Madagascar: Economy And History - Day Four

          Today Kayla and I went to the National Museum of Antananarivo. There we learned all about the economy, history, government, and geography. Did you know that the economy in Madagascar is based on agriculture? This would be including fishing and forestry, the main focuses of their economy, which also emploies 80% of the population. Also, lately Madagascar's been getting money from tourism, seafood products, industries, and other services. Their exports are a main part of their income, too. This includes coffee, vanilla, shellfish, sugar; cotton cloth, chromite, and petroleum products.

GDP	1998	1999	2000
Agriculture	33.5 %	33.1 %	31.8 %
Industry	11.9 %	11.8 %	12.5 %
Services	47.9 %	48.4 %	48.5 %

Source: Central Bank of Madagascar

          After we found that information, we headed over to the geography, history, and government exibits. I would have to say that the geography was most interesing. We learned that the climate ranges from tropical along coast, temperate inland, and arid in south. Also, if you are interested in hiking then you would like to know that Madagascar has narrow coastal plains, high plateaus, and mountains in center of the country. The main landforms are mountains, volcanos, rivers, lakes, and bays.

          Cassie was more interested in Madagascar's history. She was facinated that in 1883, France invaded Madagascar and by 1896 had established rule over the island, which became a French colony. France used Madagascar as a source for timber and exotic spices, like vanilla. The Malagasy had two major uprisings against the French, in 1918 and 1947, but the country did not gain independence until June 26, 1960. Then in 1975, Didier Ratsiraka took control of the country. He ruled Madagascar as a dictator until he was overthrown in 1991 amid an economic collapse. He regained the presidency shortly after and ruled until losing a contested election in 2001. The new president, Marc Ravalomanana, promised to bring democracy to the country. Having gotten his start selling yogurt on the streets from the back of his bicycle, Ravalomanana built a business empire and became Madagascar's richest man. As of 2005, he is still president and the economy continues to improve.



Marc Ravalomanana

          Later on in the day, Cassie and I went out for lunch. We remembered learning in the museum that Madagascar cuisine is composed of a rice base. India, China, France, East Africa, and Arabian cultures have contributed in forming the culinary products of Madagascar. With that knowledge in mind, we went to a street market and I got the mofo gasy, which is Malagasy bread, that originated in East Africa. Cassie got the mofo baolina, a corn flour donut, which originated in India. 

 

Madagascar: A Town Builds A Clean Water System

Madagascar: Last Day Video

Madagascar: Morning Video - Day Four

Madagascar: Culture and People - Day Three

          Today we were walking around town, searching for something to do. It wasn't very hard though. In this city, on every street corner there is something new. Right away we saw some street performers playing music. It was very cool how they all play their instruments so well. My favorites were the guitar and accordion, while Cassie's were the violins and trumpets. At the end of the performance we tried to tip them, but apparently they don't use our American money! Cassie and I were incredibly embarrassed, until we realized that we cashed in our money for theirs, which are Madagascar Ariaries, or MGAs for short. 

MGA, The Madagascar Currency

           After that we went out for lunch. When the waitress came to take our orders, she wasn't speaking English! Instead she was speaking in Malagasy! By the looks on our faces, she realized that we didn't know what she was talking about. Then she started talking in French! By then we were crossed between bewildered and amused; we had no idea what she was saying. Our waitress then got the manager, who we could communicate with, and he took our orders. We used that opportunity to ask him some questions about Madagascar. We learned that the French, English, and Malagasy speaking people of Madagascar are probably of the most polite, friendly, and cheerful people. He told us that his people originated from one or many cultures with origins from South-East Asia, India, Africa, and the Middle East. Also, the Malagasy people hold their customs, traditions, and beliefs very important to them.

Madagascar: Pics And A Video From After The Safari - Day Two

Even though it was chilly, we dressed for the weather and had a blast!

Madagascar Safari: Physical Geography - Day Two

A map of Madagascar

An endangered sifaka lemur

Today Kayla and I went on a safari at the Masoala National Park! It was only a short train ride away from our hotel in the capital. We learned so much. Did you know that ninety percent of the plants and animals found on the island of Madagascar evolved there and nowhere else? More than 70% of the lemurs species—including this sifaka—are considered endangered. Our tour guide began to discuss some physical geography. Kayla was interested in the waterways and streams of Madagascar. She begged me to take many pictures of her. I was more interested in the abundant amount of wildlife. Madagascar is home to 3% of the whole world's animal and plant life population. In addition to the lemurs and chameleons we saw, we were even lucky enough to catch a glimpse at some rare species of eagles and serpents!


A fossa chameleon (a close relative of the mongoose) we saw on our wildlife tour