19 August 2025
Today, we leave the lush highlands and head into the dry, semi-desert landscapes of southern Madagascar.
Unfortunately as we were packing this morning we discovered that our bags had been rifled through and both of us had had money taken – it must have been while we were out on the night walk as that was the only time we had left our day bags (because it was raining and we didn’t need them). It is testament to how safe we had felt until then that it didn’t occur to us to lock them or put things in the safe. Our planned early start is delayed as hotel management are called in. We are advised to file a police report but realistically the money isn’t that much in the scheme of things and it is worth so much more to us to continue the trip so not to miss out on any of the planned activities. We do write up an incident report that is shared with appropriate people and certainly learned our lesson with regards to security.
We are later than expected in leaving but it hasn’t affected things too much (although we do have another long day). We head back out over our familiar potholed roads – and at one point there are children bailing out of a giant pothole. We have a short stop at the impressive Andriamamovoka Falls that are on the Namorona River that runs through the Ranomafana National Park. While we are there we are delighted to see a ring-tailed mongoose come across the road.
We note that there (always) seem to be lots of people walking along carrying shovels of many different shapes and sizes.
We see a peculiar shaped car behind us and learn that it is a locally made vehicle from a factory in Fianarantasoa (that we are about to drive through). The factory started producing handmade cars in the 1980s with Renault engines and aimed to boost economic vitality in the region by providing local employment and producing cars suitable for Madagascar’s domestic needs. The cars (under the brand name Karenjy) are built with fibreglass and polyester body parts. There are now a range of different models.
Fianarantasoa has very similar structure and culture to Antananarivo because, during time of Kingdoms, the queen of Merina tribe wanted to expand their territory and sent troops down to establish a town in Fianarantasoa. The area is now home to the Betsileo people, the third most populous group in Madagascar.
As well as cars, there is a local rum and people often make rum liqueurs, infusing with vanilla and honey, or ginger etc. We saw some variations in our hotel last night.
We also pass wineries that were established by missionaries during French occupation. They grow various hybrid varieties and produce red, white, rosé and grey wines. These are not stored in barrels but in large concrete tanks. Wines are drunk young as only lasts 7 yrs.
On the way we learn that the names of many towns include Arabic days of week to indicate what day their main market is held. It would be useful if we could understand the language! We have learnt a few phrases: “salama” is hello, and “misaotra” is thank you.
We see various public buildings (town halls, schools, hospitals) painted in white, orange and purple. These are the party colours of the TGV political party that is currently in power and always ‘win’ the elections because of corruption. Painting buildings makes it look like they have done something.
As we come down off the highlands the landscape changes again: wide open plains with mountains all round. I am a bit confused with the geography because we are still on the high plateau at around 1200m elevation. It is getting warmer and sunnier. We are heading southwest.
We stop at Ambalavao, the name means ‘new zebu enclosure’ and zebu auctions are held here. Ambalavao is also renowned for its high-quality handmade silk and paper, crafted using ancient techniques.
We visit a silk workshop and they show us the process of making silk. They use primarily wild Malagasy silk worms that produce a thick, unique silk from the Taipa tree forest that we passed through in the central highlands. Silk cocoons from wild fed on Tapia trees are a darker colour. They also show us some with a pale creamy colour – these were fed on mulberry leaves.
The silkworm cocoons are turned inside out and any insect remains removed; several are stacked together to form a ball. The cocoons are boiled for 4 days and then the strands are pulled apart (looking a bit like wool fleece). We see women ‘spinning’ silk threads on their knees. Our guide explains that the silk is dyed using vegetables to colour it (all except blues which use chemical dyes): red – rosewood bark; yellows and oranges – turmeric; browns – mushrooms; greens – leaves; purples – beetroot; and then the colours fixed using dried agave and eucalyptus leaves. We then see a loom where the silk weaving is done – and then of course a shop where we can see the finished product. It is a very much coarser product than we are used to.
Then we visit the Antemoro Paper Mill, which has a rich history that dates back to the Arab influence on the region. It’s a unique opportunity to see the traditional methods in action and learn about this centuries-old craft.
Paper made from the bark of the Avoha tree. It is boiled for 4 hours to soften it, then pounded for 15 mins. It is then mixed to slurry with water and spread on frame, then the water is removed. The frame with soft paper is then moved to a table, ‘cut’ and decorated with flowers ( water on top to stick) then left in the sun to dry. The gorgeous lady who showed us the process is 68 and has been doing this for 38 years. She is such a delight and has so much fun showing us things. She very proudly says that she doesn’t need glasses!
Then we head southwest and it becomes drier and drier; we are starting to see the dry semi-desert landscapes of the south. The roads are much better too – fewer trucks and fewer potholes. We see some stunning scenery and some spectacular granite rock formations. We stop by one of these at the Anja Community Reserve. This reserve is managed by the local village community and is home to a variety of unique lemur species, including the iconic ring-tailed, Catta lemur.
After a picnic lunch we explore the reserve with a guide and tracker, neither of whose services would actually have been required as we come across a large group of ring-tailed lemurs feeding on the yellow berries of the lilac trees, just around the corner as we start our walk. It is wonderful to see them happily just doing their thing and we could have spent hours just watching them – and taking photos of course. I joke that we have come to the kingdom of King Julien (king of the lemurs) and then am astounded to see one sitting up on a branch with his arms out in exactly the posture of the animated character.
Much as we’d love to stay and watch the lemurs, we still have a long way to go so have to be on our way. We had asked Kenny about Malagasy music and, back in the bus, he shares with us some music from a local band that have toured globally – initially some capella-type singing (that I quite enjoyed) and then with instruments (that I wasn’t so fond of).
Now that we are in the semi-desert areas, the fruits and vegetables being grown have changed too. We see big plantations of mango trees; there are tamarind trees, papaya and prickly pear cactus. Marula trees (fruit used to make Amarula Cream liqueur) currently have no leaves; they are in the same family as mango. Cassava, sweet potato and tobacco are all grown here – and we see lots of corn hung up to dry. There are rice paddy fields here but they are only rain fed – have to wait for the rainy season.
There are termite mounds; we learn that sometimes termite larvae are used to feed chickens and the mounds used as material in building houses.
We see a Sacred Rock Formation marking the place where tribespeople who wanted to avoid being subjects to kings and queens of Merina as they expanded their kingdom committed suicide. For a long time it was Fady or taboo for Merina people to visit the site.
Even though we have ‘come down’ from the highlands, where we have a petrol (and toilet) stop at Ihosy it is still at 730m altitude. Ihosy is the capital of the Bara people. We learn that zebu are very important to the Bara people – young men used to have to steal a zebu in order to prove that they were worthy of being married. Men here may be polygamous in order to have enough people/family to protect their zebu herds. There are zebu bandits and lots of people with rifles. They do have to have permits for the rifles but have them to protect their zebu as they are a very important investment. Zebu sell for $2-5Million Madagascan Ariary (NZD1-2,000) each.
In the desert, Pandanas species are aquatic so are indicator plants for finding water. There are also aquatic bamboo species.
Just when we thought we were coming down, we go back up again to Hu plateau – grassy and flat. Corn is grown for biofuel and eucalyptus for essential oil. From the plateau we see sunset over the Isalo mountains – fantastic colours viewed as we drive across the grass plateau.
Isalo is our final destination for today. We are staying at the Isalo Rock Lodge. Time to explore tomorrow, tonight we eat and then fall into bed.
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