Right in the middle of Antananarivo, in an inconspicious side street, there is an own small world: „Le village“ which means as much as „the village“. It is a row of workshops where they construct high-class true to scale ship models. For sure, you can find wood carving workers everywhere all over Madagascar – but ships of this outstanding quality …

Madagascar’s south put forth many quirky, mostly water saving plants. An especially strange and unique plant is Cyphostemma montagnacii. The shape of this plant seems to be not of this world: A small, gnarly stem merges into long vines. Indeed this strange plant belongs to the grapevine family. Its branches need a tree which they can climb up and which …

Vohimana: Vohimana in the hilly highlands of eastern Madagascar is a small reserve that may be a little adventurous to reach by foot. Location: Vohimana is located about 155 km east of capital Antananarivo, in Alaotra-Mangoro region. Thus it is only 25 km far from much visited national park Andasibe-Mantadia. You can easily do day trips from there to Vohimana. …

Maromizaha: Actually this protected area consists of two forest areas, Maromizaha and Vohidrazana. The latter means as much as “mountain of the ancestors”. In contrast, the Malagasy words maro and mizaha can have two different meanings. It may be “the place where many people do research” but also “the forest which is exploited by many people”. Location: Maromizaha is located …

The Emerald Sea (French mer d’emeraude) is a paradisiac lagoon at the entry of Antsiranana (Diego Suarez) bay at the northernmost tip of Madagascar. The name traces back to the turquoise, crystal clear, shallow water of the lagoon. The lagoon has a length of approximately 12 kilometres and is only three kilometres broad. A large coral reef and several islands …

The small, only 25 g weighing Sakalava weaver (Ploceus sakalava) only occur in Madagascar. As the name indicates, they belong to the weaver birds and are widely distributed around the island: Everywhere where the eponymous tribe of the Sakalava lives. This is mainly western Madagascar; from the deep, hot and dry South to the North. Sakalava weaver prefer dry areas. …

Especially in touristically heavily frequented places in Madagascar, it is impossible to imagine the street scene without them: Tuk-tuks. The bright yellow, small companions rush across the streets of islands like Nosy Boraha (St. Marie) and Nosy Be at a maximum speed of 40-50 km/h. They can now also be found in Toamasina (Tamatave), Toliara (Tuléar), Antsirabe, Ambanja, Sambava and …

Madagascar’s handcrafts are as diverse as the island itself. A speciality is the manufacturing of small cars, bicycles and planes from old cans and other recycling materials. One has made a real art out of this: Mamy from Antsirabe in the southern highlands. Since 1990, he produces miniatures of bicycles, Taxibrousse, Pousse-Pousse, Renault R4s and other motorized vehicles. His work …

Anjozorobe-Angavo: The name Annjozorobe probably comes from the Madagascan “zozoro”, a certain kind of reed of the area. Legend has it that they were used as hiding places by the “menalamba”, who fought under the French colonial power for the liberation of Madagascar. Location: The protected area of Anjozorobe-Angavo is located 90 km northeast of the capital Antananarivo in the …

Antsokay: The name means as much as “lime” and points to the typical loam and lime containing soil of the area. Around Arboretum, people make bricks from this kind of soil. Location: The Arboretum Antsokay is located in southwestern Madagascar in the region of Atsimo-Andrefana. It is only 12 kilometers away from one of the largest cities of the south, …