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Bliss out on an intoxicating blend of spiny desert spiking the sunset, granite domes rearing above virgin rainforest and glassy waves crashing onto stretches of coral reef. Jacques Marais tripped into Madagascar and discovered a gentle island where French flair and Polynesian tradition blend with a laidback, African vibe. I travelled to Madagasacar expecting Africa. I anticipated the emerald rainforest’s embrace where lemurs might lurk and orchids would miraculously bloom. I expected the spiny desert to be like another world, a surreal place where didieracea cactus scratched at the sky next to big-bellied baobabs. I hoped I would catch a glimpse of a crested coua, that I extraordinary laze in the ample shade of a gnarled casuarina, drift between technicolour tropical fish and sail along an endless beach in a pirogue. I thought the Red Island would taste of Africa, but I never expected to savour so many flavours in this ancient world. Madagascar is an unexpected island, rather like a small and hitherto unknown continent suspended somewhere outside our familiar world. Flashes of the Far East, moments of Mexico and the flair of a long-gone France, all blending together in a spicy melange of unexpected encounters and outstanding memories. Here, on the world’s fourth-largest island, a full house of climatic zones encompasses everything from vast tracts of rainforest and divergent deciduous woodland to a profusion of granite mountains and an ageless, Androy desert. From the highlands to the coastal plains, your senses are assaulted by diverse floral domains teeming with an abundance of giant bamboos, dwarf pachypodiums, thorny euphorbia and more than 1200 species of endemic orchids. Go for a walk in the wilds and you might come across chameleons in excess of 60cm in size, or bump into 32 species of lemur, a primitive species of primate found nowhere else in the world. But it is the diverse and gentle inhabitants of the island that turn on the true Madagascar magic. They arrived as recently as 1900 years ago, Polynesians and Indonesians journeying across treacherous seas in small, outrigger canoes. These early settlers were later joined by Africans and Arab slave traders from the east coast of Africa and, through a slow process of integration, eighteen distinct tribal groups evolved. Compassion and ceremony is inherent to a culture where the shy smiles of gentle eyes are sure to touch your heart. Important Info:
- Crime: Very little violent crime - pickpocketing is probably the worst that could happen to you
- Exchange Rate: At the time of going to press it was approximately 875 Malagasy Franc to the Rand
- Health requirements: Yellow fever and cholera vaccinations might be required
- Language: Malagasy is the official language, but French is understood throughout most of the country
- Place Names: I have used the Malagasy names of towns rather than the outdated colonial names
- Transport: Air Madagascar serves a network of 59 networks with daily, affordable flights
The Malagasy Consulate in SA can be contacted on (011) 646 4691 Red Route - Deserts, Rivers & Coastlines (750 Words):
If you like it hot, this itinerary will keep you sizzling (FH! in summer, so you’ve been warned). Jet from JHB to Antananarivo with Air Madagascar, connecting straight through to Miandrivazo on an internal flight (R560). It is advisable to book your flights in SA, otherwise availability cannot be guaranteed. Boating the Tsiribihina River (***):Your holiday is about to kick in, big time. Book into the Gite de la Tsiribihina guesthouse in Miandrivazo and get horizontal within spitting distance of the Tsiri river. Pre-book (R1200pp) your three day river cruise or barter when you get there (our best price hovered around R650pp). Launch onto the latté coloured water and let the slow, broad flow do the work down toward Belo sur Tsiribihina on the west coast. Camp along the river shore for two nights, revelling in starry skies and possible daytime sightings of the rare Madagascar fish eagle. A word of warning - take along Terminator-strength suntan lotion, a family pack of mozzie repellent and a huge hat. Explore the Sakalava Kingdom (****):From Belo sur Tsiribihina, the road snakes south through sand and shimmering heat. Take the brousse-truck (R30) and hunker down as you belt through muddy potholes along the atrocious track to Morondava. The Kirindy Swiss Forest along the way is an excellent stopover (R50pp camping), offering eyeball-to-eyeball contact with the world’s smallest primate, the pygmy mouse lemur weighing in at an lilliputian 45gr. Once safely ensconced on Morondava’s cowboy coast, scuttle to the Avenue of Baobabs in a creaky Renault 4 (R100 per car) to see the sunset kiss these gnarled giants good night. |
