Sometimes it’s good to be cautious–and other times it’s better to go with your gut.
People told us not to visit Madagascar, that political conflict made the country unsafe for tourists.
But we decided to go anyway because if we had listened to those voices, we’d never have gone to Nairobi, Kampala, or Kigali.
We are cautious when we travel, but aware that our best and most eye-opening experiences are places well off the beaten path.
And, Anantanrivo, Madagascar’s capital city, is a place we fell in love with.
The narrow streets, alleyways, cobblestone roads, and historic buildings remind you, at times, of parts of Western Europe. At the same time the markets, the noise, the traffic, the energy, the goats and livestock walking along the highways, were all quintessentially African.
Our journey started as we did a field visit to RTM. RTM is an Italian NGO, working with farmers to provide alternatives to slash and burn agriculture–which is practiced in many rural areas as a way to provide nutrients to the soil. Unfortunately, the nutrients don’t last more than a season or two, forcing farmers to burn more forest.
Afterwards we met with Xavier Rakotonjanahary, Rice Breeding Coordinator, National Center of Applied Research for Rural Development. Xavier works with rural rice farmers, helping develop different breeds of rice that will help reduce labor, fertilizer, and other inputs.
We spent Danielle’s birthday trekking in the rainforest in search of lemurs in the national rainforest of Antanarivo. Lemurs are only found in Madagascar (with the exception of the island of Comoros) largely because their ancestors were displaced everywhere else due to monkeys and apes.
In Madagascar, 90 percent of the country’s original forest has been destroyed and lemurs are presently endangered due to deforestation and hunting. Additionally several species of lemurs are extinct, especially the larger species. The smaller lemurs are nocturnal and all we could see was their amazing red eyes on a night trek. We also saw large chameleons, turtles and giant snails.
During the day we saw lemurs playing (they travel as families) and eating flowers, leaves and fruits. In our video below you will see them playing, and can listen to a brief explanation about lemurs from our tour guide. They are pretty incredible animals with deposable thumbs and long tails that they use to balance themselves between trees.
In summary, if you are considering a visit to Madagascar, go. You won’t regret it!
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As we talked to locals in Gaborone, Botswana’s capital city, people were so proud to talk about the things they love about their country.
We love the energy of Maputo. It is vibrant, entrepreneurial, positive, and alive. Though Mozambique is not without its problems, its capital city is clearly on the move, transforming itself and melding some of the best parts of its rich and diverse cultures.
The next day we spent an awe-inspiring couple of hours with
The bus ride from Lusaka, Zambia to Harare, Zimbabwe lasted four hours longer than it should have (total trip was nearly 12 hours). We spent four hours at the border crossing, where everyone’s belongings were examined, less for security and more to squeeze as much money as possible from undeclared goods. Baboons outnumbered travellers at the crossing and, having mastered the art of swiping food from unaware passengers, they seemed to want to be near the humans most afraid of them (ie. me).
We started our first day in Zimbabwe with a meeting with Raol DuToit, who has spent twenty years with the World Wildlife Fund and now works directly for rhino conversation. Raoul is an encyclopaedia on every major conservation issue relating to Southern Africa.
Bugs. When I think of Zambia, I think of bugs.
In Malawi, we visited the Lilongwe Wildlife Centre, a project supported by companies like the Body Shop, providing sanctuary space for rescued, confiscated, orphaned and injured wild animals of Malawi. While touring their facility we met Kambuk (which means “leopard” in Chichewa), who was soundly sleeping in his 2,500 sq meter backyard of fenced green landscape. He was rescued by the Lilongwe Wildlife Centre after poachers shattered his knee in Nyika National Park (making it impossible for him to ever return to the wild.) As we toured the facility nearly every animal we saw – from baboons to alligators – had a similar Cinderella story of overcoming insurmountable odds to survive and, in most cases, return back to the wild.
We’ve taken some long bus rides in Africa. We spent eight bumpy hours on a bus from Nairobi to Arusha and another eight from Arusha to Dar Es Salaam. The longest so far, though, has been from Kampala, Uganda to Kigali, Rwanda.
People here are very laid back and the feeling is contagious! We managed to go three days without a cup of coffee didn’t seem to mind.
Actually, we never even made it to Kigoma. Precision Air, one of only two airlines that flies to the remote region, had just suspended all flights for the next several weeks and the other airline was all booked.
In many parts sub-Saharan Africa, 60 percent of children come to school in the morning without breakfast, if they attend school at all. Many suffer from health and developmental problems, including stunted growth. Exhausted from hunger and poor nutrition, they often have trouble paying attention and learning during class.