Getting to the West

We woke up and got everything ready to leave the city.  While we hadn’t figured out completely what we’d do, we knew it would work itself out in Antsirabe.  So we got into a taxi and headed to the taxi-brousse (bus) station. 

As we pulled in, the men approached the taxi and were ready to unload us into their vehicle.  Once we understood the price and confirmed that other passengers paid the same, we got our packs strapped on the roof and climbed in.  For the first time since starting to use public transportation, we were the last people needed to fill the bus.  

We drove out of town and almost immediately started swerving from side to side . At times it was to avoid a hole and others it was to not hit the car coming at us or the ox-drawn cart in front.  The road led us up into the highlands and through countless curves.  Outside of the city, we didn’t drive straight for longer than 2 kms (1 mile) before the next bend would appear. 

 

The last stop was at the bus station outside of town.  The lot was full of cyclo-pousses, which are bicycle taxis, waiting to offer us a ride into the city.  Within seconds, 2 different guides approached us and offered us trips to the West.  We took a business card and started deciding how we’d get into town.  After bargaining down the price to half of their original offer, we got 2 pedicabs to take us the 5 kms (3 miles) into Antsirabe.  

One of the guides followed us in his car and the other on his bicycle.  The latter asked about our plans and explained that he had a group leaving tomorrow for the West.  He asked about where we’d stay and offered a suggestion for a hotel.  We discussed the price range that we were looking for and the bikes turned down a small alley not long after.  

 

After making sure the price was what we wanted, we put our bags away and went down to talk with the guides.  They pulled out their map and explained the details of their 7 day trip.  We asked all the questions we could think of and then it was the dreaded part of discussing the price.  They threw out their offer and we asked them to step away so we could discuss.  Once we’d made up our mind to get more offers before we said yes or no, a new guide walked up to ask if we’d like to speak about what she had to offer.

 

Arguments ensued as the 2 original guides were furious that she’d busted in on their deal.  We tried to tell them that we had decided we needed more time before she ever appeared, but they continued telling us it was disrespectful.  We finally got our point across that it was an issue between them and left to go find food.  

 

There were several stalls lining the street that served lunch.  We asked one what they had and due to the language barrier, we couldn’t figure out their menu.  Next door there was another restaurant that had their food on display.  We pointed and ordered 2 plates to share between the 3 of us.  We ordered a salad from the display case, which turned out to be boiled pork skin (similar to chicharrones) with a little tomato and onion.  

The next stop was to get a SIM card as we needed to be able to reach the guides to tell them yes or no.  On our way there, a 4th guide appeared on a bicycle to offer us his trip.  We stopped and listened to his explanation and got his price, which was better than the original guides.  Again, we took his card and continued on our way.  As we waited in line for the phone chip, the girl that caused the issue earlier showed up to reoffer her tour.  It turned out that she worked with the last guide who approached us and gave us a paper explaining their tour.  With exception of the price, the tours were the same.  

We left the Telma phone store to get airtime and bumped into the original guides, Olivier and Patrick.  After explaining that we’d gotten a better price, they told us they would agree to the lower offer.  We realized that they would not be coming with us so we asked to speak with the guide that would accompany us.  Everyone loaded into their car and we went to find Luva, the actual guide.  Our concern was his level of English after having our last guide in Ruaha where we struggled to get information from him.  

We met Luva and were satisfied with his speaking abilities.  They wanted to have a signed contract so we again discussed the price and details.  The other tour included all meals so we fought for that.  They said yes, but were concerned about the others in the group seeing that we didn’t pay as everyone else would have to.  In exchange, we calculated what the cost of the meals would be and lowered our total price even more.  We left a small deposit and took advantage of their bonus offer to take us to Lac Andraikiba.

 

The lake is about 15 kms (9.3 miles) from town and is surrounded by hills.  It has the legend of being able to impregnate a woman and they believe so many young couples visit on the weekend for that reason.  We walked around the lake as the sun began to hide behind the hills.  Once we were in the shadows, the temperature started to drop and we made our way back to the car.  

 

 

 

They took us by the bank to leave more of a deposit and made note of that on the contract.  We told them we’d stay there and find a restaurant, but they offered to take us to a place.  It was quite touristy, but we found local dishes to enjoy.  Once we finished up, we went back to the hotel and called it a night.  Our tour started the following day and we wanted to be ready for the adventure. 

We woke up and went for a walk around town.  First on the agenda was getting the rest of the money to pay for the tour as they didn’t accept cards.  Once we were done, we had a typical Malagasy breakfast of rice soup, vary amin’anana, at Mirana before getting supplies for the road.  By the time we returned to the hotel, Olivier and Patrick were waiting for us to finish the payment.

 

The almost full shuttle arrived minutes later and we took the last 3 seats.  On the way out of Antsirabe, we stopped at a store to get final supplies and then headed down out of the mountains.  It got hotter as we worked our way down although the landscape didn’t change drastically.  Rice was still planted almost everywhere you looked.  There were people working in the fields and small villages speckled the countryside.  

 

 

Again, the vehicle swerved left and right and honked as it tried to move people out of its way.  There was no shoulder so carts, bicycles and pedestrians were on the road trying to get somewhere.  The houses in the villages were built almost on top of the highway, which also caused for more congestion.  We stopped close to our destination and enjoyed the view from above.  The fields were spotted with ant hills and we started to hear the legends associated with different town names.

 

 

We reached Miandrivazo just before sunset and got our cabin for the night.  Once we were situated, we walked into the village to find dinner.  After seeing the options, we went to a hotely, a local restaurant, and tried to decipher their chalkboard menu.  The only item that we were 100% confident about was the steack du zebu so we ordered 3 of those.  The town’s electricity cut out during our meal, but we were provided with candles until it came back on.  Back at the hotel, we got the details about the next morning’s start time and called it a night once the electricity went off again. 

 

 

 

Helpful tips:

• We’d heard that the roads in Madagascar were bad and it was true.  If you get car sick, be ready with medication.
• Most tour groups end up with one guide so try to get to the guide directly for a better price.
• A big group provides a good dynamic and helps the interaction with the rowers.