Madagascar		Africa, East

Pictures

SM0021 AfricaEast e7260 tn jpg

Ost Africa und Madagascar East Africa Madagascar after Major Radefeld published in Illustrationen zu Meyer s Neuem Konversations Lexicon 1860

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house gecko of Vohemar

I have to assume that they are the common house lizard in Northeast Madagascar as they were all over the place in Vohemar That the gecko blended oh so well with the pink walls of the beach cabin we were staying may even show that it may be one of the everpresent chameleons in the country I only had one shot so you can actually detect its hurried movement as it scampered away when I took out my camera the gold dust day gecko or <i>Phelsuma laticauda< i> ID thanks to Ian or reservoir frog Vohemar Northeast Madagascar East Africa more pics and journeys in <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com > colloidfarl blogspot com< a>

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02 ha east africa madagascar gif

Madagascar harbors | Mozambique Harbors | Republic of South Africa

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Madagascar East Coast

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riverine

Madascar s west coast is a seldom visited part of the country facing the Comoros Islands and opening into the Mozambique Channel To capture this part of the country during sunset leaves me breathless West Madagascar East Africa in the conclusion of my <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com 2008 09 10 tips in aerial photography part 2 html > 10 tips in aerial photography< a> in <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com > colloidfarl blogspot com< a>

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Aerial View of Madagascar s East Coast

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tributaries

The agronomic person in me immediately kicked in when I saw the tributaries flushing out fresh water into the sea Too bad our saltwater seaweed will not thrive in low salinity But then I saw the flow of colors and light I was glad my camera did not miss a redux of of an aerial view of <a href= http flickr com photos colloidfarl 63634664 >West Madagascar< a> East Africa check out my <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com 2008 09 10 tips in aerial photography part 1 html > 10 tips in aerial photography part 1< a> in <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com > colloidfarl blogspot com< a>

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the black angel

I love the reality TV show <b>The Amazing Race< b> In Season 10 the teams made a stop in Madagascar The challenge was to locate the <b>black angel< b> which is the local name for this dramatic war memorial in Anosy lake The statue however was already painted white so several teams were confused and got lost I literally was screaming <i>go to the lake go to the lake< i> the War Memorial Anosy Lake Tana Antananarivo Madagascar East Africa more pics and journeys in <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com > colloidfarl blogspot com< a>

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saturation

In the tropics the sun at high noon during a cloudless day on a beach cannot be any painfully brighter The conditions are perfect for photography as the colors are naturally polarized and saturated The sand while it may be white in most postcards is in close inspection actually slightly on the yellow side The flakes of paint are as brittle as they should be And the colors of the boats are really as vivid as I remember I almost am tempted to desaturate this but decided not to at Ramena Beach Diego Suarez Antsiranana Madagascar East Africa more pics and journeys in <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com > colloidfarl blogspot com< a>

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East Africa Madagascar jpg

as of the time of printing Existing MPAs are marked in red and proposed MPAs in green A pdf file of the map can be downloaded here Abbreviations are clarified below the map

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Fort Dauphin Madagascar

Next Fort Dauphin Taolagnaro in the south east of Madagascar 48 hours by bus and 24h far from the first real road to get there but it s worth it isn t it Près de Fort Dauphin dans le sud est de madagascar A 48h de bus de la capitale et 24 de la première route en bitume le challenge est là mais ça vaut le coup non Juan s picture amazing Thanks Juan for all the fabulous experiences we lived in this beautiful country

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The Sanskrit word for Centella asiatica is Brahmi which means

The Sanskrit word for Centella asiatica is Brahmi which means knowledge If this plant could be personified it would be one of the wisest plants in the kingdom It has been traditionally used to treat burns bronchitis leprosy syphilis and asthma Native to India where it is called Gotu Kola and the tropical islands of the Indian Ocean it is the island of Madagascar where the plant was first studied for its therapeutic use and constituents It also grows in Pakistan Sri Lanka Indonesia East Africa and South Africa but it is the Centella asiatica v typical growing in Madagascar which is the most highly prized by pharmaceutical companies for its concentration of healing triterpenoid compounds

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vine

Diego Suarez retains the charm of an old French colonial city having been under French rule from 1896 to 1960 A lot of colonial buildings still stand replete with ionic columns and balustrades mostly crumbling and flaking but no less elegant Locals expats and tourists alike seem to take lounging and promenading to a habit Time has been kind to Diego for the longest time and maybe it still is awning at La Rosticceria where we had lunch Rue Colbert Diego Suarez Antsiranana Madagascar East Africa in the conclusion of <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com 2008 01 48 hours in diego suarez madagascar day 18 html >48 hours in Diego Suarez< a> at <a href= http www colloidfarl blogspot com >www colloidfarl blogspot com< a>

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Black Monkey

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Libertalia

<a href= http en wikipedia org wiki History of Madagascar >Madagascar< a> was a notorious pirate s lair in the age of colonialism when merchant ships in the Indian Ocean the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf were easy prey Legend says that in the late 1700s a strange community named <a href= http en wikipedia org wiki Libertalia >Libertalia< a> settled in Diego Suarez now Antsiranana Founded by a French pirate named Misson and a Roman priest Angelo Caraccioli the enclave was ruled under a utopian philosophy based on the freedom of men religion and races Unfortunately Libertalia itself was pillaged and wasted by rival Malagasy tribes a wall mural in Diego Suarez Antsiranana Madagascar East Africa more pics in <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com > colloidfarl blogspot com< a>

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Dewy Pink Catharanthus roseus Madagascar Periwinkle Kew Botanical

Just before 1757 Philip Miller 1691 1771 undaunted and hard working chief gardener of the relatively young Chelsea Physic Garden at London England received some unspecified seeds from his colleagues at the Jardin des Plantes of Paris France They had apparently been collected in Madagascar off the coast of East Africa Miller planted these seeds and discovered a wonderfuly pink flower sprouting from verdant relatively leathery leaves It looked a bit like the vine like periwinkles with which he was familiar and thus he gave it a long description beginning with Vinca foliis oblongo ovatis integerrimus Miller s was a conservative mind and he thought the two term rules for nomenclatura of Carolus Linnaeus 1753 too new fangled to use Linnaeus however in 1759 himself also used the first name Vinca adding to it rosea to describe the marvellous color We now know that the Madagascar periwinkle is in fact a different plant than our vine like periwinkle Hence its name has been corrected to Catharanthus roseus Red Pure Flower katharos being the Greek for pure That name was given it by John Edwards around 1795 It has also gone by the names of Locherna rosea and Ammocallis rosea which are sometimes still used today Mostly though it is called the Madagascar Periwinkle or in deference to its Latin name quot Flower without a blemish quot Athough the common periwinkle of Europe was said to have medicinal qualities and hence was called sometimes Sorcerer s violet the Madagascar Periwinkle is actually the great Curer It is from certain alkaloids that it contains that important anti cancer drugs are drawn vincristine and vinblastine Most pharmacists I know use the old fashioned word Vinca in describing our Catharanthus no doubt because their textbooks have not been upgraded This wonderful exemplar was photographed in the Kew Botanical Gardens near London As history would have it our Philip Miller of Chelsea was the teacher of the famous botantist William Aiton who was th

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lifelines

Fishing is the most important economic activity in Diego Suarez North Madagascar As the region is not shielded by any large neighboring landmass it is exposed to strong currents that punish the Indian Ocean Navigation is hazardous that even freight ships cannot pass the Cap d Ambre Yet almost daily fishermen go by their daily chores of venturing out into the <a href= http flickr com photos colloidfarl 63634661 in set 1373907 >bay< a> in single hull small boats Being small is an advantage I guess For spectators like me there are always the colorful nets to catch my fancy at Ramena Beach Diego Suarez Antsiranana Madagascar East Africa more pics and journeys in <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com > colloidfarl blogspot com< a>

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Sunday siesta

Ramena beach is popular to both tourists and locals Situated in just one of the 3 gigantic bays of Diego Suarez the immaculate white sand coast of Ramena is among the numerous pristine beaches that enveigle the senses of sunlovers For locals however public buses are scarce except during Sunday when day beach trips become regular for those who want to partake of a piece of paradise We took a taxi to this beach on a Sunday and with 20 kilometers of beach to choose empty stretches are the rule and crowds are non existent For the nearly 3 hours that we were there I chose to skip taking a dip I practiced with my Rebel camera as the lighting was perfect and the people could not be any more generous with their smiles or in the case of this child leaning on her napping mother her lazy stare the Ramena beach Diego Suarez Antsiranana Northeast Madagascar East Africa more pics and journeys in <a href= http colloidfarl blogspot com >colloidfarl blogspot com< a>

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MADAGASCAR COPAL

50 60 years old C 14 test

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Africa at the tip of my finger

For unknown reasons my fingers have been peeling over the last week The other morning a new patch resembled the continent of Africa with Madagascar to the east no less

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