Between Réunion and Nosy Bé (page 3 of 4)

Thanks for your reply, Jean-Luc, and I’m still following your travel journal with great pleasure! 🙂

Thanks for your travel journal. It’s so personal, and I love that. It’s your story with your feelings—I may share them or not, but it’s way more interesting to read than a “filtered” story. Please don’t change your tone or style, and accept my compliments on your photos.

Thanks so much for this beautiful share. After reading this, it really makes me want to go. Plus, I see that it’s possible to stand up to the scams by airport officials—those people tend to terrify me, especially when I’m exhausted from hours of flying. Your story is really encouraging in every way. Thanks again for the effort of publishing it—it’s a lot of work!

Hi there! If everything’s in order, you queue up, wait for your visa and luggage, and then exit the airport.

There’s no scam or extortion.

I’ve never been asked for anything, and I’ve never had to give anything either.

Thanks Max, for your really kind message. I’d completely moved on and even forgotten my travel journal existed. So now I’m thinking of posting a few other trips I’ve done here and there... It’s true that it takes time...

This is a trip you’ve got to take. We arrived feeling genuinely worried after reading forums and even hearing from people around us who had a really alarming view of Madagascar. Safety, health... “Don’t go!” pretty much sums up the general vibe. But our fears quickly faded. Once we passed the airport, we only met kind people. Looking back, the only real precaution is to bring repellent to avoid mosquito and midge bites. As for the airport anecdote, I’m not sure how common it is. Maybe we just ran into *the* “bad guy.” But it wasn’t traumatizing. The guy in front of me left a few euro coins, and if he hadn’t given anything, honestly, they wouldn’t have made a fuss. They clearly weren’t comfortable either... He was “trying.” It’s a way to improve tough living conditions, and it was totally non-aggressive.

Good evening, Africa in general, and Madagascar in particular, aren't exactly riding a wave of Western tourism. There's a pretty negative image and press for a bunch of reasons. Anyway. You've moved past that, which is great because, as you mentioned, you really enjoyed it. Awesome.

As for customs, there are some bad apples. That's for sure. But if you're following the rules and you're polite yet firm, there's no reason they should insist. I've never seen it happen (though I can't swear it never does). There are two main reasons why some people end up paying: - They give in to the demand, thinking it's typical and that if they don’t, they’ll run into problems. Unfortunately, it does happen, and it’s a real shame because, as you said, there’s no reason to pay. - They’ve done something wrong and pay to get through. That happens too. Some people who complain about corruption are often the first to use it for a favor. This is rarely the case for tourists—it’s more common among regulars, residents or not.

Nothing that should stop you from discovering this magnificent country

Well, I really enjoyed your descriptions of the places you visited, but it seems to me you missed the real Madagascar... Nosy Bé already!! That’s not Madagascar... it’s a dream island full of money and wealthy tourists, luxury hotels, and cheap restaurants that even most Malagasy people can’t afford... It has nothing to do with the rest of life on the Big Island 😕 Of course, locals make a living from it, but what disdain to drop a "bill" every now and then... A Malagasy person earns 30 euros a month... a teacher I know earns 100 euros!! Go see other places in Madagascar, and you’ll understand. The kindness of the Malagasy people is astonishing given their poverty, which affects 80 percent of the population... I’ll stop now 😕... you’re lucky to be able to travel (just like me, by the way), but let’s stay humble: as you say, neither capitalist nor commie!!!!

You're right, Antoine, obviously Nosy Be isn't Madagascar, just as Madagascar isn't Africa. What you're saying is accurate, but I already wrote that in a previous post. I'm sharing MY trip. It's not representative of anything. It's a personal account. It's not meant to lecture anyone in any way. I don't think it's useful to start a debate here, whatever the topic. This isn't the place for it. On this forum, we share our travel experiences. Some readers might find it awful, others will appreciate it. The former should be able to move on and find themselves thousands of kilometers away with just a few clicks. No need to get upset—people aren't all the same. Regarding the last part of your message, I agree with the first half. Best regards, despite everything.

Reasonable message.

Nosy Be isn’t Madagascar, but it’s definitely one of Madagascar’s many facets. Just like Tana, Tuléar, Majunga, or Tamatave aren’t *the* Madagascar either. Because Madagascar is the combination of all these places.

And the Malagasy people of Nosy Be are still Malagasy, no matter what.

Personally, I love discovering as many facets as possible, and I honestly really enjoyed the North, especially Nosy Be—even though I used to be more of a highlands *vazaha*, into rice fields and summer drizzle (where whale sharks and dolphins aren’t exactly common, unlike in Nosy Be). And I don’t see a problem with loving both. By avoiding Ambatoloaka, you skip the most touristy part and maybe some of the island’s less appealing sides. But the rest of the island has villages, people far from tourism, gorgeous spots, and so on. All while keeping in mind that tourism here is still pretty low-key anyway.

Life isn’t about subtractions—it’s about additions.

Like in Nosy Bé, the sunset is celebrated by a whole crowd that gathers together on the docks to enjoy the solar show.



We settle in at the first terrace by the ocean to have a few drinks, snack on some tapas, and eventually eat the catch of the day with a Côte du Rhône... meh... not quite up to Nosy Bé’s cuisine here!



Saturday, October 12, 2019 Saint-Gilles les Bains

After a quick breakfast at La Case à Pain in Saint-Gilles, we head to the Saint-Leu market, 13 kilometers away.

Did you know? There’s a variety of white cockroach.





The Saint-Leu market, then...



You find absolutely everything there! Strawberries—lots of local strawberries—potatoes, "paï" (local) tomatoes that look nothing like ours, with colors that would make a Super-U customer in Riedisheim turn up their nose in disgust! Not here. People eat natural; they know appearance doesn’t matter. They know taste, vitamins, and nutrients have nothing to do with the polished look of supermarket shelves. The Bayer guys can’t stand them. On the plane, just before landing, we heard the captain announce that bringing any seeds—no matter what kind—is strictly forbidden. You’re required to hand them over to customs for immediate destruction! True story! There are also vegetables completely unknown in my personal encyclopedia. Weird-looking things you’d think were grown on planet Schton B646—total improbability!



We’d planned to do a well-known hike, the Belvédère de la Rivière des Marsouins, but a huge cloud settled right in the center of the island. You know us—we don’t give up that easily! After an hour and a half of driving through fog, drizzle, and temperatures dropping to 14°C, we finally threw in the towel. Headed back down the coast. Switched to a walk at the Mascarin National Botanical Conservatory. It’s really cool too. On the grounds, an old colonial house displays some odds and ends from the time of the wealthy bourgeois who settled there at the beginning of the last century.



Then plants. Lots of them. Especially cacti! Could’ve inspired a song by Jacques Lanzmann in the 60s!



But not just that! Here, flowers are way more charming than elsewhere—it’s a festival!

The ones having a blast are us. And lots of pretty birds too! Tons of Mauritius bulbuls…



There’s also a historical trail that mixes people and plants. Who brought what. What worked well—coffee, sugarcane, and rum… We recreated the boucan of the buccaneers, the huts quickly thrown together by hurried conquistadors…



I don’t remember… Did I already tell you about the cacti?

Gorgeous vegetation!

Red cardinals…



Or these pretty Village Weavers, which arrived from South Africa around 1880, having escaped from a ship docked in front of the island…



Or the Bulbuls, which are apparently real Attila the Hun types, raiding the nests of other species…



The star flower: the orchid!



Right next to the park, a beautiful, opulent church. It has some practical features. For example, to prevent people from getting confused, it’s indicated on the door which one is the door. For those who give in to the urge to enter, it can be very useful...



We end the day at the port of Saint-Gilles. At the beachside restaurant. Not great, but with a surprisingly friendly atmosphere. Everyone seems to be having fun, even lots of groups of kids on scooters. The vibe among the teens irresistibly reminds me of our own African youth. There’s a Brazilian clown tonight who’s absolutely amazing—funny and death-defyingly acrobatic!



We finish like a true Saint-Gilles local, on the dock, talking about love under the moon, which stretches from top to bottom instead of left to right like back home...



Sunday, October 13, 2019 Saint-Gilles les Bains

Last day abroad… Breakfast at the *case à pain*, we’re at the port, and I discover that on Sundays, the whole town serves as a church. It’s mind-blowing! People are Jesus-maring all over the place, non-stop. I’m not exaggerating—we heard *Hail Mary* a good hundred times. You’ve got a statue of the divine saint set up on the port, and people coming to spread the good word through a megaphone, while another plays religious songs on his guitar, drawing a spellbound crowd. They’re saying the rosary… Every now and then, boats loaded with flowers come to unload them into the canal amid cheers…

A little further on, at the mouth of the harbor, a group of priests stands on the deck of a boat in front of which everything that floats parades by. A guy waves a small branch dipped in holy water and sprinkles it on the volunteers. The line never stops! Everyone’s eager to get blessed!



Tired of the monotonous prayers, we took refuge in their very pretty aquarium…

A great dinner at a fisherman’s place, then a pool plan at the hotel… Time is ticking…

I really insisted we leave around 4:30 PM for a 9 PM departure. Everyone warned me about the hellish traffic jams caused by people returning from the beach…



I made the right call. Gas stations closed on Sundays, the coastal road shut for a few kilometers, and a GPS going haywire—plus the road to the shuttle blocked by a barrier… When you’ve got time, you handle things smoothly…

Came across this travel journal while looking for snorkeling in Réunion... there wasn't any!! But I really enjoyed it. Thanks and well done, you've got the flow😎

Thanks Lena, you're so cool! I took a look at your profile—have you really traveled the world that much? It's amazing! I hope the little critters going around lately won't (too much) keep you from indulging in your (our!) favorite activity!

Thanks Lena, you're so cool! I took a look at your profile—have you really traveled the world that much? It's amazing! I hope the little critters going around lately won't stop you (too much) from indulging in your (our!) favorite activity!

Yeah, yeah, I'm curious with a globetrotter's spirit! Réunion would be a fallback option because of the virus, but the more I learn about the 974, the more it tempts me. Madagascar has been a longtime dream, but it feels a little intimidating, like Ethiopia, for example.

Anyway, I'm rambling—if you decide to write more travel journals, be sure to let me know! :))

I know Réunion well and Madagascar a little, but not Nosy Be... You describe a really beautiful trip, sometimes in very nice hotels, but if you avoid tips and requests for bakshish—which is your right—I find it indecent to boast about it. You’re probably generous in other situations too, so don’t spoil this kind of comment that "poor people" might hold against you...

Looks like you either misread me or I didn’t explain myself well... But it doesn’t matter. Obviously, you shouldn’t be stingy in a country where you can help a lot with just a little... That’s not up for debate!