Daily Archives: September 20, 2017

Saturday September 16 – Ifaty 

Slept in this morning for the first time! Woke up though with the first mosquito bites of the trip as the bungalow was not completely sealed and the bed had the worst mosquito net on the trip in the only place where it was needed. Heard some other creature making noise around the roof in the night and according to our guide it might have been a mouse lemur. Didn’t see it though – just saw the gecko that I startled with the lights when I got back from dinner last night! Met the others for breakfast and had a leisurely meal given we had no activities. There was an option for snorkeling that a couple of people went on but it turned out to be pretty boring, apart from the ride out on a craft that looked to be very unseaworthy! Relaxed on the beach for a bit and went in the ocean, which was very warm. Then headed up for lunch before coming back down for some more time on the beach. Had a nice dinner with the group and sat around talking for a bit; although was still falling asleep by 9:30 so not an overly late night. Had a startle by the “security” when we headed back to our bungalows in the dark. They wore plain clothes, sometimes a hoodie and carried sticks around and like to hang out in the dark. I hadn’t notice the guy the previous night until I reached my bungalow door and then I was frantically trying to get the key in and open the door! ? I think the hotel should maybe consider a security vest for the guys to avoid any future heart attacks by guests!

Friday September 15 – Isalo to Ifaty

 Had our final drive today west to the beach town of Ifaty.  En route we drove through the sapphire mining area, including the town of Ilakaka.  This area of Madagascar is poorer than the other areas we visited so we were not allowed to get out of the bus much during the drive. In Ilakaka we stopped on a bridge to watch the townspeople panning in the river for sapphire bits.   Don’t think they were likely getting much but the town (and many others on the drive seemed to have an inordinate amount of gem shops).  After the river, as we drove through town, we spotted a guy in one of the stalls wearing a Canucks shirt, which was a bit of a shock!  It did look like they had a number of used clothes for sale in the markets that were left by or sent from North America so it was likely sent by one of the many bandwagon fans! ?  We passed by a rum “factory” which looked like it produced something that would cause instant blindness.   I think we were also happy to stay on the bus there and avoid any samples! We also passed by a number of Tombs, including on shaped like a large boat.   We stopped in the beach city of Tulear for lunch at a nice looking place where I had a pizza,  which was good.  We then carried on the short bit north to Ifaty and our hotel on the beach.   I lucked out and got a bungalow right on the beach.  Although it did required quite the climb to go to the restaurant!  We hung out at the bar after freshening up and enjoyed the fact that we didn’t have any more early mornings and long bus rides!   After dinner headed down to the bungalow and had no problem falling asleep with the crashing waves. 

Thursday September 14 – Isalo

Today we would be doing our final nature hike and have our last chance to see lemurs in Isalo National Park.  This area is desert like and very warm and there was an opportunity to see 4 different types of lemur.  The park was close to the hotel but required a few kilometre ride in the bus on a very bumpy road.  Once we got to the park we set out up a hill, spotting some birds, a frog and a large stick insect along the way.   At the top our guide pointed out the two types of tombs, which were caves in the cliffs with the lower cave being the initial “drying cave” and the higher ones up the cliff being the permanent tombs, which required rock climbing skills for the family to place the coffins and bones! We saw a plant called the elephant foot which is a plant endemic to Madagascar.  It has a big bulbous bottom in the shape of an elephant foot with yellow flowers. We hiked up to a viewpoint where we got a good view of the rocks and the canyon.   We also saw a grass snake,  which was super fast, and a scorpion,  which our guide found under a rock.  We carried on to the natural pool,  which was a little blue lagoon and waterfall in the canyon.   There was a family of lemurs beside the pool,  chasing each other around.   Some of the group went for a quick swim while others relaxed in the shade.  We carried on in the heat through the grassland along the edge of the canyon (wondered how many snakes were slithering around in there!).  Finally we descended down the canyon to a campsite area where we had a bbq zebu lunch.  After lunch we walked through the canyon to two more natural pools,  where some of the group did some more swimming.  I was tempted to go in until two lemurs approached with the intention of liberating some bananas from some of our packs.   One was extremely persistent and would not give up even when I had my camera in his face!  His efforts paid off though as he managed to open the zippers of someone’s pack, poke his head in and grab a banana! As we walked back through the canyon we saw a massive spider,  which was apparently still a “baby” in a web alongside the path.   When we got back to the camp we spotted a sifaka, who lived alone.   As we approached it “danced” across the ground and went up a tree,  topping off the visit for everyone! Hiked back to the car after a long hot day out and took a swim in the hotel swimming pool when we got back before dinner.  An amazing day with other closest encounter with the lemurs. 

Wednesday September 13 – Ranomafana to Isalo

Another early start this morning as we had a long drive further south to Isalo.  As we would be stopping in a park along the way for a walk,  we would not have time to stop for a lunch so we made a stop at a store to pick up some more “road snacks”.  I opted for a bag of Doritos ?.  Throughout the drive our guide Sol imparted more information on local customs on us – this time about circumcision ceremonies.  These often take place when the boys  2 or 3 years old.   There appeared to be two different situations – one where the maternal grandfather is required to eat the foreskin (put into a banana) or another where the foreskin is placed on the end of a shotgun barrel and blown away!   After this information I don’t think the bananas at breakfast were quite as popular!   Apparently some areas have spear throwing fights to accompany the ceremony as well where the purpose is apparently not to harm (not sure how that works when a bunch of sharp objects are being tossed around!).  Along the way we stopped at a silk factory where they showed the process from cocoon to finished product, which was interesting.   We also stopped at a factory making handmade paper with flowers pressed in it.   While we were there waiting we started talking to a French man who mentioned Normandy when he learned some of us were Canadians.  He spoke with fondness about how he was a young boy when the Canadians and Americans landed on the beaches and liberated his town.  We were a bit shocked as he didn’t look much older than 67 or 68 yet he was apparently 80!  Definitely looked good for his age, which he attributed to always being in love! After noon we stopped at Anja National Park for a walk to spot ringtail lemurs and different chameleons.  We got to see a few different groups of ring tail lemurs, including some with babies clinging to their stomaches and backs.   They start out on the stomach and graduate to the back when they are a few months old.   The group was heading to the water to eat some dirt to aid digestion.   We were able to get pretty close and got some good shots while they were in the open.    We ran into a few others along the way including two sitting right by the path.  We also saw a chameleon,  which one of the guides fed a grasshopper on a stick so we got to see his tongue.   Hard to get a shot though but I did manage to get a photo of him with a cricket hanging out of his mouth when he got too full!  After the walk we carried on in the bus heading south.   We got to a photo stop of some rock formations known as the “southern gate” when we came across a group of vigilantes carrying sticks,  spears and a gun or two that were tracking a “zebu gangster” who had recently stolen some zebu from a zebu farmer.  They seemed friendly to us but I’m pretty sure they would likely kill or maim the guy stole the zebu!  We finally made it to our hotel in Isalo, which had large rooms surrounding a pool but the door locks were a bit finicky.   For dinner I had a zebu steak, which was good.   Another tiring day so an early night.