Getting to Isle St. Marie

  Toamasina, Madagascar
Friday, September 24, 2004

Today I travelled to Ilse St. Marie, a little island off the east coast of Madagascar. For the trip, I used a "taxi-brousse", the local minibus system. The taxi was way overloaded both with people and cargo, and the driver went really fast on the little windy roads out of the capital. I tried to check the speedometer, but it didn't work. Also, I realized that there are no lanes here, no traffic lights (apparently because people stole the bulbs; imagine a city like Tana of over 2 million without a single traffic light). Our driver said the right-of-way always goes to the person with the bigger vehicle. For example, the overtaking of trucks on the meandering roads was always an emotional experience.



Tana is on a plateau, and St. Marie is on the coast at sea level, so the trip east meant I saw a huge change in vegetation and climate. The capital is relatively arid, with red earth showing up everywhere. On the other hand, the coast is much more green and tropical. I went first from Tana to Tomassina, the biggest city in the east. Then from Tomassina to Sonierana-Ivongo, the coastal city opposite the island.

Because the ship to the island had already left (get this, there are only three ships which go there, and they all leave at the same time: classic), I had to spend the night there, which was okay by me as the 16 hour trip was pretty grueling. The "hotel" was actually someone's house and I shared their bathroom with them in the morning, which was weird, but it only cost four bucks. While eating at my hotel, a Malagasy guy came up to me and asked me if I was there by myself. I said yes. Then he asked me if I wanted a girl. I politely refused. This scene would repeat itself pretty much every day while on the island (more on that later).



Now about the boat trip. The boat leaves 'roud 10 am, but the guys who run the thing pretty much wait until its totally full of people, cargo and livestock. The guy who sold me the ticket told me they would leave ASAP but I still had to wait around for an hour after I got there. This is pretty common here: you ask them something and they aways say "yes". Example: "is this bus going to Tomasina?", "oui chef", "if I get a ticket, can I sit in front", "oui chef", "fine, I'd like a ticket please", "tiens chef", and then the seat in front is always taken. Its pretty annoying because people seem helpful but really aren't.

The guide book said that there was only one safe ship. It is called the Samsonette, and leaves everyday in the morning. The book said not to bother with the other boats because of safety concerns. The problem is that the Samsonette sank two years ago, killing all 40 souls on it. So I took a little ship, which rocked the whole time during the 3 hour trip. People were passing around a bucket to throw up in (but I didn't need it; I even ate my sandwich while there).

But finally, after two days, three minibuses, a hotel, a pimp, questionable food and massive safety concerns, I arrived at Isle St. Marie, a little tropical island.