We came to Madagascar expecting extraordinary wildlife as we described in our previous post.

We didn’t expect to spend just as much time staring at the plants.

Everywhere we looked, something seemed to belong on another planet.

Trees resembled octopuses.
Succulents looked like sculptures.
Thousand-year-old baobabs towered over the landscape.

Madagascar isn’t just home to unusual animals.

It may be the strangest botanical garden on Earth.

Visiting the Spiny Forest

A scheduled charter carried us to southern Madagascar and the famous Spiny Forest, one of the strangest ecosystems on Earth.  The region receives less than 500 mm of rain each year, so every plant has evolved remarkable strategies for conserving water.

The aptly named Octopus Tree looked as though a giant octopus had frozen in place, its spiny arms reaching in every direction.

Its thick branches twist in every direction while sharp spines discourage anything from taking a bite. Botanists call it Didierea madagascariensis, but “Octopus Tree” seemed much more appropriate.

They looked hostile.

Very hostile.

Covered in sharp spines and generally projecting a strong “keep away” message.

Apparently the local zebus (cows) didn’t get the memo.

They happily eat them.

Go figure.

Alluaudia

The Alluaudia looked even stranger.

Tall, spiny stems stretched skyward like something from another planet.

If someone had told us we were walking through a botanical garden on Mars, we might have believed them. 

Fortunately, this ring-tailed lemur hadn’t received the “keep away” memo either. He thought the leaves were delicious!

Other lemurs like them as well:

Bark Beckons

Most people go to Madagascar to photograph lemurs.

Ed went for the bark.

He became completely captivated by the peeling, twisting, and brilliantly colored trunks of the Spiny Forest. Every few minutes we’d stop for “just one more bark photo.”

Before long, our guide caught on and began excitedly pointing out trees with particularly photogenic bark.

We may have been the only visitors ever to ask, “Do you know where we can find more bark?”

Fortunately, our guide took the question seriously.

Trees Older Than Countries

Madagascar is home to six of the world’s eight baobab species.

Some are more than 1,000 years old.

One we visited was already centuries old before Columbus sailed to America.

Standing beneath it, a human lifetime feels wonderfully brief.

Capturing the tree in a single photo was another challenge altogether. Our guide solved the problem by lying flat on his back and using the iPhone’s Panorama mode vertically. Until then, we had assumed Panorama was only for sweeping landscapes. Turns out, it’s just as handy for photographing trees that seem to touch the sky. 

The baobabs are especially dramatic at sunset. We were captivated by the silhouettes gracing the sky as it turned from blue to orange and then black.

Unexpected Art in Tana

Traveling to farflung locations around the country requires staying in the capital – Antananarivo (Tana for short, since no one can pronounce the name) – in between jaunts, as each transition requires ample time to accommodate delays and other travel difficulties. 

We expected comfortable hotels between expeditions.

We didn’t expect museums.

One of our home bases was the Nosy Manga Hotel. From the outside, it’s a fairly nondescript building near the airport. Inside, however, we discovered a remarkable collection of Malagasy art (and a rooftop bar, which certainly didn’t hurt). Who knew?

We wandered from floor to floor admiring the paintings and sculptures, all assembled by the hotel’s owner, who clearly has both a discerning eye and a serious collecting habit.

Ed became especially captivated by the work of an artist who goes by Temandrota, whose birth name, Randriahasandratra Razafimandimby, convinced us to stick with “Temandrota.”

Naturally, our itinerary took an unexpected turn. We were now on an art safari.

A quick Google search revealed that Temandrota’s work is usually exhibited in London, but we discovered one gallery in Antananarivo—Foundation H—that features his art. We immediately enlisted our long-suffering driver, who patiently threaded his way through Tana’s legendary traffic on what had become an urgent artistic mission.

We arrived…

The gallery was closed.

Apparently even determined art lovers can’t outsmart Malagasy business hours.

So Temandrota remains on our “someday” list. We’ll either have to return to Madagascar or schedule a stop in London. After all, every good trip deserves an excuse for another one.

The Hard Part

As enchanted as we were by Madagascar’s landscapes and art, another reality was impossible to ignore.

Madagascar consistently ranks among the world’s poorest countries.

Everywhere we traveled, evidence of poverty was visible.

We saw children working in fields.

Women washing clothes in muddy rivers.

Men hauling water from rivers in ox carts along dusty roads.

And hundreds gathering at a food distribution site set up by an international charity.

Yet everywhere we went, children ran to the road waving, singing, laughing, and calling greetings.

Their joy was contagious.

Their circumstances were heartbreaking.

We often found ourselves wishing there was more we could do.

Colonialism’s Long Shadow

Many of today’s challenges have deep roots in Madagascar’s colonial past. Beginning with French colonial rule in 1895, vast areas of forest were cleared to supply timber and agricultural products for export to Europe.

Unfortunately, deforestation continues today. In southern Madagascar we drove past enormous agave plantations stretching to the horizon.

More than 60,000 hectares were devoted to growing agave for fiber used in rope and other products.

The economics were sobering.

Families earn only a few dollars a day harvesting the plants.

The husband cuts the agave. The wife stacks the leaves. The children help collect them.

The land produces little food for local communities and often becomes depleted after years of cultivation.

It’s a difficult cycle to break.

Hope for Madagascar

Fortunately, there are people working hard to protect Madagascar’s future.

Conservation organizations are replanting forests, studying wildlife, protecting endangered species, and educating the next generation about the island’s remarkable biodiversity.

Tourism helps fund many of these efforts while creating jobs for local communities.

On our drives, we were given indigenous seed pods to throw out from our jeep to repopulate the native plants in the forest.

It’s impossible not to wonder what Madagascar might look like today if these conservation efforts had begun centuries ago.

But it’s equally inspiring to see what dedicated people are accomplishing now.

We came looking for lemurs.

We left talking about octopus trees, thousand-year-old baobabs, remarkable artists, resilient people, and a country unlike anywhere else we’ve ever visited.

Madagascar isn’t just an island of unusual animals.

It’s one of the most fascinating places we’ve ever explored.

Next stop: the idyllic islands of Nosy Be, where Madagascar had one more surprise waiting for us. Stay tuned.