Back to the Middle Ages?

Returning to Madagascar after two months of holidays in Europe is not exactly going back to the future. I can't help but feeling being thrown back into the dark ages. The unlit, eerie neighborhoods, the roads completely dark and deserted after 8 pm in the evening, the businesses closed between noon and 2 pm, our house full of candles on stand-by in case of a powercut, twelve minutes to open a webpage...

Okay, I may be exagerating, there were no webpages in the Middle Ages, and I know it's not all dark and desolate here. But it is unnerving to see so little progress over the years; economically, politically, infrastructurally... In the rural areas where 75% of the population live, the conditions are truly medieval; parents sleep together with children, chickens, and cockroaches in the same room, their sleep-wake rhythm follows that of the sun, they relief themselves in the bushes, and electricity and motorized tools are things they may not even have heard of.

So I can't help wonder, will there be light for these people during their lifetime?

Personally I am convinced that I will find back my own little life light soon. It always takes a few days to readjust to my adopted country. I try to look at the bright side: this morning internet was fast, only seven minutes to open my blog! I went to a brandnew shopping mall! It even boasts the first ever escalator in the country.
And, top of the top, someone was painting white lines on one of Tana's main roads! Real 21st century progress!

Brand new shoprite Mall

Is that a real escalator???

They didn't have white lines in the middle ages did they? :-)

Malagasy in Holland

I've always wondered if there are any people from Madagascar in the Netherlands. A I am 'Dutch in Madagascar, I'd like to know if there are' Malagasy in 'Dutchland'?

Now I know. I visited Nirina van der Schans last week. Origially from Madagascar now living in Den Haag, married to a Dutchman. She can imagine how I live in Tana, I can understand her issues living in   Holland. Her house has many souvenirs from her home country, like I have tulips and black and white cows in my office room.

So is Nirina still Malagasy, or has she become Dutch?

Of course a bit of both. She served me koffie met een koekje, and probably has rice with ravitoto on (some) evenings.

Nice to meet you Nirina!

Tsikoni- Childrens Cook Out

It's party time in Madagascar! Yesterday was the annual independance day, June 26. This day is a feast for everyone. But is it really? Many poor people have no means to celebrate. Street children are sent by their masters to beg, because a national day of celebration is also an excellent day for begging.

To avoid letting children go beg on the street, the center for street children I'm supporting had a great idea: organizing a Tsikony. This is a Malagasy tradition whereby children are cooking! But how to finance this? I sent an email to my generous friends here in Tana and raised a good sum of money and support. Thank you Amanda, Patricia, Anita, Nieves, Kyong, David, Pascale, Alain and Fedor!

It was a lovely event. All the food and cooking utensils bought by the center were displayed like a market. The children were getting 'monopoly money' worth 30,000 Ariary per group. They had to buy stuff and prepare the food, in the cutest little dishes, with mini spoons and minuature pots and pans, like in a giant doll house. We the guest, were 'selling' chicken, sausage, even shrimp, and veggies, rice, pasta, fruits, etc and giving points for cleanliness and cooking skills.

So we watched three-year olds cutting tomatoes, six-year olds sweeping the floor, toddlers fanning the  charcoal cookers and all ages running back and forth to buy spoons full of cooking oil. 

Honestely, got to give it to these kids...I don't see 'our' little ones preparing a whole mini-meal in one hour. Bravo!

What donatations bought - a true feast

Three types of cooking gear

The market is open, for the first group of children

Monopoly money - give children some commerical sense

Cute little dishes

Yoghurt: 1 Ariary, Banana 2 Ariary

The guests are 'selling' the stuff

Carrots 10 Ariary per piece

Buy mine! No mine!

Here's your change

The first sales are done

Tables clothes and minipots are indispensible

Wait for your change....

Hmmm, shall I buy chicken or shrimp?

A luxury! Chicken for 10 Ariary

Even dish liquid could be bought!

Mr World Bank counting his money!

Six year old boy cutting chicken

What's on the menu girls?

Boys job: lighting charcoal

Peeling carots

It's getting smokey in here!

Fanning with a slipper

Three year old cutting tomatoes like a chef!

It is starting to smell so good!

Never to young to fan up a fire

Stir so it won't burn

Another technique to light up charcoal

Soleine is cooking too

Alex and I celebrating this great event

This is what's left at the end....nothing!

Cleanliness is important!

Bon appétit les enfants!

Toilets in Madagascar

What a subject hey? And so important! I just completed a review of sanitation approaches in Madagascar,  in plain words: I was visiting private and public toilets. Embarrasing subject? Not at all! People here were proud to show us their 'bathrooms', WCs, cans, johns, latrines, lavatories, outhouses, shithouses, privies and thrones!

© Pictures by Susanne van Lieshout and Mick Andriamarasoa. With thanks to Hasi!

Typical Malagasy Meals

I just came back from a field trip visiting public and private toilets! Very very interesting, and amazing to see how people with little means manage to create a proper living environment for themselves and their families. But more on that later.

A Dutch friend of mine recently asked me what people are eating in Madagascar. And I replied with listing the delicacies we can find here: cripsy bread, petits pains au chocolat, canard a l'orange, beef carpacio, pâtés etc. But that is not what she meant - she wanted to know what the average Malagasy have breakfast or lunch.

So here we go...the people eat rice, with rice, and rice and rice. And some other things:

1. Typical Malagasy breakfast

Donuts, Rice cakes (Mofo Gasy) and Tea 

2. Typical Malagasy Lunch

Red rice, broth with green leaves, and fish or zebu (if affordable)

The quantities of rice per person never cease to amaze me

Three Worlds in One Country (at least)

Madagascar has at least twenty national parks, and many more protected areas. Having visited some in the past, I was thinking that I had probably seen the biggest share of them. I could not have been more wrong! Each park is so totally different that it's hard to imagine they're all in one and the same country.

Andohahela park
Take Andohahela in the extreme south eastern part of the country. A-ma-zing place! It is literally in between two worlds. World one is the lush, tropical and humid forest, world two the dry deserty land with thorny bush and spikey trees. The park itself is a unique transitional forest in between the two.

We went last weekend and I could hardly believe my eyes. But the camera does not lie. I am now sure there are even four, five, six or more worlds in Madagascar.

You can clearly see the boarder between wet and dry 

A golden tree nexr to a silver one

For more info see http://www.parcs-madagascar.com