Madagascar Trip June 2008

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One word to describe what i felt is : Wow !
Madagascar got me in my mind and heart.

My trip was too short but it was what i could manage, too many responsibilities ! I spent only ten days in Mada but already thinking of another trip there soon.

So i started on the 8th June and landed in Tana the same day. Tana is short for Antananarivo, the bustling capital of Madagascar. Weather was quite cool as Tana is around 1300 metres above sea level. I had already booked a room for my first night in a cosy guest house : the Tana-Jacaranda. Tana is amazing with its old cars, 2 CV Citroen, Renault 4L and even antique Peugeot 204 and 403 !!! As Tana is on the heights and there are multiple hills, walking around is very scenic with stairs and small alleys everywhere. But there is so much poverty ! Small children begging everywhere, children working and sleeping on the pavements. Street vendors are kings. They are mostly in the Isoutry area and paralell the Independance Avenue where the former Zoma (market) was. Eating out is also another adventure.

So i explored Tana thoroughly, walking around the Anosy lake and going till 67 Hectares, a suburb of Tana. The Rova (Queen's Palace), actually under renovation, is a good spot for views over Tana but beware of the touts there wanting to take you sight seeing. I would not recommend going with them. After Tana I decided to go to Toamasina (Tamatave). Its a port city at around 300 kilometres drive from Ambodivona (the taxi-brousse station). I booked my seat a day before just to be assured that i have a front seat. The trip is around 7 hours and many stops.

When we finally reached Tamatave it was already afternoon and i took a pousse-pousse to the city centre. A pousse-pousse can either be cycle pulled or human pulled. They are banned in Tana but still in use in other cities and villages. A cyclo pousse is the equal of a Bangladeshi rickshaw. So as the taxi-brousse station is out of town, i hired a cyclo pousse and went there. Walked around and looked for a guest house. I found the Hotel Sindbad to be quite ok with affordable price and checked in there.

Tamatave is calm and large with large avenues but many pot holes ! I walked along the beach and shot loads of photos, some of them uploaded here and the others on my msn space. See there for the other pics. So Sunday morning i went to the taxi-brousse station again to buy my ticket for the next day. This time i bought the two front seats so that i will sit more comfortably. Monday morning we departed at 11:00 instead of the scheduled 09:00 and made the 8 hours trip back to Tana. Reached there at night and taxied to a cosy hotel in Isoutry. Stayed my last two days there, buying some souvenirs and meeting some local people.

Finally flew home on 18th June, Wednesday night, and still dreaming of Madagascar ...

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Photos

View from the Rova
A view of Tana with the Anosy lake and the stadium

Near the Zoma
All along the stairs there are street vendors selling everything from food to bits of electrical wire and mobile phones !

Kids demonstrating
The Children's day against Child Labour and exploitation.

Street Kids
Sweeping the pavement to collect rice grains to cook afterwards !

Street Kids
Curious and posing for my camera.

Brikaville
En route from Tamatave to Tana, a stop for lunch.

Pousse Pousse in Tamatave
Human pulled and cyclo pousse !

Taxis
Waiting near the market to be loaded.