To start off, thank you so much to everyone who helped me with funding my project that I posted last month. I've received all the money necessary to complete the project, and will shortly begin the construction to help improve the elementary school. Look forward to pictures by next month's post.
I've been in Madagascar for over a year now. Somethings that I see on a common basis have by now become so normal to me that I can forget how odd they would appear to an outsider seeing them for the first time. I have thus tried to capture one of the phenomenon of this country; non-motor vehicle usage of the roadways.
Here is a common site on bridges all over the country, an ox-cart taking up the one lane. They move reliably, but slowly and can cause some pretty fantastic bottlenecks. Especially since its already a natural point for bottlenecks with the road narrowing to one lane for almost all the bridges in the country.
Even when they're not on a bridge they can still provide a fun driving obstacle. Here a farmer is transporting a few sacks of rice and a friend.
Of course the cows aren't always harnessed, and occasionally they like to cause a good old-fashioned road block. Here a herd of zebu cross the road at there own pace.
Also, not all carts are ox powered. This appears to be a furniture delivery in the capital city. Complete with a moving crew ready to spring into action on the couch.
All this road travel was due to a few special guests that I was taking around. Their fresh off the plane eyes helped me see things here in a bit of a new light. Here are some more highlights.
We stopped by the Ankarana National Park. This is a sinkhole about 100 feet across and the same deep. In the rainy season three rivers converge on this point and create an eddy to an underground river. The water is then filtered out to the ocean via underground river.
The other amazing feature at Ankarana is the tsingy. The word comes from the Malagasy verb to walk on tiptoes because the tsingy are razor-sharp limestone formations. If you walk on them you need to be careful not to cut your feet. They were formed in the ocean, rose from the sea floor over time, and carved by erosion from acid rain. Local indigenous Malagasy tribes used to use them as a protected hiding spot from enemies.
We also got out to some islands like Nosy Tany Kely (Little Island) pictured above.
We explored some of the urban ruins in Diego Suarez and saw some of the local graffiti artists' work.
A trip to the rooftop bar afforded a cool shot of the neighboring market building with outlying shanty shops finishing the look.
We even indulged in some beach glass hunting and had to stop after about 30 minutes of searching because we ran out of pocket space to carry it back!
A trip to the weaver's market was in order to look for some souvenirs and also check out the local handicrafts. Basket weaving is a widespread activity here and they can make some really nice and colorful designs.
A brief stop over at one of my favorite places in Diego, the mighty ficus tree. Such a beautiful, big tree and a wonderfully relaxing spot.
Eventually we made it down to the capital Antananarivo. We made a stop at the Rova (royal fort) and saw the Manjakamiadana (Queen's palace). The King's palace is the little building on the right. The Rova is the highest point in the capital and as such affords some stunning views of the city.
Here is the view to the east where you can see some rice fields. Rice is currently out of season so they are growing watercress and other similar vegetables. Antananarivo (or Tana for short) is a city of anywhere from 2-4 million people depending on whose estimates you like the best.
One of the other oddities my visitors noted was the brick kilns on the side of the road. Definitely a necessity for the architectural styles of the highlands where it can get fairly cold in the winter.
Now without further ado, I present to you my wonderful traveling companions and fresh eyes filled with wonder...
My mom and dad! Sharing a beautiful view from the balcony of our hotel on Nosy Be.
We made it out to the Emerald Sea near Diego and my dad caught a beautiful shot of my mom on a swing staying out of the sun and enjoying the beach.
We made it to one of my favorite places to eat, Kamar's Restaurant. We are having feliky mahogo (crushed cassava leaves with beef chunks) one of the national dishes of Madagascar and coconut beans with rice.
My parents also helped with this month's animal roundup too.
Here's Mio, the cat who lives at the Peace Corps house in Diego. Mio loves scratches, chasing mice, and making new friends!
We even got some lemurs to jump on us. Here's my dad in the process of being peed on by his new friend on Nosy Komba (Lemur Island).
My mom had better luck in the not-getting-peed-on department and got to make a new friend with this cute girl.
While we stopped in Ankarana we were visited by this ring-tailed mongoose. They often travel in pairs, but this day we just had a brush with the one out for a stroll.
Our driver pointed out a chameleon on the side of the road waiting for his picture to be taken. He seemed a little skittish so the driver got out, picked him up with a stick and posed him before the camera.
A stop in Lemurs' Park which rehabilitates lemurs that have been reclaimed from captivity provided us another up close view of some different species. Heres one looking to see if we have any bananas on us!
This bird decided to give us a flight show on Nosy Diego in the Emerald Sea. The winds were so strong that he couldn't make forward progress, but just sat there over top of us hovering for a few minutes before he turned off to go back to the mainland.
Our last faunal encounter was at our hotel in Tana where we met Coco the Parrot. Coco has a great personality and liked to sit in front of the specials menu and try his hand at writing just like he's seen all the other people do. Every so often he'd scrape his beak across the menu board to write in his own specials!
Unfortunately my parents couldn't stay forever, and so I bid them adieu and settled in to finish my last year so I can see them again! I can't thank them enough for their support and assistance in making my service here possible. Also, thanks to the both of them for the pictures because I decided to step out from behind the camera while they were here to enjoy their visit in person only.
I know they had a great time, and I hope they can look back fondly on their time here in Madagascar for a long time to come. I love you mom and dad, and I'll see you in a year!
