Malagasy Cocktail: straight up with a pinch of vanilla

Antananarivo, capital city of Madagascar. The name takes some getting used to, and a few spiced-rums to accomplish correct pronunciation. 

Washing dries along river banks – outdoor laundromats of colourful fabrics.

Street sellers with produce of small dried fish – the introduced species to control the rice eating worms in the paddies.

Wild ginger dominates disturbed landscapes – masses of pale yellow to white flowers sit atop hairstyles of lengthy green leaves.

Rice paddies strewn throughout the forgotten kingdom are dotted with make-shift scarecrows of sticks and dried material … yellow fields ready for harvest, green fields still growing, patchy fields reflecting the sky waiting for planting. Over 20 varieties of “vary” (rice) can be found at the local markets, of which red rice is the most common.

Ginger rum, flambe pineapple, thick fresh guava juice, staple rice with local cow zebu.

Green geckos, red chameleons, yellow frogs - if one is still for long enough a curious visitor is bound to appear.

Hand-weaved baskets transporting produce for the day.

Banana palms line rice paddies, freshly harvested for yellow street stalls.

Plastic rugs big enough for one lady and her produce serve as the informal shops that line the pavement malls.

Dried rice plants piled in stacks waiting for next seasons planting.

The endemic Traveller's Palms dominate over April splashes off hibiscus, honeysuckle, frangipani and bougainvillea.

Piles of bricks accompany the roadside periodically waiting to be stacked into.

Buzzing bodies, bare-footed children, bustling blue-skied eyes waiting with bags for buses and beer.

But far east of the capital, in the forgiving haven of Andasibe, the whale-echo of indri-indri calls awakens one to the calming drizzle of rain forest mornings. Eating 1-2kg of fruit per day, these are the biggest of the islands 100-plus lemur species. Balancing doesn't seem to be a problem when you are this big – these are the only lemurs without a tail, still being able to jump metres between trees. On the outskirts of this protected area, the small village provides knowledgeable guides compulsory for park entry, accommodation, staple rice dishes with local zebu beef, ginger rum, fresh guava juice, pineapple flambé and “ranovola” (burnt rice drink accompaniment that keeps blood sugar levels balanced).

The pockets of forest that have survived Madagascar's slashing and burning destruction are as dense as if they still encompassed the entire island. Giant living timber towers over tree ferns, other twisted trunks and massive Vakona plants, another other-worldly endemic.

Too much to experience, too little time. Too much magic, not enough capacity to embrace it all in one go.

Saturated, satisfied, smiling.

“Mora mora” - remember to take it slow... 

More from the island: 
Operation Smile - Madagascar Mission
A Taste for Medicinal Plants of Madagascar