Natural splendour, real musics, wines, wordpower
An elevated vantage point sometimes offers an interesting, “different” view of human activity, and the opportunity to record it, candidly.
As the featured activity would suggest, I was looking down to a very “modest” street.
However, my vantage point for all images in this post was the most “desirable” location in Madagascar’s national capital – the royal palace complex, which sits atop the city’s highest hill.
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Hoteliers and tour operators like to describe the pictured beach as “idyllic”.
Ifaty is a village in southwestern Madagascar; fishing is its raison d’être., although tourism has become increasingly significant in recent years.
Its seafront “lagoon” is sheltered by one of the world’s major coral reefs.
On the reef’s far side is the Mozambique Channel, which is 1,700 ks long, 419 ks wide at its narrowest point, and surprisingly deep – up to nearly 3,300 metres, with an average depth of around 2,700 metres.
I took the photo just before midday on 19 May 2018, as the big daily event was unfolding.
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Presumably, the living lizard had no sense of the pictured circumstance’s synchronicity, let alone any awareness that a human passer-by might find it quirky or amusing.
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Antananarivo – often abbreviated to “Tana” – is the very congested capital city, and major metropolis, in one of the world’s most materially poor nations.
Many of its “entrepreneurial” residents cannot afford to buy or rent a walled and/or roofed structure in which to ply their trade.
This post’s street-working barber lacked anything remotely resembling his own “salon”, but his professional expertise and “service, with a smile” attitude were readily apparent.
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Most gecko species are nocturnal.
The 50+ known species in the genus Phelsuma are an exception, as per their common name: day geckos.
If you are lucky enough to see a day gecko, you will be able to see it under natural light.
For most of these mostly very colourful species, if you wish to see them in the wild, you will have to visit Madagascar…
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Around half of the 200+ known chameleon species live only in one country.
Madagascar is home to both the biggest and smallest chameleons.
Much of what most people believe about chameleons is pure fiction…or rather less than half-truth.
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The “skin” of almost any tree will reward your close attention.
There are just nine recognised species in the genus Andansonia – the baobabs.
One is Australian.
Two live in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.
The other six – this one included – are Madagascan, only.
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There are a little more than 400 known species of reptile on Madagascar.
More than 90% of them are endemic; the island sometimes described as “the eighth continent” is their only home.
Comments closedPropithecus diadema – the Diademed Sifaka or Diademed Simpona – is a large, utterly distinctive lemur.
It is critically endangered, but relatively easy to see in the (rapidly diminishing) wild, only a few hours away from Madagascar’s capital city.
The next image will explain why many people regard the Diademed Sifaka as the loveliest lemur.
Comments closedAs the immediately-preceding post observed, Madagascar’s emblematic domesticated animal has a great many uses/aspects.
Its horns can be turned into “cattle birds”, so to speak.
First step, once the abattoir has delivered the horns to the artists/craftspeople: throw the horns into the fire…
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