Looking for friends from the Amporaha camp in Nosy Be

Hello Nosy Be locals and visitors... Hi Francis, I hope your stay was very enriching...thanks a lot for the photos, I can almost smell the ylang-ylang....thanks so much for the updates, see you soon on the "Amporaha camp" forum, catch you later....jlou82 😎

Hello everyone, I’ve just returned to the mainland for good, only a week after Francis. I enjoyed reading all your messages. For those who’d like to get in touch, here’s my new email address: madaroumsNOSPA@Pneuf.fr. Of course, you’ll need to remove the "NOSPA" and the "M" to get the correct email address. Best, Franck

Hi there, A little photo I found that shows the Fascène field in August 1958.....

Hi everyone, I couldn’t send you the rest of the photos last time because uploading them in Nosy Be was painfully slow. Here are the few photos I had prepared.

I set off in search of a large pirogue, accompanied by three fishermen—one of them a legendary swordfish fisherman from Analalava. We came back empty-handed, but what an adventure!

The week-long journey: left Hell-Ville by ferry to Ankify, then a decent dirt road by taxi to Ambanja, followed by a beautifully paved (too beautiful?) road toward Tana until Antsohihy. Then we were stuck for two days because no taxi wanted to take the road to Analalava (we understood why on the way back). Came back empty-handed.

Best wishes to all, see you soon, Francis

1) Road and small wooden bridge between Ankify and Ambanja 2) Condition of the Ambanja-Antsohihy road (toward Tana) 3) Look! An unexpected guest on the road 4) Are the roads too nice? 5) Town of Antsohihy 6) Team meal (mouskiky) 7) Port of Antsohihy 8) A small restaurant in Antsohihy 9) Port of Antsohihy, the speedboat to Analalava 10) Boarding—over 60 people plus cargo 11) 8 hours of *putt-putt* speedboat ride 12) Unusual race 13) Port of Analalava 14 & 15) Main street of Analalava, Varatraza dust 16) The big market of Analalava 17, 18, 19) 7 hours on a road in this condition with an exceptional driver—now we get why only one 4x4 taxi dares to make the trip 20) Back to Hell-Ville and a meal

My name is Bruno LATASTE, I knew the Amporaha camp well in 1960 (I was little) and in 1970 (I was a bit older), and I had the chance to return there many times in the 90s and more recently in 2007 and 2008. I go back to Nosy Be regularly, about once a year, and to Madagascar more generally. I knew the PALLARDYs, GOSSIAUXs, LEHMANNs, and many others. I had the chance to run into Georges in HELL-VILLE in 1998 during a stay at Amporaha (camping on the beach for a week: unforgettable!). He was trying to recover some land on the old camp. I don’t know how that turned out, but in any case, the Italians settled nearby.

See you soon,

BRUNO

Good evening Bruno, Welcome to the club! The "former-youngsters" club is growing. I spoke to your dad on the phone two days ago—he told me we’d crossed paths, and I had no idea you were there. Next time, then, especially since some are already talking about joining me there. Marie-Jo wants to get in touch with Danièle. I’ll contact you privately. Best regards, Francis

Hey Bruno 😎 and hello everyone.

My name’s Bernard Pallardy, and I was in Ivato at the same time as Bruno—so that was back in 1970. We knew the same people. Even though I’ve never gone back, I’ve never forgotten Madagascar, let alone Nosy Be. And today, what a surprise! My phone rang, I picked up, and it was Francis on the line. Memories, memories.

See you soon,

Bernard

Hey there, It's been a while since I last heard from you. Glad Francis is keeping it together and keeping the memory of his beach alive. I'll write to you at the address I still have. You must still have mine—it hasn’t changed. Bye Bruno

😎 Hi, it's Patrick, the son of Sergeant Major "Radio" BNK, aka BEN, in the French Air Force (Romain BEDNAREK) at the S.T.S base in Ivato. I did indeed know Nathalie GAC in 1969 at Amporaha camp—it seems her father was a captain.

Below are some photos: my brother Jean-Marc, my brother Thierry, and my little sister Emmanuelle (in front of our tent).

The black-and-white photo: that’s our arrival in Fascene in July 1969.

09/09/2008 Hello BNK,

Ah! Great news—if you knew Nathalie Gac and her family in Nosy Be, in 1969 her father, Captain Gac, was the camp leader. We must have crossed paths because I was at Amporaha during that time; I was 15 years old. Nathalie was 14, and she had a younger brother, Bertrand. The whole team that’s reunited now is looking for the few missing people, including the Gac, Perrin, Denis, and Delpech families, among others...

Don’t hesitate to pass along any messages if possible. Thanks for the photos—we’re planning a reunion and a "then and now" clip using the photos and the S8 footage. It’s so nice to reconnect with the old-timers from Madagascar and Nosy Be.

Looking forward to hearing from you. Best regards, Patrick

😎 I got a call earlier this evening from Francis, who’s put in a lot of effort into his research. I’m reaching out to my brother—he knew way more people than I did because he was really well-known in Ivat for his judo skills when he was just 11. In ’69, after I got back to school in France, I had one or more pen pals, including Nathalie Gac.

Yes! Francis is doing an amazing job—who would’ve thought the old Madagascar crew would reunite one day? Great idea with the site. Hope we find as many former campers as possible. See you soon. Véloma. Patrick

Hello Bernard, I think we know each other; in fact, I was in Ivato in '70. My father was a helicopter and airplane pilot. I knew Nosy Be well, where I used to go diving with the CMAI. There was also a CMAI club at Lake Ambohibo, near Ivato, where we used to sail. I think that together with Hervé Muiron and a certain Olivier (whose last name I don’t remember), we had some wild nights and parties at the base with friends. We must have also played some tennis together, and I seem to remember that it often ended in laughter... My name is Philippe Agrissais, I live in the Paris region. I travel a lot and recently went to Tana and Nosy Be for work, and I actually contacted Francis. You can reach me at philippe.agrissais@free.fr It’s crazy how small the world is! Maybe see you soon, Philippe

Hi everyone, I’ve been a bit away lately, but I’m back now. I had a call with Lataste Bruno (from Réunion) and Pallardy Bernard. Little by little, we’re making progress. Next weekend (Saturday and Sunday, no less!), a few of us crazy folks are getting together to party in the Paris area and... if they don’t get too carried away with the punch, they should decide on the name for our future Site. I’m also letting you know that I’m heading back to Nosy-Be from October 29th to December 18th—yes, again! (I heard you whispering, no need for the side comments!) and... if you love me, follow me... Right here (photo) to wake up to this (photo 2). Cheers to all, Francis

Friendly hello from an old-timer in Nosy Be... here are some postcard views from back in the day... the way Mr. and Mrs. "Emile" might have known it.........Best regards to all of you, friends of the Amporaha "camp".

Good evening everyone, Last weekend, I discovered Amporaha Beach /Oise in the 60—yes, really! Here’s the proof in photos; we were there, I guarantee it! Or maybe I dreamed for two days because I reunited with friends from when we were 17 (well, at least in that mindset!). But it was amazing to see everyone again!!!! As soon as the site name is approved, I’ll let you know. Great photos, Jlou82! I’ll take pictures in the same spots and post them when I get back. Best wishes to all, the Nosy-Be local

Hi Francis You both look great in the photo. It's true we were on the beach in Nosy Be, and on top of that, we had the sun. Those reunions were such a wonderful moment. I hope we can do it again. Thank you, Francis, for your extreme kindness. I wish you a great stay in Madagascar—think of us a little and bring back lots of photos. Kisses. Marie-Jo

Hello,

I was in Amporha in May 1969. I was on a renovation mission at the camp as a conscripted soldier from the military base at Ivato Air Base, where I served from November 1968 to November 1969. Were you there at that time? I have a few photos in my archives. Do you have any others? Best regards.

GJ81

10/19/2008 Hello Francis and Christian, Great photo! Oh YES! Nosy Be and Amporaha are etched in everyone's minds. Nosy Be in Oise, Nosy Be in Aquitaine... and many others, I think. We’ll need to pick a year to gather all the Nosy Be enthusiasts who want to and head to the Malagasy and Nosy Be coastline for an expedition lasting several weeks to relive those Happy Years. 2010, 2011, or 2012... anything’s possible. It’s an idea that must be tickling some of us—so let’s embrace this little bit of madness. Thanks to all of you for these nostalgic moments we’re reliving thanks to your photos and documents. The postcards are really great. Best regards, Prome

bernard neighbor in Ivato and Nosy Be in '62-'62 Very interested in this idea, but hurry—I’m already 70 years old!

Best,