Grand Africa Cruise Trip Day 54/96 - Welcome to Hell (Ville) - Nosy Be, Madagascar
Our second stop in Madagascar is just like our first one - it has two names. Its official name is Andoany, but everyone, including Google Maps calls it by its original name Hell-Ville. Sounds lovely doesn't it? It was originally named after Anne Chrétien Louis de Hell, a French admiral and governor of Reunion Island from 1838 to 1841. So Hell-Ville, it remains.
Madagascar is actually pretty darn huge. It is the fourth-largest island in the world (removing continents) after Greenland, New Guinea, and Borneo. Today, we're on an island off the main island, Nosy Be.
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| The rain was coming down as we dropped anchor - it didn't phase this guy |
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| Gloom and rain were all around |
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| Tender operations got underway and we rode into Nosy Be for our excursion |
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| Once again, dancers greeted us |
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| Vendors rowed up to try to make a sale of carved wood and local fruit |
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| Sojourn, anchored and waiting for our return |
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| Our excursion was to Nosy Komba, the island of lemurs |
On the way to Nosy Komba, we hit rain - a lot of rain. We were in the front of the boat so we were taking it in the face. We move back one seat, facing backward. This allowed the rain to pound our life vests, and then run down our backs and soak our butts. Nice.
The rain quit before we got to Nosy Komba and it didn't rain while we were on the island. All in all, it was a small price to pay as other guests on a tour on a different island were in the rain all day and it was miserable. I'll take a wet butt.
We had a wet landing on the island, meaning we stepped off the back of the boat into the water and waded onto the beach. We cleaned our feet, put on our sandals, and left for our tour of Nosy Komba the island of lemurs.
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| The beach was loaded with vendors in the villages of Ampangorina |
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| This was the entrance to the local hospital - nobody wanted to get sick here |
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| Our local guide showed us a huge cœur de la mer seed pod |
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| Damage from the same cyclone that wiped out Mayotte, forcing our itinerary to change |
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| Our first glimpse of a lemur - it was high up in a tree |
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| Our guide spotted this skink in the brush |
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| This colorful female chameleon was hanging out on a branch |
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| Eyeing a higher perch |
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| Let's see... |
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| Stretch |
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| Hanging out in the leaves |
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| Next, he spotted this bright green gecko |
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| There was no discussion about lower insurance rates |
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| Our guide showed us this boa constrictor - there are no poisonous snakes in Madagascar |
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| Back to lemurs, the reason for our visit |
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| A little banana in the hand and *boom*, you get a lemur on your shoulder |
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| This was a male |
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| A female showed up and the male left |
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| The males always let the females eat first - good call |
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| Shoulders or head... |
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| It seemed to like my sweaty, salty head |
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| Arlona spotted this cool, almost flower-like fungus |
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| More lemurs, posing nicely for us |
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| They had three giant tortoises not local to the area but here for conservation |
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| A little banana on the shell and lemurs will go for a ride |
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| They had smaller tortoises too |
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| This one was perhaps a foot long, or maybe a little longer |
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| That face |
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| Those eyes |
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| Cacao plants |
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| Golden orb spider |
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| They were also caring for some radiated tortoises |
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| We almost stepped on this millipede as we wrapped up the lemur tour |
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| A school at the beach in the village of Ampangorina |
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| We had some refreshments - not a local beer, but still African |
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| As we relaxed, locals showed their wares |
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| One of today's guides |
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| An old and new outrigger canoe - the wood was beautiful |
With our tour complete, we rode the boat back to the pier and the tender back to the ship.
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| We grabbed a snack of some french fries as this Apamea inebriata (moth) decided to hang out on my insulated cup |
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| We sailed from Nosy Be a little before 5:00 |
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The Sun was playing games with the clouds
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We had dinner with friends in Solis tonight. We split the chicken dish for two. It was a nice presentation.
We skipped the show tonight and returned to the suite. For a day in Hell (Ville), it turned out to be pretty darn good.
There is some potential that I will wake up early and watch at least part of the Lions-Commanders game as Seabourn is making the NFL playoff games available on our TV. The game starts at 4:00 AM. We'll see how I feel. I've been waking up at 6:00, so maybe the second half.
We have three days at sea before reaching Durban, South Africa, and the start of our overland safari adventure. Arlona packed up laundry tonight so we can send it out tomorrow. They will get it back to us on the 21st, in time to pack for the trip the following day.
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