Tonga soa to Madagascar, The red island!

 In a cataclysmic earthquake, Madagascar broke free from Africa about 165 million years ago. She spent the next 45 million years drifting approximately 250 miles to the northeast – her present position.
Situated off the southeast coast of Africa, Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the world.
Isolated from Africa since the time of the dinosaurs, Madagascar shelters exotic life forms found nowhere else on earth, from captivating lemurs to wildly colorful chameleons that range from thumbnail-sized to two feet long!

Chameleons are famous for their ability to dramatically change colors. Contrary to popular belief, a chameleon typically does not change colors to match its surroundings. Instead, color is usually used to convey emotions, defend territories, and communicate with mates. Madagascar is home to about half the world’s 150 or so species of chameleons, including both subfamilies, typical chameleons.

Madagascar’s fauna is exploding with indigenous wildlife. The absence of monkeys has created a niche for lemurs – all 103 species of them!. The island is the only place in the world where these fun-loving creatures can be found.

The comet butterfly of Madagascar is one of the endemic species of Madagascar.

Originally from the rainforests of Madagascar, it is one of the largest butterflies in the world. Indeed, it can measure between 12.5 to 30 cm large with the tail. It is one of the largest silk-producing butterflies in the world. Larvae spend 2 months of his life at the caterpillar stage. They feed on the fresh leaves of eucalyptus, sweetgum, and Mimosa, before locking themselves in a cocoon to undergo its ultimate transformation.

It takes no less than two to six months to achieve the aesthetic perfection that characterizes its species. The adult life of the comet butterfly of Madagascar is only 4 or 5 days that are dedicated to reproduction. He doesn’t feed because his trunk is atrophied.

The island nation is famed for its unique wildlife. Approximately 90% of all animal and plant species found in Madagascar are endemic.

This ecology diversity has led some ecologists to refer to Madagascar as the “eighth continent”. In 2010 this island has been classified by Conservation International as a biodiversity hotspot. More than 85 % of Madagascar’s more than 13,900 plant species are found nowhere else in the world, including 5 plant families.

Madagascar Island is home to around 170 palm species. A lot of those native plant species are used as herbal remedies for a variety of afflictions and different specialties.

Other interesting facts about Madagascar are that endemic fish of Madagascar include 150 species, 16 genera, and 2 families, primarily inhabiting the island’s freshwater rivers and lakes. More than 670 species of terrestrial snail are endemic, as are a majority of the island’s scarab beetles, butterflies, spiders, lacewings and dragonflies.

Environmental challenges Madagascar’s varied flora and fauna are endangered by human activity. Since the arrival of humans around 2,400 years ago, Madagascar has lost more than 90 % of its original forest…

According to a conservative estimate, about 40 % of the island’s original forest cover was lost from the 1950s-2000, with a thinning of remaining forest areas by 85%.

Malagasy people consist of 18 ethnical groups, which partially differ widely in appearance, traditions, and beliefs from each other.

Every tribe is known for its special kind of clothes, its own dialect, different facial features as well as even sometimes skin paintings.

A supremely welcoming and warm pre-disposition makes traveling and interacting with locals a delight.

Many, especially in the South, have yet to be truly touched by western society, and therefore, profound cultural experiences can be found everywhere.

Due to their unique identities, the ethnic sub-groups of Madagascar adhere to their own set of beliefs, practices, and ways of life while holding onto a few core cultural features that create a strong Malagasy identity.

The people of Madagascar are friendly and proud, despite the many problems they face.
Madagascar is a land with open and friendly people, taboos, and poor roads.
The rainy season the large part of the island is accessible only by air, while most local villages are completely cut off from the world.

The so-called roads are then transformed into rivers of mud and sand.

In the dry period, the roads are mainly transportable, but hardened mud lumps and holes do not provide opportunities for fast driving.

In good weather in a car, you will need 2 hours to do 20 miles.

There are also only a few railway connections in Madagascar. Actually, there are only two.

The train between finarantsoa and manakara is called the train with great vibrations: no schedule, no weight limitation or passenger, folklore at every stop, in the train an atmosphere far west.

Therefore, the more developed is road traffic, with the typical small buses or vans which they call a taxi-brousse.

Madagascar became a particular favorite of pirates before the Golden Age of Piracy.

Madagascar pirates were provided refuge and sometimes much more for those who understood its appealing closeness to the wondrous prizes of the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean.
On the small island of Ile Sainte-Marie, four miles off the coast of eastern Madagascar, lie the bones of pirates who terrorized the seas during the 17th and 18th centuries.

For around 100 years, Ile Sainte-Marie was the off-season home of an estimated 1,000 pirates. A recently discovered map from 1733 refers to it simply as “the island of pirates.”
Situated near the East Indies trade route, the beautiful tropical island’s numerous inlets and bays made it the perfect place to hide ships.

Pirates from all over the world lived in wooden huts, adorned with flags that signified which captain’s “crew” they belonged to.

It was a pirate’s paradise. There were local women to satisfy their lust, and plenty of tropical fruit to satisfy their hunger.

Antananarivo, Madagascar’s capital city, is a place to fell in love with.

The narrow streets, alleyways, cobblestone roads, and historic buildings remind you, at times, of parts of Western Europe.

  • ANTANANARIVO,MADAGASCAR – AUGUST 08,2015 – In the streets of Antananarivo. Antananarivo is the capital and largest city in Madagascar.

At the same time the markets, the noise, the traffic, the energy, the goats and livestock walking along the highways, were all quintessentially African.

  • ANTANANARIVO,MADAGASCAR – AUGUST 08,2015 – In the streets of Antananarivo. Antananarivo is the capital and largest city in Madagascar.

Madagascar is not only known for its incredible fauna and flora richness, but also for its traditional architectural style: the famous “Trano gasy”.

Jean Laborde introduced the technique of making terracotta bricks to Antananarivo in 1831. The traditional houses that we see today were built with this construction technique.

To form the walls, the terracotta bricks are assembled with an earth mortar. Then, they are coated with lateritic earth (a red or brown rock), from which comes the orange color of traditional Malagasy houses. The roofs are generally made of straw or tiles.

Their charms and beauties have withstood the centuries! Built without a foundation, they challenge cyclones and demonstrate the exceptional know-how of ancestors.

Madagascar has a surprisingly diverse climate, thanks to its immense size & a wide variety of habitats.

Generally speaking, the north is hot and humid, the east is wetter, and the south is arid. The wettest season is Jan-Mar, with cyclones in February, but outside of these months the best time to visit Madagascar depends on your itinerary.
Jungle, dry forests, deserts and xeric shrublands, high peaks, escarpments and plateaus, swamps, and lagoons – Madagascar has it all.

For the size of the island, Madagascar has an overwhelming amount of stunning and diverse landscape.

Miles and miles of stunning coastline wrap around the island.

Species of palm trees line the waters, with traditional wood carved canoes either hiding between the shaded trees or are seen trawling the crystal waters by fisherman.

In summary, if you are considering a visit to Madagascar, GO. You won’t regret it!

Madagascar is brimming with treasures waiting to be discovered. I am hooked 🙂

From Australia, Air mauritius can take you there via Perth & Mauritius to Antananarivo.