Mangily – 5 Nov 2010

On our last full day we went back for another trip on the lagoon as the pirogue ride was really pleasant and Roberto enjoyed another swim fix. The boat couldn’t keep up with him sometimes! He tried to go and have a look at the fish in the Impasse but the waves were too strong. We went back to Ifaty for more photos and then back to our hotel after lunch. We had a pizza on the beach first and talked to the owner, an Italian man who said he will soon move up North because there is now nothing left in Tulear and Ifaty. We discussed the impact of population growth on the environment and he agreed but said the government doesn’t care enough to apply the same rules as they did in China (i.e. only one child per family). ‘They are too self-centred’. He said that to have any chance of seeing a healthy coral reef down South you need to go to Salary but it’s impossible to go there with a normal car. You need to hire a 4x4 and take a tent as there is no hotel nearby either. It’s about 80kms North of Mangily. I couldn’t even find it on the map but most locals would know how to guide people there.

We then took another zebu cart to go to the Mangrove area... it was fun though after a while it felt a bit tough on my back and neck. But we took great pix of children who were so proud to pose for our camera and then had such a giggle reviewing the pictures. We passed many taxi-brousses with people being completely cramped on these dusty hot roads and so we felt a whole cart to ourselves was quite a luxury in comparison.