Madagascar Map

 

 

 

         Map of the Indian Ocean

latest picture: November 2, 2011

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151  On the highland the land is brown

and dry. On the spots, where the water-

ways are not completely dried out, the

hardworking farmers plant rice. Here

close to Ankaramena between

Ambalavao and Ihosy

152  Herdsmen of the Bara tribe are

guiding their cattle until the abattoir of

the capital Antananarivo. The worth of

a Bara man is measured by the number

of zebus he possesses. Often they are

valued higher than his wife

153  We are on our way from Ambalavao

to the Isalo National Park near Ranohira,

sitting west of Ambalavao. All of a

sudden, an impressive towering rock

boulder near Mahasoa pops

up in front of us

 

Abruptly, the first bizarre rocks appear. We reached our today’s goal: The Isalo National Park. We end-up almost at the new Isalo Rock Lodge, which is beautifully embedded into rock towers. Emil registers at the desk and I prepare the exact amount of money. The receptionist checks and looks at me somewhat irritated. “Is something wrong?” I ask him. The room costs 114 Euros (US$ 158) and not Aria 114’000 (US$ 53) he explains. “But you may still look around the area” he adds when he sees our disappointed faces.

154  The villages sandwiched between

barren mountain ridges look like fertile

oases on our East-West crossing: Ihosy

155  Now and then zebus (Malagasy cows)

are herded in the middle of the road. They

are one of the most identifiable symbols of

Madagascar. We usually stop to let them

pass what is appreciated by the herdsmen

156  After crossing the Ihosy river near

Ihosy, the road climbs up to the Horombe

Plateau – an endless prairie of golden yellow

grass in the “Wilde West” of Madagascar –

which ends at the Isalo massif at Ranohira

 

At the Isalo Ranch we come down to earth again. For 60’000 Aria (US$ 28) we get bungalow No. 20 with shared facilities, which however we have for ourselves. It lies at the end of the premises with just nature pure in front of us. While the tour groups – and in the South there are many, especially French – gather around the restaurant and the swimming pool, we have our little world for ourselves; watch the sunset transforming the grey rocks into a warm golden brown; the shining stars at the dark night skies and enjoy the silence around us.

157  From our bungalow at the Isalo Ranch

in Ranohira – situated at the border of the

Isalo Nat. Park – we enjoy the sunset …..

158  ….. the setting sun is blushing

the mountain in a warm red color …..

159  ….. and the long-stemmed

flowers are silhouetted wonderfully

against the glow of the sky

 

After the more than 30 tropical islands during the past five years in the Caribbean, the Pacific and recently in the Indian Ocean we are craving to see rocks, pinnacles, domes, canyons and bizarre geological formations like we remember from the “Wild West” in the US. There is just one thing we do not want to do: To follow a mandatory guide on the overcrowded trails within the park – the Isalo National Park, covering 315 sq.mi., is Madagascar’s most visited park. Next day, we find our own paths.

160  The sand stone massif of the

Isalo National Park is towering harshly

against the blue sky. It recalls memories

of the Wild West of the USA

161  The endemic miniature Baobab

(Pachypodium rosulatum) with its

yellow blossoms grows at Isalo National-

park. Its enlarged trunk is serving as a

self-contained water reservoir

162  Striking geological formations

form different landscapes within the

315 sq.mi. of the Isalo National Park

 

“Can nature be more beautiful?, we ask ourselves again and again. The white patches of clouds dotting the blue skies are within our grasp, when we wander at our own pace through the remote labyrinth of sand stone formations. We discover the endemic miniature Baobab with its yellow blossoms and its enlarged trunk serving as a self-contained water reservoir. Colonies of tiny adult flatid leaf bugs that at first glance look like delicate flowers. Orange-brownish beetles clustered side by side at a trunk and white bugs looking like delicate laces.

163  The roof of a traditional hut

gets freshly thatched

164  Emil is relaxing in front of our

bungalow at the Isalo Ranch in Ranohira

165  Liliana is enjoying hiking between

the pinnacles of the Isalo National Park

 

And on the sandy ground lovely flowers are sprouting now and then – in red, yellow and blue colors. The French lady owner of the Hotel ‘Relais de la Reine’, one of the oldest hotels in Madagascar, directed us to the track leading from her hotel into the canyon land. We also talk about the political situation of the island and about tourism. Since last year the visitors have increased again, she tells us. But they have not yet reached the volume of 2009 before the coup. The government has really to make efforts to attract tourists to Madagascar before the last lemurs have died-out, the last turtles have been eaten and the last rosewood and baobabs have been cut down.

166  We discover the colorful Rainbow

Milkweed Locust (Phymateus saxosus)

crawling up a spiny tree …..

167  ….. reaching the top, it peeks

out between the leaves

168  Madagascar is also home to many

species of chameleon: Giant Malagasy

Chameleon (Furcifer oustaleti)

 

Ranohira-Tuléar (Toliara) = 143 miles; 5 hours
On the third day, on October 21st, (the day when Ghadaffi was shot in Sirte) we finally move on. The black ribbon of asphalt runs almost dead straight through “Madagascar’s Wild West” towards the West coast. For us it’s the second crossing to the West, this time more Southerly. Soon we reach Ilakaka – a village in the middle of the endless yellow prairie. In the early 90s, sapphires were discovered in this region. Piles of the dug-up dirt of the open sapphire mines still line the river outside the town for miles. Since then the hamlet has advanced to a prosperous town.

Wonders of nature in the gullies of Isalo National Park:

169  Colonies of tiny adult flatid leaf

bugs (Phromnia rosea). At first glance they

look like clusters of delicate flowers

170  Orange-brownish bugs

(Libyaspis coccinelloides) – adults

– clustered together at a trunk

171  Flat white bugs (Libyaspis

coccinelloides) – young ones, a kind

of nymphs of the bugs shown on the

left – looking like laces

 

Modern shops selling precious gemstones sprang up like mushrooms. The expensive limousines parked in front of neat villas are also testimony of the fast earned money. Nonetheless: Also here people still live without electricity and water supply. We even doubt that the newly discovered oil and gas will finally bring a better life to the entire population. Apparently more than 70% still have to cope with 1 US$ a day.

Also in the barren canyons of Isalo National Park delicate flowers are sprouting in many colors

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174

 

In Tuléar on the Tropic of Capricorn, we have no luck with the motels mentioned in the Lonely Planet 2008: We find the doors of the highly recommended “Le Capricorn” closed, apparently already since 2009. And the “Sax’Aphone” is surrounded by near-slums with the basic rooms having seen better times. But the bar and the restaurant are cozy and the food is good. Since 2010 it is managed by an elderly French guy. Well, we will survive one night – we think.

175  Outside of the bizarre Isalo National

Park we find ourselves again in the almost

endless prairie with its Bismarck palms

(Bismarckia nobilis)

176  We love to explore with our Land

Cruiser the narrow dusty sandy tracks

surrounding the Isalo NP. Guides are

always mandatory within the park borders

177  Bizarre rock formations tower

ghostly from the prairie on the

outskirts of Isalo NP

 

Yes we survive – but how! Right beside there is a celebration going on the whole night and the rhythmic beat of drums and singing keeps us awake most of the time. It just sounds like in the deep African bush. Next morning we move to the Hotel “Le Palétuvier” and come from bad to worse. Firstly, there is a party going on until 11pm and afterwards a disco starts until dawn in the neighborhood that we overlooked. When next day the heavily potholed road to Ifate in the North – a kind of tourist place with a lovely palm beach – becomes a 15-miles-nightmare for our almost 30 years old LandCruiser, we decide to leave this dusty coastal area and drive back to Fianarantsoa, also called “Fiana”.

178  Exploring the surroundings of the

Isalo Nationalpark. Can nature be

more beautiful?

179  Lilac flowers of a Jacaranda tree

contrast wonderfully against the grey

rock formations of the Isalo NP

180  The white clouds sailing right above our

heads intensify the beauties of nature. “Free”

tracks, again outside of the Isalo Nationalpark

 

Fianarantsoa- Ranomafana 45 miles; 2.7 hours
There, we book for the second time into the pleasant Greek “Hotel Cotsoyannis” and relax in the cozy small garden restaurant with a few beers and a delicious pizza – the specialty of the house. 32 miles West of Fiana lies along the RN45 the Ranomafana National Park on the way to the East coast. There the German primatologist Bernhard Meier discovered in 1986 the golden bamboo lemurs that are not found elsewhere (it’s said there are another few lemur species on the Comoros and on Mayotte). To protect them, this park was established in 1990. It is the fourth biggest national park in Madagascar.

181  Ilakaka – a village in the middle of

the endless prairie between Ranohira and

Tuléar. Since in the nineties sapphires

were discovered in the region, the tiny

hamlet advanced to a prosperous town

182  Along the river at the outskirts

of Ilakaka City, earth dug up from

the open sapphire mines is piled for

miles, still being washed for hidden gems

183  The lizard remains stock-still when

we get closer. But as soon as we retreat,

it speeds away into the bush

 

Hoping to spot also this rare lemur species, we decide to make the detour, passing once more through lovely scenery with bright rice fields, surrounded by an imposing mountain chain. On this stretch, we also get our second flat tire in Madagascar, the 168th on our world tour. We use here as a precaution the second new tube bought some time ago in Morondava.

184  A modern settlement was built in

the grassland outside of Ilakaka during

the sapphire boom – mostly consisting

of luxurious houses of the traders

185  Far from the modern world:

A traditional and impoverished

thatched village East of Tuléar

186  The village church of Andranohinaly,

surrounded by peaceful nature

 

It is noon when we arrive at the sleepy village of Ranomafana and we immediately feel comfortable at the “Manja Hotel” situated at the far end. With a lovely view to the lush green of the rainforest from the terrace restaurant, we first quench our thirst with one-two local THB beers and order cheese pasta and cheese omelets. Then, with much anticipation, we head to the National Park and pay our entry fees: Aria 25’000 (US$12) per person and Aria 15’000 for the mandatory guide for two hours.

187  A “camion brousse” – a 4wd bush

truck – is loaded at the bus terminal in

Tuléar. It drives to places, which are not

anymore reachable by a normal bush taxi

188  Bus terminals are always fascinating.

It is incredible how much and what is lifted

to the roof of the “bush trucks” and even

strapped to all sides; but it means supplying

the most inaccessible regions

189  Slowly but steadily also this

youngsters will reach some

when their destination

 

There is no way around taking a guide. “Take it or leave it!” is the rule. Soon we find ourselves criss-crossing the secondary rain forest, not seeing much wildlife, instead learning more about medicinal plants. A small family of Brown lemurs once crosses shortly our way and two other species are eating and climbing. Two different birds, a rat and a frog complete our meager spotting.

190  Not only in Morondava but also

in Tuléar we see the Baobabs, the bottle

trees, that can get as old as 1’200 years

191  After the dry and bleak plains, the

green river scenery is a pleasant sight

192  One more shot of one of our favorite

places, the Isalo National Park, on our

journey back from Tuléar to Fianarantsoa

 

Our booked two hours are long overdrawn, but our guide still continues to look for the rare lemur type. Suddenly he waves excitedly and points to a tree top. Half hidden by leaves one of these Golden Bamboo fellows is foraging from branch to branch. Unfortunately it is too far away to identify it clearly. Well, that was it then and we began to realize the difference between National Park and a private sanctuary: In the national park the animals live their life of wilderness – a private reserve tries to show them closer to the visitor, what is done usually with food. The result of both cases can be pictured oneself.

193  Lonely and forgotten: A couple of

thatched huts in “no man’s” land, with-

out running water – without electricity.

Famine occurs frequently in this region

194  Everywhere where there is

a pond people hope that some

fishes get caught in their net

195  The morning glow rings in another

day with new encounters and adventures

 

Back at the park entrance, the guide looks to his watch. Of course, he gets the additional hour paid! Trenched in sweat and tired we drive the few miles back to our hotel. It is already getting dark and at three different locations, huge wildfires draw our attention. All these hills will soon be left only with tree trunks rising ghostly towards the sky – and this happens right at the National Park border! Nobody intervenes, nobody cares!

196  At the Antaimoro Paper Factory

in Ambalavao a young woman is pressing

fresh flowers into the still damp paper made

from the bark of the Avoha bush. Once

dried in the sun, it is made into cards

197  In Fianarantsoa elaborated paddies

adorn a river valley, cultivated by the

Betsileo tribe, the third biggest tribe

of the island of Madagascar

198  The picturesque traditional hamlets of

the highland people are small and compact;

here North of Alak-Ambohimaha, some

20 miles North of Fianarantsoa along the

RN7. Often people are related in one

way or another to each other

 

Next day on our way back to Antsirabe more to the North, we see the same shocking scenes: Burning forests, trails of smoke and burnt-off hills. The overexploitation of nature is just unbelievable. Besides of the fast growing Eucalyptus trees also beautiful, healthy pine forests are slashed-and-burnt mercilessly. All the more we enjoy all the masterpieces of rice terraces, which due to the lately heavy rainfall are now shining in a refreshing green. Three weeks ago, they still were uncultivated.

199  West of Fianarantsoa, in the

Ranomafana National Park, the

Namorana River tumbles over

the Andriamamovoka falls

200  The Namorana River is meandering

through the stony river bed of the

Ranomafana National Park. This park

was set up in 1990 to protect the

golden bamboo lemurs (Hapalemur

aureus) that are found only here

201  A Common Brown Lemur

(Eulemur fulvus) eyes us curiously

on our guided tour through the Rano-

mafana National Park. It remains the only

close-up contact. The other species

are foraging high up in the tree tops

 

Antsirabe is greeting us with heavy downpours, lightening and thunder. Is the rainy season starting earlier? At the hotel “Le Retrait” we find a room for Aria 45’000 (US$ 21) a night and a secured fenced-in parking for our LandCruiser. After we have parked, we spot a big water puddle underneath our car: “Is it from us?” we wonder. Emil checks immediately. “ Yes it is. A rubber plug of the radiator is broken”, is his diagnose. Not having any replacement means to improvise.

On our tour through the Ranomafana National Park we discover:

202  A carnivorous plant (Drosera

capensis). The insect is attracted by the

scent of the mucilage glands and gets stuck

203  A bird is resting on a tree branch

– how might it be called?

204  Delicate white flowers

grow on humid soil

 

During all those years of traveling, Emil has become a true master on emergency repairs. Soon he finds a solution also here: An old spark plug, a lot of tape wrapped around and a clamp – that’s it! “Should it not withhold and should we lose the entire radiator water on the road, we at least still have our 5¼ gallons of shower water on the roof” he appeases my worries. But astonishingly it does work – for many more months and many miles!

205  In the Ranomafana National Park,

our LandCruiser crosses a “Traveler’s

Tree“ (Ravenala madagascariensis)

that got its name from the water

storage in its leaves

206  Lush green rice fields and scattered

brown highland huts against the backdrop

of a grey mountain range make the valley

20 miles North of Fianarantsoa very

attractive

207  Just more awesome paddies,

cultivated by farmers of the

Betsileo tribe near Fianarantsoa

 

Since almost one month, we are continuously driving each day for at least 8 hours. Now we are ready for a break. And our LandCruiser needs some maintenance: The usual oil change after 5’000 miles (here it is done with expensive South African oil), measuring the compression (is fine), cleaning the spark plugs and readjust the valves. We also need to do some laundry, answer emails, write the October News for our website, put our first Madagascar pictures online and, and, and .....

208  We never get tired to admire

the peaceful hamlets of the Betsileo

tribe on our way back from

Fianarantsoa to Antananarivo

209  A load of grass is pushed by hand

on a very simple wooden cart along the

street. This “poor man’s mean of transport”

is common on Madagascar’s roads

210  Vehicles made of wood and in

every size are offered along the road

 

Right around the corner is the “Zandina Restaurant” with Madagascan and European dishes – crowded around by street vendors, who are selling embroidered table clothes, vanilla pods, necklaces, sunglasses, exotic plants and a lot more. Very young girls with babies strapped to their back are peeking through the windows, fully focused on the eating tourists. They wait until they leave, make the “hungry”-sign and beg for money. All a bit depressing!

211  Oxen are chased around and

around in a circle to aerate

the soil for a new paddy

212  Three women have to do the

hazardous crossing of the river with

their harvested carrots .....

213  ..... where they are loaded

onto a wooden cart

 

After six nights, at 8am, we are on the move again, towards the North, towards Tana – the monster. After the fresh rainfalls of the last days, everywhere farmers attend their paddies with teams of oxen and archaic wooden plough. New seedlings are planted – all by hand.

214  Forests are continuously burnt down

to get wood for cooking, firewood to burn

bricks, and charcoal. 80% are already

irreversibly gone. Consequence: No

more forests – no more lemurs – no

more tourists – no income anymore!

215  A sad and distressing sight: Charred

tree stumps rise ghostly against the sky

216  At the entrance of villages loads

of bags with charcoal line the streets

waiting to be hauled away

 

In the fertile plains, carrots, potatoes and cabbage are growing. The already harvested vegetable is displayed along the roadside. Now and then, someone stretches a dangling duck, chicken or rabbit towards us hoping to make some business. And everywhere crowds of people with bag and baggage are walking along the street.

217  Typical brickworks between

Fianarantsoa and the capital Antananarivo,

where with the already scarce wood

bricks are burnt to construct houses

218  Waiting for customers: Farmers

sell their fresh carrots along the road

219  Market life on an old bridge. In

rural areas there are not many shops.

Most goods are traded in local markets

 

After many bends and 4½ driving hours, we reach the capital’s gate. What a different sight from one month earlier when we left the city. Back then the sky was deep blue and the view was clear. Today it’s hazy and everything looks oppressively drab and grey. Once more we stock up our supplies at the supermarkets of Leader-Price and Jumbo-Score – lying at the outskirts of the city – and have a bite of cheese and spicy salami at the parking area, which we bought at a reduced price. Well, in the evening at the “Auberge du Cheval Blanc” near the airport, I get a strong diarrhea and Emil lies three full days in bed after a really bad night. Was it the reduced salami?

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Personal adornment is important to the Malagasy. Big care is taken to the hats.

They are worn with pride. From baby to grandfather, almost everyone wears them in all kind of variations

• Madagascar part 1: Tamatave-Andasibe (Lemurs)-Antananarivo-Antsirabe-Miandrivazo
• Madagascar part 2: Miandrivazo-Morondava (Baobabs)-Antsirabe-Fianarantsoa-Ambalavao (Lemurs)
• Madagascar part 4: Antananarivo-Ankadibe (Lemurs)-Andasibe-Manambato-Foulpointe-Tamatave