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Published: August 16th 2015
Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the world, and this amazing country has no rival when it comes to unique flora and fauna. Situated off the east coast of Africa, the national language Malagasy is spoken exclusively throughout the land, and Madagascar lives up to a billing as the place that time forgot. It's one thing to watch the famous animated movie and marvel over this wonderful place, but I'm delighted to fly in for a week long explore. As time is limited, I decided to base myself in Antananarivo, known as Tana to all, and so began one of the most memorable travel experiences of my life. There are some destinations that live on in the memory, and I loved Madagascar from the moment I arrived.
The journal left off in Rodrigues, at the conclusion of an enjoyable visit to this isolated island forming part of Mauritius. My friends at Air Mauritius shuttled me back to Mauritius International Airport in a propellor plane, and it was just a few hours layover before the jet took off for Tana. The flight was almost full, and in an hour and a half we touched down in what seems like another
world. Officials have streamlined visa requirements recently, and it's possible to get a visa on arrival from the friendly team. The queues got quite long, but as I was towards the front of the plane it was a pleasant surprise to have a visa stamped in my passport at no charge before baggage even arrived. The owner of Lemur Hostel arranged a driver for me, and it was great to see my name amidst all the chaos at the airport. Madagascar is one of the poorest countries in the world, so there is an inevitable dose of culture shock, as visitors take in the incredible scenes during the drive in to town. One of those shocks is the official Tana taxis, which are French cars from the 1970s but seem to go just fine.
There are people everywhere in Tana, and life and trade are conducted with energy and vibrancy on the street. There appears to be an endless line of little stalls along the streets all the way in to the city. Tana itself is big and bustling, with hilltops, cobble streets, and old Indian style buildings giving it a unique feel. I was greeted at check in
by the owner of Lemur Hostel Sarindra, and pleasantly surprised to find she is a local with a passion for travel. Her establishment is just the second hostel to open in Tana, and it's a delightful building with the best Wi-Fi on the entire trip. Importantly I met an excellent group of travellers over the course of the week, and we shared some wonderful adventures that were organised by Sarindra and her team.
The first item on our travel itinerary was a free walking tour hosted by Sarindra herself. My Israeli friend and I were pleased to explore the hilltops, churches, palaces, and markets that add flavour to this wonderful city. The views from some of the lookout points above the city are spectacular, and there are plenty of other tourists making their way to the look outs for the pristine views on offer. Perhaps the highlight was making our way through the bustling markets in the heart of the city, and to top it off Sarindra piled us in to a taxi brousse for the trip home. The minivans transport local people all around the city on a daily basis, and it was great fun to join the
throng.
The flavours of the meals and the local THB beer proved a hit to my palate from the outset, and the food did not disappoint once during a week long stay in the country. Next morning we were up early for a day long tour, and we drove out to see the King's palace after enjoying the beautiful countryside outside of Tana. Our drivers either have old Peugeots or Renaults with those weird gear shifts that you pull towards or shift away, but they really seem to go surprisingly well. We visited a second palace in the afternoon as part of the tour, but for some reason it was closed. The next day was a longer tour from Tana to see Lily's waterfall and the nearby geyser. The waterfall was stunning, and it was quite an adventure getting to the attractions, especially the last five kilometres on very sketchy dirt roads. The Israeli guy and a girl from Poland are terrific travel companions and very adventurous. I even lost my notorious aversion to street food, bought on by severe stomach problems in former travels. I just trusted their instincts and ordered what they did. The food from the
street stalls is very cheap, extremely tasty and served with a smile by the locals. I can't recall having been so happy with street food since visiting Thailand.
The next day our tour consisted of myself and my Polish friend, and what a superb adventure we had. I woke at 7:00am to be told by Sari the driver had to take his daughter in to hospital, and she was trying to contact someone else at short notice. We remained on tenterhooks, but a father and son arrived at 10:00am in a nice new mini van. We absolutely tore along the road towards Andasibe National Park, a famous location for lemurs in Madagascar. However the car broke down, with the water container bursting into pieces at speed. The guys dodgied up an oil container and attached the pipes while I played traffic cop for a few hours to the speeding traffic to protect the men at work. All the drivers seemed to appreciate my effort and obeyed the road rules too! We got extra water from people in the villages, and made it to the nearest town after topping up several times. In town a mechanic dodgied up some more
respectable but still not genuine parts, however the van kept overheating and breaking down. It was stressful but we finally arrived at Vakona Lodge by 4:30pm.
We were so excited, and incredibly a guide was still available to take us by canoe to the private lemur reserve. The lemurs dislike water, so are happy to live their lives on the private island. Walking through the park was one of the best experiences of my life, as the guide gave no hint of what soon took place. We marvelled at the lemurs up close, then suddenly the agile animals sprung from the trees on to our shoulders. They are crazy for bananas, and the guide had supplies. It was beyond awesome having these magnificent, beautiful, and playful animals climbing all over us. Wow, wow, wow, I love lemurs! We got to see and interact with the three main types of lemurs and took loads of photos and videos to remember these beautiful creatures. What a thrilling experience, and we headed off with the van still overheating frequently. Apparently we were out of phone contact, and Sari was out of her head with worry when we finally arrived at Lemur hostel
by 11:00pm. But perhaps she was even more confused seeing the look of sheer joy on our faces, as it was worth every second of break downs and chaos to interact with the lemurs.
The next day I had some down time, and saw off my friends in the afternoon as they headed off on the long drive out to Morandava to see the world famous baobab alley. I was jealous and more than a little sad I could not join them, but that's something to look forward to on the next visit to Madagascar. I've been amazed by the vibrancy, culture, and animals of this wonderful country. I was unsure such a large island could fit in to my itinerary, but I'm delighted to pay a visit to the island of lemurs. It goes without saying my friends, basically all of you should be here now!
Shh! We are hiding! Everyone be quiet. Including me. Shh! Who's making that noise?! Oh, it's me again. Julien the Lemur
As I continue my travels, until next time it's signing off for now
Tom
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Ama
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So Beautiful!
I always wanted to go to Madagascar and finally after my husband died and I was just about ready to go they had a coup. I ended up in Nepal where I've lived for almost 5 years. Your blog post seems to have awakened my interest in Madagascar. Thanks so much. Looks like you are having a wonderful time there. So beautiful. My blog is FrugalTravelsNepal.Blogspot.com Come see us in Nepal.