Where We Went
We had been planning this trip for months and could not wait to see everything that we had decided on!
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Avenue of the Baobabs
When we first arrived in Western Madagascar, Hailey and I knew we had to visit the Avenue of the Baobabs. This place was absolutely amazing because of the amazing trees. There were hundreds of trees lining the road, and this place has become a great tourist attraction. There were many African child there that we got to meet, and they always had a smile on their face while greeting us. We were in a car driving down the dirt road with our tour guide, Eliza. The trees were unlike anything I’ve ever seen in Pennsylvania. Eliza told us that some of the trees dated back to eight hundred years old, which is almost as old as Hailey. We drove the entire 16 miles and stayed so that we could see the sunset. If you are ever going to visit this place, I highly recommend that you should stay to either see the sunset or sunrise. It was absolutely breathtaking! Overall, this was definitely an experience I will not forget. |
Tsingy de Bemaraha
We also visited the Tsingy de Bemaraha,which is also known as the Stone Forest. Because of the conditions there, the rocks have eroded both horizontally and vertically. Most people cannot climb the stone forest, the name “Tsingy” actually means "where one cannot walk". Obviously before we came to Madagascar, we had very intensive rock climbing training, thus allowing us to climb the rocks. We hired a local guide from the front office, from the Kensington Tours, when we arrived at the forest. It was quite the task to climb all the rocks, but I would do again if I had the choice. It was incredibly interesting because we saw many different types of lemurs, including the white-legged lemur. Of course Hailey was not as good at climbing as I was and nearly fell of the side! Thankfully we were all strapped in and were in no danger of getting hurt.The rocks have always been a great attraction for people to go see, and I am certainly glad that we got an opportunity to do this. |
Masoala National Park
After arriving in Northern Africa, we decided to visit Masoala National Park. We had to take a boat to the beautiful rainforest, because that is the only way to get to the park. This park is one of the most protected in Madagascar, but also one of the least visited. We knew that we had to come here because it just looked spectacular in any photos we saw. This park is especially important in Madagascar because it has a very large variety of animals that are protected. My personal favorite animal we saw was the red-ruffed lemur. We got a chance to go swimming and see the varies amounts of sea creatures there. We saw at least three sharks, as they are very popularly seen in this park. The sand there was golden and extremely soft to walk on with trees providing shade, so it did not get too hot. I really liked visiting this park because everything was just breathe taking. |
Amber Mountain National Park
This park in Northern Africa was absolutely beautiful. There were so many amazing waterfalls and the entire park was to die for. It was amazing to see. There were so many rivers, rainforests, and waterfalls. The weather was perfect there, just like it always is. There were so many different varieties of animals. The one animal that was extremely impressive was the Brookesia. It is the smallest type of chameleon in the world, and about as cute as it sounds. There were bridges that we had to cross in order to continue the path and it was a really interesting seeing all the scenery around us. |
The varieties of plant and wildlife in Madagascar are absolutely breathtaking. If we had the chance, we would definitely go and see all of these sights again. Here are some pictures from the trip!
Sources:
"Dangerousroads.org." Avenue of the Baobabs. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Nov. 2014. <http://www.dangerousroads.org/madagascar/940-avenue-of-the-b
"Masoala The Masoala Peninsula as Become One of Madagascar's Top Conservation Priorities for Its Extensive Rainforest (by Madagascar Standards) and High Biodiversity of Plant and Animal Life. . NASA Satellite Image of the Masoala Region: Image Courtesy of the Image Science and Analysis Laboratory, NASA-Johnson Space Center. 25 Mar. 2005. "Astronaut Photography of Earth. Image Courtesy of the Image Science and Analysis Laboratory, NASA-Johnson Space Center. 25 Mar. 2005. "Astronaut Photography of Earth. MAP/Satellite Picture -- Pictures on This Site Were Taken with a Konica Minolta HomeAbout Madagascar MapsFAQsPeopleHistoryEnvironmentFloraWildlife BirdsFishFrogsInvertebratesLemursMammalsReptilesPlaces Antananarivo Conservation ANGAPParksGuidesNewsPhotosEducationalMedia ResourcesStoreMadagascar TravelAbout the Site Mongabay.com [partner Site]Environmental News [partner Site]Rainforests [partner Site]BooksLinksContact." Masoala. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Nov. 2014. <http://www.wildmadagascar.org/conservation/parks/Masoala.html>.aobabs-madagascar.html>.
Parsons, Chris. "Life on the Edge: Inside the World's Largest STONE Forest, Where Tropical Rain Has Eroded Rocks into 300ft Razor-sharp Spikes." Mail Online. Associated Newspapers, 08 Apr. 2012. Web. 12 Nov. 2014. <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2126941/Life-edge-Inside-worlds-largest-STONE-forest-tropical-rain-eroded-rocks-300ft-razor-sharp-spikes.html>.
"Dangerousroads.org." Avenue of the Baobabs. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Nov. 2014. <http://www.dangerousroads.org/madagascar/940-avenue-of-the-b
"Masoala The Masoala Peninsula as Become One of Madagascar's Top Conservation Priorities for Its Extensive Rainforest (by Madagascar Standards) and High Biodiversity of Plant and Animal Life. . NASA Satellite Image of the Masoala Region: Image Courtesy of the Image Science and Analysis Laboratory, NASA-Johnson Space Center. 25 Mar. 2005. "Astronaut Photography of Earth. Image Courtesy of the Image Science and Analysis Laboratory, NASA-Johnson Space Center. 25 Mar. 2005. "Astronaut Photography of Earth. MAP/Satellite Picture -- Pictures on This Site Were Taken with a Konica Minolta HomeAbout Madagascar MapsFAQsPeopleHistoryEnvironmentFloraWildlife BirdsFishFrogsInvertebratesLemursMammalsReptilesPlaces Antananarivo Conservation ANGAPParksGuidesNewsPhotosEducationalMedia ResourcesStoreMadagascar TravelAbout the Site Mongabay.com [partner Site]Environmental News [partner Site]Rainforests [partner Site]BooksLinksContact." Masoala. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Nov. 2014. <http://www.wildmadagascar.org/conservation/parks/Masoala.html>.aobabs-madagascar.html>.
Parsons, Chris. "Life on the Edge: Inside the World's Largest STONE Forest, Where Tropical Rain Has Eroded Rocks into 300ft Razor-sharp Spikes." Mail Online. Associated Newspapers, 08 Apr. 2012. Web. 12 Nov. 2014. <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2126941/Life-edge-Inside-worlds-largest-STONE-forest-tropical-rain-eroded-rocks-300ft-razor-sharp-spikes.html>.