Crossing Perspectives by Henriette Palavioux
To truly know a country, one must first love its people—and in Madagascar, the choice is wonderfully abundant, with countless ethnic groups and mysterious languages and traditions. The Malagasy soul is generous and profound. An
01 May 2015To truly know a country, one must first love its people—and in Madagascar, the choice is wonderfully abundant, with countless ethnic groups and mysterious languages and traditions. The Malagasy soul is generous and profound. Men and women live in rhythm with the elements, the beaches are paradisiacal, the colours of the water shamelessly beautiful, and you can still find villages accessible only by sea.
It is paradise for travellers seeking a place where landscapes, fauna, and flora form worlds unlike any other: giant baobabs are legion here, seemingly planted upside down. Nocturnal lemurs nestle in the hollows of tree trunks, while others move with a gait that resembles a dance.
Chameleons, despite their poor reputation, dress themselves in rainbow colours as if to win greater appreciation, and the great natural geological reserves sometimes have deeply mysterious origins. But beyond all else, the love that Madagascar inspires flows from its generous and smiling inhabitants—cheerful and united, much like the Tsingy, a word meaning "on the tips of one's toes"—perhaps the perfect way to approach them.
© Henriette PALAVIOUX - Great Traveller and Photographer
