It was a quiet morning and nice not to have to get up to get anywhere today. We had lunch at the hotel and then Josef picked us up to take us to the airport. Clearing customs and security was a piece of cake.
Overall, Madagascar was a little disturbing. It is the poorest country we have ever been in and probably the poorest one we will ever see. Between the limited water, short food supplies and governmental corruption, it is hard to see how the folks living here retain a positive outlook. That said, the Malagasy people generally seem happy. Nevertheless, we got the sense that they were frustrated about their inability to drive change.
It is hard to get around because the roads are really terrible. But the hassle is worth it because the lemurs are magnificent and the culture is rich. Mandrare River Camp was by far our favorite. It had a great blend ofcomraderie, culture and wildlife. At both Mandrare and Eulophiella we felt like we got to know the people, which makes the difference between a good experience and an excellent experience.
Overall we are happy that we came to Madagascar and recommend it to others. We are hopeful that the lives of the Malagasy people get easier as the country modernizes, they get more access to education and healthcare and are able to initiate steps to western ideals that fit their environment, especially when it comes to governmental corruption.
The 3 1/2 hour flight from Tana to Nairobi was uneventful and we were met at the gate by a representative from our travel company who helped us thru immigration and guided us out to our Kenyan guide and driver. This was made easy as all spoke very good English. They told us that English and Swahili are official languages of Kenya. There are 43 tribes in Kenya, each with their own language, so the country has a total of 45 official languages. The population of the country is 55 million and there are about 5 million people living in Nairobi.
It was a very short ride to our hotel. The security in Nairobi is intense. Our car was inspected before we could pull into the hotel and then our luggage and carry ons were scanned at the door and we needed to walk through a metal detector — shades of Egypt a few years ago. We got checked in and had a late dinner at the outdoor restaurant.
