feeling a little holier than thou ... or not ...

well my lovelies, I had the chance to go to Africa this week and continue my bohemian adventures, hobo-vagabond style ... but instead I let my practical side prevail for once and opted to stay behind and ... sniff, sniff ... work a little!

see, there is never a time that travelling does not appeal, especially when it is with a kindred spirit. but I've already neglected our little boutique somethin' awful ... so it is time to buckle down, get things going and work on my list. my very long list.

which includes not only The Bohemians ... but an assortment of DIY projects chez moi.

Not to mention the fact that I had a little burst of inspiration after a couple came by last week and purchased 4 (yes that is FOUR) pieces of furniture at once! not only was it exciting but now we look a little bare so I've got to get busy and get some new stuff out on the floor ...

and that certainly couldn't happen from the back of a motorcycle in Africa....

le sigh!

ile ste marie ... nous arrivons!

we arose for our 6:00 am pick up and went on to the airport. After much teasing about the tiny plane we would be on, we boarded a plane that held about 40-50 people so not so bad.

when we landed, the usual gaggle of fellows awaited us, pressing for taxi service and touting the hotels they knew. We sat on the terrace and debated where to stay ... each of us consulting our guides (one French, one English)... JY's won out and we headed for le Mangoustan.

the road paving quickly disappeared and the ride was spent dodging potholes and rocks. Every glance out the window viewed paradise ... lush greenery and pristine waters.

le Mangoustan was positioned on a cove, the bar and terrace were quite welcoming. A week's bungalow stay was 36 euros. no, there is no typo there. Before you get too excited, let me tell you the accommodations were spartan. There was a sink and shower with cold running water but the toilets had no evacuation. So you had to fill a bucket with water and pour. The bed was clean and covered with a mosquito net. The bungalow exited to the sea ...

This little spot had loads of potential ... amazing position, charming buildings ... but the host didn't seem completely aware of all aspects of running the place. more on that later.

I immediately changed clothes and decide to swim a bit. this little islet wasn't far from the beach. I began wading out and discovered the ocean floor was covered with sea urchins in this spot. spiny sea urchins. I did have on my rubber diving/swim booties but they wouldn't offer great protection from the spines so much caution was required. I made it out to the islet and looked around. not much going on there! so I returned and strolled the beach. Thus commenced my two weeks of shell collecting. It is impossible to describe the treasure trove of amazing shells littering the beaches. Huge shells, shimmering porcelains, every shape and color ... so many in perfect condition it was hard to choose. and coral too. This was to be a daily pastime.

We rented bicycles from our host and headed for the village. This is a very poor country. As we rode, we observed many one room bungalows, wooden mostly though some were stucco. Some had dirt floors. Some of these bungalows had little shops set up in front of them. Basically a few shelves with bottled drinks, candies, a platter of home made food. I saw refrigerators in some, but when we stopped to buy a drink and asked for it cold ... we learned the refrigerators weren't operating.

We continued to town as we wanted to exchange our euros for some ariary, the local money. As we rode, we noticed the seats on our bicycles left much to be desired! especially with the conditions of the roads ... and the fact that my padding in certain areas has disappeared! who knew I'd miss my cushy ass?!

It was hot. No I don't have a thermometer reading but I'd guess it at low 90s. and humid. We rolled into town and parked our bikes. Four men in security-type uniform sat outside the bank so we felt our bikes were safe. We entered the bank around 10:30 and got on line. and proceeded to wait. By around 11:45 it was my turn and my 100 euros yielded 250,000 Ariary!! talk about a bank roll. it was hard to put in my sac.

We nattered around a bit and returned to the hotel. I'd guess the ride to and fro to be 2km. Our asses were chapped. We showered (cold water was good by now) and lounged about the terrace drinking beer and then rums. Dinner was really nothing special...in fact the food here left much to be desired. The owner sat with us most of the time, like we were long lost friends.

The next day we rented a motorcycle. This proved to be a big adventure. So big, I'll have to save it for the next installment.

on to Madagascar.

we arrived at Kenya airport without incident. We thought it was funny to see the very same truck JY just sold on the streets of Nairobi! We tracked down the Kenya Airlines cashier and received reimbursement for our visas (we had to buy $40 visas for our one night at the hotel). We were then checked in to Madagascar Airlines with anticipation. The attendant chided Monsieur for not speaking English ... imagine me in the role of interpreter! it is a good thing he is a patient person and is entertained by my foul french, eh?!

we wandered through Kenya airport, noting all the little shops and the cheap items on sale ... great deals on ciggies, liquor and African trinkets. we decided to wait until our return before shopping much.

as we wandered, we stumbled across our gate! and they were checking folks in! we were surprised and somewhat confused about times, etc. not long after we went through security, they began boarding so we were grateful about our coincidental discovery of the gate.

Our flight was over 3 hours, so we were fed again! the food was actually tasty and actually REAL food vs. the food we are served these days on airlines. Yes the food was in foil but it wasn't the frozen stuff you get now. It was fresh chicken, potatoes and carrots ... a real dessert ... none of it tasted industrialized like the common airline fare.

We made good seatmates with much goofing off and giggling. I'm not sure our fellow passengers would vote the same ... but c'est la vie! life is much more enjoyable spent laughing ... trust me.

We arrived at Antananarivo (Tana) and it was a very familiar reception. I remember arriving my first time in Mexico and having the feeling of running the 'gauntlet'. In Tana, an onslaught of men pressed upon us...offering their services - taxis, guides, etc. They were friendly and not too overbearing. One set of three stuck with us despite JY's 'merci, nons' ... and actually pointed us to several spots in the airport we needed to be. I think they thought that helpfulness might convince us in the end.

We arrived knowing we still needed ANOTHER flight to get to our desired destination, Ile. Ste. Marie, a small island in the northeast of Madagascar. So it was monsieur's turn to navigate, we were in frenchland again. He sorted it out, we plunked down more money and he left with the name of the hotel we were to go to.

Okay. now we exited to fairly oppressive heat (I'd guess high 80s/low 90s and high humidity) laden with our full backpacks. I mustered up my internal zen and we began walking. As soon as we left airport grounds, we were in the midst of various cottages, huts and shanties as we trudged the road. Supposedly, our hotel was nearby. A few cars stopped and offered taxi services, but monsieur declined thinking our hotel was just ahead.

not.

finally, we stopped and chatted with a fairly friendly guy who had a car who took us to a hotel in the center of the village. we took showers to revive and headed out to the neighborhood. where we discovered a curfew was in effect due to the political troubles.

Yes, we chose a spot where the mayor of the capital and the president of the country have been embroiled in a power struggle for a few months now. After a few tense weeks of protests, shootings and the like, a curfew was imposed and the military rolled in.

This hotel was located in a residential area, very poor and apparently slightly surprised to see our white faces! ha, we walked up and down a few blocks at dusk, realized no bar of any sort was to be found. So we returned direction the hotel and ate at a very simple restaurant ... (some sort of chicken/rice dish and beer).

We rose the next day and decided to move closer to the airport, since we were flying out the next day. The atmosphere was tense and we elected just to remain at our new hotel ... which wasn't half bad. It could have been in old New Orleans, or somewhere in Latin America ... or where we were. Kind of tropical old world charm. Terraced and gardens and walled in, you could almost forget there were political skirmishes underway ... we lounged around and sipped beer and played cards and laughed a bit. In between mosquito spray and goofin' off!

Dinner was hilarious. For JY. Why? well because I let him order for me from the local specialties. So pork and manioc it was. He on the other hand selected a "3 Viandes" dish which looked quite tasty. Mine looked like this ... and tasted just about the same ... I longed for my Air Madagascar chicken, I did. The only things that saved the night were the rhum punch and the father/son guitar duo who played so well through dinner. Oh. and the laughing till I cried. that helped too!

on safari... and stuff ....

well, folks ... off for a 'petite aventure' ... a break from the cold and capitalizing upon the new relative proximity to Africa.

Gone for a few weeks and probably not blogging regularly. lucky to have running water, let alone internet access!

I WILL however take copious notes and photos ... and hopefully have a million small adventures as only Kim can. That way, I can dazzle you with stories upon my return.

ponders what other witticisms to throw in. comes up with nothing.

Okay then, I'll leave you with that...feel free to confer amongst yourselves and ready your questions for my return ... ha!