Madagascar – scenery with the Wow factor!

A local dhow with Adina in the background

Having dropped anchor in the bay by Maribe village on the small island of Mitsio, the warm African sun demanded it was time for the somewhat tired crew of Adina to set to restoring their energy levels and adjusting to a new land. The air had such a stillness about it that you almost wanted to shout out to hear if you could create an echo. But that would be positively rude and the baobab trees would shudder in disapproval and wish you away.

From the outset Madagascar was very different to anywhere we’ve previously explored on this trip. The land was different, the people were different, the smells were different. This is part of the sailing life; you have to continually adapt and get used to new environments. We actually enjoy it, and often make haste to explore and learn. But we got that feeling that here there was no need to rush; if things changed, they changed very slowly.

Of course those who know us well will know we get ants in our pants after a short time. And you just ask David Attenborough, Madagascar has some big ants.

Brown lemurs – or Maki as they are known in Madagascar

People came to the boat asking for things. We’d been warned that in Madagascar you give more than you receive in trading as people living in the outer areas have very little. Fair enough, better to be fore-warned. Some people would say hello and then outright just ask for a gift. It shocked us at first, it was like a new neighbour arriving and us knocking on their door and demanding a gift. We just weren’t used to it. So we’d act a little taken back and ask if they have things to trade. Some would remain silent and try their luck again. Luckily others have been before us and so villagers knew yachts trade their cargo for fruit or vegetables. We didn’t care what is was, we had bought supplies to help, we just sought a little bit of effort in return. Some would promise to return. Often it was just a few limes, an egg or two but we didn’t mind. But then we learnt the asking doesn’t stop. You give one thing and then there will be a request for something else. You’d offer that and then they’d ask for something more. Mamma Mia – it’s difficult and it’s hard.

Energy levels up, we wandered into the village ashore. Some girls greeted us on the beach, “Did we have a gift?” We asked if we could look around the village and the girls escorted us. This was real Africa. Huts made from thatch, chickens running around, fish sits out drying in the sun, mothers toss rice to remove the husks, a pot sits on a burning stove, cattle seek shade from the blazing sun, kids wave and then run screaming in a game. Susie can speak French and this helped a great deal. Or it didn’t help as she was bombarded with requests from the girls.

Assorted dhows and pirogues

Not far to the north of us were some beaches and we’d noted the odd yacht anchoring off them in the daytime so we went off for a spin. The weather here is dominated by land and sea breezes. Local fishermen use these to full effect; they sail out with the one and return with the other, fishing in the lull between the two breezes. The breezes are as regular as clockwork. On Adina we used them to anchor off one beach then moving to another beach when the winds changed. And it was miles and miles of empty beaches. And scorching hot. Bliss, heavenly, Africa slowing you down.

Refreshed, we headed south to the main tourist area around Nosy Be. When you think touristy you think Thailand or perhaps Spain. It is true there are tourists but it’s not exactly like the place is flooded and the locals live happily side-by-side with tourism. One particularly good example was the small island of Komba. The villagers live close to the beach and do a flourishing trade in handmade handicrafts as day trippers come in. A few small ‘guest houses’ sit amongst the local homes for the more adventurous. The villagers set up in the morning and are packed away come 4pm and life continues quite happily. It’s bizarrely wonderful. We met a Malagasy lady called Yolande who runs a restaurant called Chez Yolande. Yolande is a character, full stop. Married to a Frenchmen she’s seen the world, and best of all she used to sail with her husband so she knew all about the sins of sailing – “Oh my god, I don’t miss all that anti-fouling”. In her time she had even run the gauntlet of pirates around the Seychelles. Kindly she offers up water, free showers and her grandchildren to mind our dinghy. And she cooks a marvelous zebu au poivre verte – steak with green peppercorn sauce. Who can’t resist a pepper steak and some foul cheap Argentinean wine? So we found ourselves settling in. Her young grandson Lancelot became our companion. He escorted us to find the tame lemurs, drawing notes of admiration from the adults asking him if he was now a guide. Lancelot was young, sensitive and looked out for us all the time. He joined us on a five hour hike into the mountains, always looking out for Susie. And he was very conscious of hygiene, once stopping to wash his hands in a river and asking Susie if she had any soap. Shame on us, we didn’t!

Lancelot our local guide

Time ticked by and we needed to formally check into Madagascar, announce our arrival and secure a visa and passport stamp. In virtually all countries you check in immediately but with ports here being far and wide, it takes time to get to an appropriate port. The main port in Nosy Be is called Hellville, a very apt name in the opinion of most cruisers. We’d read a report by a cruiser visiting the prior year who highlighted how Madagascar officials were corrupt and that we should essentially resist. We’ve always been strenuous in abiding with the law but at the same time we detest corruption. And most taxi drivers! A simple polite ‘no’ has worked in the past. We’d researched and got all our facts and were ready.

The port is busy and you hire a so called ‘boat boy’ to look after your dinghy. There are many boats coming in and out and there’s nowhere to simply tie up and leave your dinghy so it’s the only way. First stop, the Police who handle visas. We show them an email from the Madagascar consulate showing the prices. Then they tell us we must have a ‘droit d’arraisonnement’ for the boat and it will cost us 80,000Ar and it’s a holiday day so they want “time and a half” 120,000Ar. We ask for official documentation and get shown a handwritten note in a book stating the fee. It’s a blatant bribe and we tell them we will pay for our visa but not their ‘fee’. We get shown a tatty receipt book bought in a shop. In it we can see they have charged cruisers anything from 60,000Ar to 240,000Ar. We have a local contact and phone him but he simply apologises and admits they are corrupt. It goes on and on as we resist. The Police put Susie on the phone to someone they claim is the Chief of Police. At one stage Susie politely asks him to please speak slower so she can understand the numbers he is quoting as French is not her first language and the response is that French is their language and she should speak it better. He tells her that if we do not pay the fee they will not give us a visa and we will then be arrested for not having a visa. It’s a step too far, we give up and pay the corrupt officials the money. It leaves a bad taste – this is not how to attract visitors to your country.

Fausto on-board Adina

We put it behind us as fast as we can and hit the colourful fresh fruit and vegetable market. There are some lovely woven baskets, some of the best we’ve ever seen. We spot two people who look like tourists walking around carrying baskets and we venture to ask how much they paid for them. The two people are an Italian couple called Mauro and Fausta who have a holiday home in Nosy Be. After a short fun chat they invite us to come to their house for lunch – we agree to give them a call in a few days when we will be anchored closer to where they live.

With the boat provisioned and refueled we left Hellville and its corrupt police and headed to an island called Sakatia. Mauro and Fausta come to the boat for coffee and cake and we then go to their home. We’ve been lucky enough to see some holiday homes on our travels but their house takes the biscuit for its views. It sits atop a headland with absolutely stupendous views – if you fancy hiring it you can click right here. And like all good Italians they cook up a feast! Friends are made all too quickly.

Back on Sakatia island, the next day a South African by the name of Leon who lives ashore calls out for us to join him for a sundowner. Unbeknown to us, Graham the marina owner in the Seychelles had emailed him to look out for us. So every night we join Leon and any other yachts for a sundowner ashore. It’s not a bad lifestyle!

Hiking with the Italians!

Days fly by as we reciprocate with Mauro and Fausta who join us for a day sail, another day we do a walk and a long Sunday lunch on a beach, another day we explore Sakatia together with a guide they organise, thoroughly enjoying ourselves with them. We never expected to meet expats as we sailed but it’s been a real joy – by nature of what they are doing they are all out-going and adventurous, plus hospitable to boot. One day we hope we too will be the same!

Time to move on, we sail to a gorgeous island called Munoko. The scenery is striking and beautiful. In the background are mountains coloured in shades of red-brown earth, pink, grey and various colors of green. We can see the splendid Madagascan ferns with their palm fans. Ashore the village is all shades of brown as numerous fishing d’hows sit on the beach waiting for their crew to head out. We wonder ashore thinking people who live in such a beautiful place can only be welcoming. Negative. They charge us for a short fifteen minute ‘tour’ featuring a tortoise eating rubbish, some skinny lemurs and a small baobab tree. And of course the old guide wants a gift. So we wander down to the waterfront and cheer ourselves up watching a young boy playing happily with a handmade model boat with sails.

The future of Madagascar

One of the highlights for us here so far are the sailing d’hows. D’hows come in various shapes and sizes from small pirogues with square sails to large d’hows that can take twenty or more people and on board which hauling up the sails takes many a man. The sails are made from assorted materials, some being nothing more than rice bags sewn together or large pieces of tarpaulin or cloth. Most look like they have been around a long, long time, a sail without some hole is a rare sight. They are used for fishing, going to the market or visiting neighboring islands. The people know exactly how and when to use the wind. In flat seas they effortlessly glide by, we shout out the local greeting “Bolatsara!” and they wave back. At times there are fleets of them, wonderful, beautiful.

Back on board Adina our Solomon Islands gecko has made two appearances. It’s over a year now that the happy little chappy has been with us. We’re pleased to report he is growing slowly. We also have a sneaky feeling he popped out to remind us that he is the Adina gecko as Susie had been very tempted to adopt a baby green Madagascar gecko from Sakatia!

So we’ve still another month here. The highlights so far have been the spectacular scenery and the wonderful sailing in flat seas. Soon we start heading south, the villages will be more remote and we hope we can meet and embrace the local people. Our motto has always been expect the unexpected and it’s serving us well in Madagascar.

For more pictures, click here