Top 5 Places to visit in Madagascar

5. Antananarivo

Antananarivo, lovingly known as “tana” by residents and expats alike, is really the heart of Madagascar. It has the largest population of any city in Mada, and you can certainly tell when you walk through the streets of Tana. International flights will land into Ivato airport in Tana and many people spend a night or two there not knowing what to do with their time. It’s easy to think that because it’s a big urban space there isn’t much to do, but that’s not the case.

Tana has without a doubt the best restaurants in Madagascar! You can get a range from Korean BBQ to Raclette fondue to classic French cuisine. Some of my favourite restaurants in Tana include La Ribaudiere, Nerones, KimStar, KuDeTa and La Verangue. There is only one place you should even consider for a spectacular breakfast overlooking the city, and that’s Lokanga, at the top of the highest point in Tana.

If you don’t want to eat all the time (like me) there are other things to do. Tana has the biggest outdoor market in Madagascar, named Analakely. If you like shopping for bargain clothes or souvenir items this is your heaven! You can find some diamonds in the rough in Analakely and get a real sense of the lives of the street vendors. Do be careful carrying wallets and bags as pickpockets can frequent these areas. The Digue is a market on the outskirts which has the best artisan souvenirs and gifts, worth a visit if you have time.

In the evenings the city comes to life, with a selection of small bars and larger nightclubs. In the Isoraka sector you can find a whole street dedicated to clubs with Malagasy/French music and a great atmosphere. Mojo is popular with young people in Tana but if you want the full experience go to Taxi be, which is an outdoor venue with live music and pizza all night!

Another great thing about Tana is its proximity to surrounding towns you can visit. There are a number of short trips you can do from Tana. You could ride bikes round lakes and natural geysers at Ampefy (4 hours from Tana) or go to see lemurs in Andasibe (4 hours from Tana by car), all feasible for weekend trips of 1/2/3 days. The best way to travel in a group is to use Drive Mada (see the website) and hire a car and driver for around £30 a day.

I may be a bit biased by Tana will always have a special place in my heart, and it gets a lot of bad rep for being polluted and dangerous, but I would argue that’s just city life (you can take measures to stay safe) and the city is equally as worth visiting if you want the full Madagascar experience.

4. Antsirabe

I almost didn’t include Antsirabe on the list because it’s a very small town in comparison to the other places in this list, and its probably best just for a weekend short trip. However, that being said Antsirabe has something special about it that is worth seeing.

A four-hour drive from Tana, Antsirabe is full of colonial French architecture and has a very antique feel to it. The hotel Grand Thermes looks like its straight out of an estate in the south of France, with its croquet lawn and tall pine trees. There is even rumours of a ghost in one of the rooms, which they don’t let guests stay in! I really rate the cosy little pub restaurant called l’insolite which has a diverse menu, however there’s many little restaurants around that cater to all your needs. Take a look at the old train station on the high street and try to arrange a trip to Lac Tritiva. The lake is a half hour drive away and is an old volcanic lake that is unlike anything else I’ve seen in the world. You can choose to do a zip-line over the lake, but it is very cold! A guide will take you around and tell you local stories about the lake for a small charge.

If you ask a local guide, they can take you to small artisan workshops that Antsirabe is famous for. You can go and watch Zebu horns (Zebus are like cows with a hump) being made into jewellery and souvenirs or see how local people use old materials and recycle them into gifts and sculptures. This is all free!! You could also go and see the gemstones workshop that has sapphires, or watch them doing amazing intricate wood carvings.

3. Tulear

The name is a bit misleading. I do recommend a visit to Tulear, but the real adventure awaits you in Ifaty/Mangily, which is 30KM north of Tulear in a beach resort. The white sand beaches and crystal blue sea is completely worth travelling to the south of the country. While you rest in gorgeous beach bungalows, you can arrange trips to the spiny forest, which has miles of Boabab trees which are over 2000 years old. We took a zebu cart ride and got to see the forest from the cart, which was a bumpy but cool ride. Or you can do a trip out on the sea. The best snorkelling I’ve ever done was in Ifaty, off a fishing boat for just under £10 for the day!! If you enjoy diving there’s a few established diving centres along the beach at Mangily and you can also take part in some conservation work if you’re interested. This small and quiet place is so peaceful and the perfect break from travelling on the road.

I would recommend the restaurant “Blu” in Tulear centre ville for eating or having cocktails watching the sunset. The sunset is in fact the best watched from the beaches of the south, where you can catch undisturbed fisherman bringing their boats in for the night. “The garden” is a fantastic artisan ice cream parlour and restaurant with stunning food. You go through a hidden archway into a gallery which is outside and stunning sculptures surround you.

It gets extremely hot in Tulear region so pick when you go carefully. It frequently reaches 38 degrees in the summer months December-March, which wouldn’t be so nice on the beach. From Tulear if you wanted to you could go to Isalo which is a large national park which resembles the grand canyon, and is great for hiking. You will face a 6 hour drive from Tulear at least, but the road is one of the best in Madagascar and driving through hundreds of kilometres of nothingness is actually quite refreshing after visiting busy cities. (I won’t talk about Isalo here but there’s some good information online.)

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2. Ile Sainte Marie

Without a doubt Sainte Marie is one of the most picturesque places in the whole of Madagascar. It’s long sandy beaches and bright blue sea is accompanied with a true island feeling which gives off a Caribbean vibe. Although Sainte Marie is a lot more popular with tourists, you still don’t feel overwhelmed by foreigners. A lot of the restaurants and hotels are owned by French expats settled on the island, but if you go further out of the main port you go through small villages and communities just like other areas of Madagascar.

Getting to Saint Marie can be an adventure in itself. You can fly there from Tana or internal airports for around £150 return. But if like me you choose the cheaper alternative route its certainly not easy! You can take a cotisse (minibus) from Tana to Tamatave which is 8 hours. Then you stay overnight in Tamatave and go to the boat office for 4am. You can choose either Cap Sainte Marie or El Condor, both of which provide a shuttle bus to a port north of Tamatave and then a ferry crossing. If you get sea sick I do not recommend el condor, which has a shorter bus ride (about 5 hours) but it’s a 3 hour crossing in rough sea in a boat with no windows…..They also hand out sick bags at the beginning just to give you an idea of what you’re getting yourself into.

I went in July, which was the perfect time of year for whale watching! Humpback wales migrate through the Mozambique channel at certain times of the year, and you can go whale watching for a low price of around 100,000 ariary (around £25). We went only about 10 mins boat ride from the beach and saw around 8 or 9 large humpback wales, honestly it was a magical sight to see them jumping out of the water, though a bit tricky to get a good photo!

For a bit of adventure, you can hire scooters or moto cheap from most hotels or in the port town centre. We rode them up the rocky road around 40KM north right to the tip of the island which does take about 2 hours depending on the state of the road. We stopped for lunch with a view and went to see the natural pools which have a lot of cultural importance in the area. You can swim in the natural pools but watch out for waves!! I have to say, this trip isn’t for the faint hearted as you need to have some confidence on the roads (although there is practically no traffic.)

If you fancy a night out, there are several excellent bars around the hotels and even a discoteque nightclub which opens at the weekend and takes music requests. It doesn’t get busy until at least midnight so stick with it!

The Ile aux Nauttes is an even smaller island which you can reach by a short pirogue (canoe) about 5 mins across a small stretch of the sea. The beaches on Ile aux Nauttes are unbeatable and I could easily stay there for the rest of my days! Some people stay there in beach bungalows or hotels which are all really nice. If you are on a budget, there is a hostel called Chez Nath managed by a very lively French man who really takes care of his guests, he’ll be happy to share stories of st tropez and Madagascar with you over a cocktail or arrange any trips you like.

Sainte Marie really is unique to Madagascar, with its history of pirates and isolation from the mainland, it’s become a tropical paradise with lots of things to do.

1. Ranomafana

The name Ranomafana translates to “hot water” in Malagasy language. The valley where the town sits is deep within the rainforest and has a large thermal spring which feeds into the villages. Ranomafana is the best place to go to get a sense of rural Madagascar and get to see some incredible wildlife. I have actually stayed here 5 times because I love it so much.

There are a few places to stay, but I recommend Kariboutel, which has bungalows on a hill overlooking the valley and waterfall. The rooms are really cosy and there’s usually hot water, for around 100,000 a night (£25) which isn’t too bad. There really isn’t much choice for places to eat because its quite a small town. However, you can get a lovely dinner at Centrest and there’s a few others in the town, as well as an awesome karaoke bar for evening activities.

The highlight of Ranomafana must be the hike. You can choose the length of your hike from 2, 4 to 8 hours or even do an overnight if you want. There are so many animals to be found here such as different species of lemurs, geckos, chameleons, stick insects and more. I would say a 4 hour hike is more than enough for you to see everything. If you have time, I recommend doing a night walk, where a guide will take you down the road at around 7pm (it will be dark by then year-round) and he’ll bring a flashlight so you can see the famous mouse-lemur, large chameleons and some very cool moths.

If you like a bit of adventure, one of my favourite activities is kayaking on the river in Ranomafana. There is a guy called Patrick that’s been our reliable kayak guy for a few years now. He will take you in inflatable kayaks on a 2 hour trip round the river through the backwaters, past the illegal rum smuggling routes and small rapids. It’s not hard work because the river is usually quite calm, but the views are unreal and you can’t miss out on the opportunity! I think I paid around 100,000 ariary (£25) for the kayaking for one person. If you want Patricks details send me a message, he’ll be glad to welcome new customers.

The local swimming pool is outdoors and fed by the hot spring. It is seriously hot and really cool to see the steam off the pool whilst being surrounded by rainforest. It’s really cheap to get in (less than (£4) and worth a visit.

Some honourable mentions that I won’t go into detail about now but worth checking out: Diego suarez, Nosy Be, Mahajunga, Mahambo and Andasibe.

Thanks for reading!

Health in Anosy- what’s the situation?

So what actually am I actually in Madagascar for?

Me outside the SEED office, as you can see it was raining!

Well after two weeks here I can finally fill you in. I feel like I’ve got to grips with the two projects I am working on after a lot of reading, and a couple of trips to the field which really put everything into context. More and more I’m seeing how the Anosy region is different to other places I’ve been in Madagascar, and why it is in need of some serious attention. Geographically Anosy is cut off from other regions by a large mountain range with terrible roads that are impassable for many, in fact the name “Anosy” actually means island in Malagasy (Anosy is coastal but by no means an island). In terms of how that affects the people here; the state of their health system is reflective of Anosy’s isolation. The hospital in Fort Dauphin is one of only two hospitals serving an area of 26,000 square kilometres, with an estimated population which is double that of London. The rural areas known here as the bush, only have small health centres that are currently experiencing stock outs (more on that later), and outreach to communities outside of villages is done by volunteer government agents called “agents communitaire” or ACs.

Just around the corner is the hospital in Fort Dauphin. I particularly loved this sunset.

So how can anyone make a difference in this place?

This is a question that has crossed my mind once or twice since arriving, how can a place with a high poverty index, lack of resources and a lot a systemic issues change? One of the great things about SEED is how the projects are tailored to the big problems here- based on a comprehensive situational analysis. The two projects I’m working on target knowledge and practices, two things that actually can be changed for the better and are within reach. I guess the learning point here is that sometimes it is better to put your efforts into something feasible and that has impact- rather than come in guns blazing and try to “correct” the system. Which is where a lot of organisations might fail. So, what are these projects….

Project Votsira– The term “Votsira” means a state of well-being for a mother and her child in Malagasy. That sums up what the project does; education for mothers and caregivers about maternal and child health on topics such as breastfeeding, nutrition and early childhood diseases. It’s one of SEED’s longest running programmes and has reached over 2750 caregivers. Malaria, acute respiratory infections (ARIs) and diarrhea are the mai causes of death for under 5’s in this region. All three can be treated or prevented, but a lack of understanding about the symptoms and a deeply-rooted culture of seeking traditional healing means that children aren’t seen by doctor.

The caregivers at the Votsira beneficiary group.

Over the course of the past year, CLOs (community liason officers), which are Malagasy national staff trained by SEED, have conducted beneficiary sessions for mothers and grandmothers with Votsira’s child health course. The sessions were held in communities in areas of Fort Dauphin and included practical demonstrations and advice as well as some great educational posters to take home. I was lucky enough to attend a follow up to these sessions in which the beneficiaries reflected on their learning and the project. It was amazing to see so many women in attendance with their children, and the passion they had for bettering their community. I also got the chance to get my hands on a proper camera (I’ve always thought my iPhone wasn’t bad) and take some photos which I really enjoyed.

A child from the Votsira focus group with the poster. (Pretty proud of this one my first go with a decent camera!)

Project Mitao– Mitao means “to protect yourself” in Malagasy and is an analysis of sexual and reproductive health provision, practices and knowledge across rural and urban areas of the Anosy region. This has consisted of interviews, surveys across large population groups and also monthly roundtable meetings with local stakeholders such as the chief of commune, headteacher of the local high school and health centre staff. Mitao is in a really busy phase with lots of data being collected right now, and I was lucky enough to go to a place called Mahatalaky for the roundtable meeting this week. The two hour ride in the 4×4 was adventurous to say the least, the roads are thick with mud and potholes and I can absolutely see why people from the bush might not want to make the 2-3 hour journey to Fort Dauphin for treatment in a big overcrowded truck.

It was very interesting to hear the different opinions from the attendees on their solutions to the rising STI and HIV crisis in rural Anosy. One of SEEDs main goals is to increase the capacity of national staff and local people to deal with problems arising in their areas. This is something I really like about the NGO, like training Malagasy staff to conduct meeting and focus groups- and therefore getting much more honest, actionable and satisfying results from the projects. In the long term the hope is that these people will be experts in their field and SEED can lay the foundations for progress, and improving healthcare here without taking over.

The centre of Mahatalaky which is in the rural bush area of Anosy. This was the site for the Mitao roundtable.

The next section of project Mitao is a survey for sex workers and men who have sex with men (MSM), both vulnerable groups in this area, especially with this steady rise in HIV cases in Fort Dauphin. I was shocked to hear that some of the sex workers may be girls just 12 or 13 years old. As part of the survey, these people would get a free HIV test. However, it was discovered that there has not been any reactive for the test in Anosy for some time now, and subsequently that the whole country is stocked-out of HIV tests. It is hard to know that the project is aiming to educate people and encourage them to get tested but that the situation here just doesn’t allow that sometimes. This was definitely a blow to the project, but in a way has brought to attention this issue of supply and I am hoping that some tests will be brought in in the coming weeks! This is just one example of why Madagascar needs capacity building and expertise.

I have already learned so much in the past two weeks and am very excited to continue work on these projects! If you’re interested in what SEED do in community health or in their other projects take a look at the website. https://madagascar.co.uk/projects/community-health

The electricity has been down for nearly 48 hours now in my neighbourhood so I’m currently writing from a hotel café- thanks to the rain and wind I think it will be a while before it gets going again but until then thanks for reading.

Moving to Fort Dauphin (Part 2)

Where do I start? Arriving in Fort Dauphin was a whirlwind of new people, places and culture. The first weekend gave me an opportunity to explore a bit and get my bearings, which was helped by a town tour organised by SEED and a very animated guide Marcece. He told me all about the history of the town and pointed out all the local highlights such as the beaches, the port and the well renowned “prix unique”. This was a supermarket in the loosest terms. Essentially a small room filled with items you can’t find on the market- priced up to sell to vazaha like me craving a mars bar or branded toiletries.

I think you’d be hard pressed to spend more than 20,000 ariary (about £5) a week on your food shop here if you shopped in the market and bought seasonal items, and I was surprised that people don’t really barter for the price here like they do in Antananarivo. I’m used to cutting their price by 4 to get down from the prix vazaha (foreigner price). The staple of most staff in the office is the classic “rice and beans” for lunch. A small little shack that serves a surprisingly tasty (and VERY filling) meal for just over a pound. Add a little bit of Sakai, which is a chilli sauce that will blow your head off, and you’ve got a decent flavour. I’m not a fan of the greens that come with it which resemble spinach, but that’s hardly news to anyone!

The famous rice and beans- this is one portion!!

The gas hob in my kitchen is broken, so we have been experimenting with the charcoal burner outside for evening meals. I feel like I’ve made serious progress since the first attempt, which consisted of me standing over the coal blowing it and fanning for hours unsuccessfully. Yesterday I even made fritters with vegetables, spices and some oil and they tasted damn fine. It definitely takes a lot more effort than normal cooking that I am used to, and you can’t just go get a ready meal or go to a restaurant if it goes wrong, so I felt the pressure when assuring my housemate that my recipe would go to plan! To be fair, he is very easily impressed by food.

The outside charcoal stove. Here I was attempting to make veggie curry.

It rained constantly for my first 4 days, accompanied by strong winds. This meant I couldn’t go to the famous Libanona beach which looks incredible! It’s been a bit more sunny since then and looking into 28+ degrees next week which might make the cold showers a bit more bearable. Being a typical brit I can’t help myself but complain about it being too hot or too cold 24/7. The good thing about the Malagasy winter is there are way less insects hanging around. Although one of the girls needed rat poison to get rid of her resident friend, I haven’t heard too many horror stories of unwanted visitors in the home here. There was one rather large cockroach that escaped our attempts to remove him (it was absolutely a him). The “Parasy” is another unique insect that lives in the sand and buries itself into the sole of your feet where it lays it’s eggs. If the parasy isn’t removed then it can hatch the eggs and burst through the skin. Today Melissa had one removed by the resident parasy expert Oscar.

Mr Cockroach himself

The parasy being removed. It leaves a big hole afterwards.

On Saturday night there was however a casino night! Put together by one of the guys from the SEED team, it was an amazing feat of creativity- using beans as chips for poker by candlelight. The best part of player poker for money here is the small notes such as 100/200 ariary which you can bet for just the equivalent of 2p or 4p. Nonetheless I crashed out after about an hour, getting a bit bold with my bluffing. After, we hit the local nightlife but as it was diabolical weather there weren’t many people out (taxis and tuk-tuks don’t go out in bad weather). The chosen spot was a beach bar called “surf’s up”. I ate grilled octopus and enjoyed the music, but I will definitely be going back for the famous karaoke nights to see what it’s like when it’s a bit more lively. By 3am I think everyone was exhausted, typical bed times here rarely pass 9 o clock.

Meeting the team and getting to know the projects that SEED do was the main goal for this week, as well as getting my head around my new role. The two main projects I am working on are a maternal/child health education programme and a SRHR/ HIV focused project. I will be writing much more about those in the following weeks, but for now I’m enjoying seeing what SEED do and it’s very unique to see such a community-focused approach.

Going into the weekend I spent an amazing day at Libanona beach, the sea was super calm so I could swim quite far out and look at the fish. Saturday night got a bit lively in the aptly named “Florida” nightclub, which was buzzing with great music and lots of dancing! I’m having a relaxing Sunday getting vegetables at the market and looking forward to the coming week. Meanwhile, if there’s anything you’d like to know about Madagascar/ Fort Dauphin or something in particular about the role then comment and I’ll try and include it in my next posts.

Thanks for reading!

Moving to Fort Dauphin (Part 1)

In May this year I got a phone call confirming my place as a project development intern with an NGO down in the south of Madagascar (You can visit the website at the link, more on what they do to come in the next post.)

https://madagascar.co.uk/

This NGO I had followed for a long time and was really interested in their work in a very poor region of Mada, specifically their community health projects. This was amazing news as I really had my heart set on working here again and would get to use my degree and more importantly bring my previous experience and knowledge to the table.

Fort Dauphin is at the bottom of Mada in the Anosy region

What followed was a series of logistical nightmares- and I’ll give you the shortened version. I knew that the visa application process wasn’t the easiest in the world but this was taking the mick. After 8 weeks applying for a permit and a further 3 weeks on the phone to the embassy in Paris I was getting seriously stressed about not having a visa (or even passport) to travel. Luckily, it arrived 2 days before my flight and then whilst packing my stuff it all became real! This stress along with ordering a pharmacy worth of medicines and all the clothes you might need for four different seasons, then packing it into small suitcases, was not the start I wanted to my new job. There were so many things I never considered when moving to a country like this.

After 24 hours of travelling I arrived in Fort Dauphin on an internal flight from Antananarivo. (Of course there was a long delay, this is Mada.) The Plane came in really low over the bay and the views were unreal. I have never visited this part of Madagascar before and it’s unlike anything I’ve seen.

The view over the bay of Fort Dauphin

I Immediately started sweating despite it being a cool 19 degrees and the end of winter here. Thank you to my ginger genes for that. Later that day I moved into my new house…pictures to follow in part 2. I was over the moon to see double beds, decent rooms and most importantly- a proper inside toilet! The house is lovely and has everything I could need (for now). My housemate is an awesome Bear Grylls type, cooking outside on a charcoal stove and completely content with ice-cold showers. Maybe that’ll rub off on me. Maybe not. I’m starting to think I like my luxuries a lot more than I originally thought.

The neighbourhood is typical Mada, lots of small shops to buy snacks and my favourite mofo akondro which is battered and fried banana. SOO GOOD. The people are so welcoming and I frequently am greeted in the street with “salama vahaza” (hello foreigner). I was surprised by the amount of sand everywhere on the streets, which I guess makes sense being very windy and near the beach. I have to say it’s not that easy to walk on. But at least I’ll have killer legs by the end of the year with all the hills and trekking around town.

Wouldn’t be surprised if people stared at me in this attire…

A noticeable difference between Fort Dauphin and the previous city which I lived in (Antananarivo) is the way men are towards me. It was common for men to shout, touch or intimidate women in Tana, but here that hasn’t happened so far and the men seem to be a lot more respectful. Perhaps that is in their culture or just because it’s a lot quieter here with very few expats. A pleasant surprise nonetheless.The first night I was welcomed by the team at SEED by a dinner at Chez Rossi. The team is only about 20 people whom all have interesting backgrounds and reasons for coming here. We got chatting over a nice 50p beer and despite them nursing hangovers from a hump day treat gone wild they were really making an effort.

So overall, a good first impression of Fort dauphin and my new place. There’s much more to come so wait out for part 2 where I discuss the shitty weather, the local nightlife, and the job!

#travel #madagascar #work #expat #zerotohero

About Me

kirsty on a hike in Ranomafa national park (2019)

You probably think of Madagascar as a little island with weird and wonderful creatures and not much else- well you would be so wrong!

I’m here to talk about my experiences living and working in Mada whilst showing the best (and worst) parts of this under-represented country. Having moved to Antananarivo in 2017 to teach English my life took an unexpected turn and I completely fell for this place. So I went back to university to study international health and landed myself a job working for a small NGO in the south of Mada. It’s very hard to explain what it’s like to live here and so I am going to write about my daily life, work and give updates on what’s happening on the red island.

Additionally- I will write about some of the amazing places I’ve visited before and give some advice about travelling Mada, with lots of envy-inducing photos.

Hope you enjoy reading about my Mada life.