Madagascar. It has an exotic hold over the imagination, conjuring up a land of wild nature: plains of baobab trees, armies of lemurs, unique animals, and lush rainforests.
Since so few people visit (roughly 350,000 per year), our imagination runs wild when we hear its name. It’s some otherworldly region, a lush rainforest teeming with wildlife and white sand beaches from end to end. It would be like Avatar.
Most people I talked to thought the same. After all, with so few visitors there, the chances of knowing someone who has been is tiny.
But the Madagascar most of us envision is not the one that exists. The country is quite arid thanks to mining, deforestation, and climate change. These days, the landscape is a lot less lush than it once was. It’s not as wild and exotic as we think.
Yet there’s a lot of beauty here. From Westworld-like deserts and tiny tropical rainforests to valleys filled with rice fields and giant mountains, Madagascar is still outrageously magical and raw. While I’ll be posting many articles on what to see and do, how to visit the country, and my experience there in the upcoming weeks, I thought I’d start with some photographs from my visit to set the scene:
Lemurs, lemurs, and more lemurs. There’s over 60 species in the country.
One of the beautiful and lush valleys on the island.
The Paradise bird. Just one of the many colorful birds I saw.
“King Julien” lemurs (so called because this is the kind that was the character in the movie).
The poor infrastructure in Madagascar makes the country hard to get around.
There’s a lot of chameleons here too.
Madagascar has this samosa tasting spring roll. I ate them all the time. They made me very happy. Delicious and at three cents each, budget friendly.
Baby lemurs!
This lemur is actually asleep. It sleeps with its eyes open to deter predators.
Some of the famous baobab trees.
A beautiful pastel sunset over the capital, Antananarivo!
A narrow bridge made even more crowded by a weekly market.
Always be on the lookout for thieves!
A candid shot!
So many lemurs, so little time.
Hiking in Isalo national park, a very Westworld like place.
This spider was frighteningly huge.
Taking in the amazing view!
Learning about the country with my awesome guide, Patrick.
Out for a hike with the Intrepid group.
The zebu (a type of cow) market, where people buy and sell cattle.
The hills and valleys of Madagascar fill up the long, slow driving days. And they are a wonderful sight.
This is what most of Madagascar looks like.
Just another Lemur doing his thing!
Chatting with my awesome guide Patrick.
This big fella was just relaxing in the sun.
Home sweet home!
Taking the classic Instagram picture!
Ok, one last lemur picture.
I found my new best friend while in Madagascar!
Sixteen days was not nearly enough time to visit a country the size of France , especially since Madagascar severely lacks decent infrastructure. roads are filled with potholes and there’s no regular train service (a common theme in my upcoming posts).
So, while there was much I missed, I’m grateful for everything I did see.
I guess, as always, it’s just another reason to go back, right?
Note: I went to Madagascar with Intrepid Travel as part of our ongoing partnership. They paid for the tour and my expenses during the trip. I paid for my flights to and from Madagascar. They offer 10% off their tours to readers so click the link and save on your next trip.
P.S. – We are hosting a Q&A with professional travel photographer Laurence Norah on October 29th, so be sure to attend if you want to step up your photo game!
Posted: 10/20/2014 | October 20th, 2014
Looking for more expert tips and awesome itineraries? Check out my brand new guide to Iceland! This two hundred page guidebook will help you get off the tourist trail, save money, and see the best of the country. You’ll see the local side of Iceland as I take you off the beaten path and give you my obsessively curated list of places to stay, eat, and things to see! Just click here to download it today!