I woke ... read more

Monday 12 March – Back to Tana The airport of Antsiranana (Diego) was basic with simple facilities. After leaving our hotel at 6.30am we waited about an hour before boarding at 8.30am and arrived in Tana on time after the 1.75 hour flight with Air Madagascar. A different driver was waiting for us at the airport and drove us to Hotel Mellis, the 3rd time we had stayed there. It’s a great hotel and very central. We went to the markets to buy some avocado and fruit for a light lunch. It was fun bartering with stall holders who couldn’t speak English and we certainly couldn’t speak Malagasy or French. The market was packed as usual and one needed to watch for pick-pockets as they are rife in this city market place. We then decided to ... read more

Adam & I are climbing Mt Kilimanjaro from 30 January to 6 February, departing Brisbane at 10.30pm on 27 January 2018. Pam will fly to Johannesburg on 7 February to meet Tom to go on the Sth Africa, Swaziland, Mozambique Tour 7-24 February; Madagascar 17-Day Tour 24 February 2018. It will be great to be back in Africa.... read more

Geo: -18.9154, 47.52... read more

Geo: -18.9154, 47.52Arrival on Kenya Airways late..very late night (2AM) at luxury Tana airport...Luckily on the plane I was sitting next to an important guy...he is the president of the red cross in Madagascar and offered me a luxury ride to my hotel through the early morning of the dangerous capital...Don't worry...Yes, it's tagged as being dangerous and I do believe it is during the night...This time around I have already decided prior to my arrival to make this trip an individual and adventurous ride...These two words are the usual tag of my entire life...I am in fact a risk-taker and love to be by myself, making a single decision not depend on others.I decided to buy a motorbike this time around and do a very interesting, daring ride through the extreme bandit ridden wild south ... read more