The trip wasn't nearly as bad as any of us expected. The strangest part of the trip was that, not far outside of Bekopaka, we drove past four French guys - two on bikes and two running. Apparently, they're ultra-runners and were running from Bekopaka to...somewhere. It's ~80 km from Bekopaka to Belo, and they caught up to us while we ate in Belo, so there is no way that they ran that whole distance. Still, they were running in 90+ degree weather, without any shade, and one of them was running without any water!
By the time we stopped in Belo for lunch, I was feeling well enough to eat real food for the first time in 24 hours. It wasn't much, but it was an improvement. Much to my chagrin, however, one of the meds they put me on means that I can't drink for 48 hours after I take it...I'm going to be stopping that one as soon as possible!
Even the ferry ride across the Tsiribihina wasn't too bad. There was one hell of a line waiting for the ferry when we showed up, but we made it on. It's a good thing too, because otherwise we would have been stuck there until the late afternoon and would have missed watching the sunset along the Allee des Baobabs! They packed the ferries as full as possible. Ours had six cars on it and dozens of people, so Kati and I stayed in the car with the windows down, enjoying the breeze. The most entertaining part was watching almost a dozen Malagasy men trying to push a one ton (or more) engine up the steep, muddy hill from the ferry. Even by the time we left, they had only made it a matter of feet!
After the crossing, the road got noticeably rougher and more difficult on my stomach. Kati eased the pain, however, because she'd had some of my best friends (and family) send her pictures and songs that reminded them of me and made a 30th birthday playlist for me! It was amazing.
At around 3:00, we stopped by the Great Baobab. Mark says that, based on its size, they believe it's about 800 years old. The problem with baobabs is that, unlike most trees, they don't have rings, so they are much more difficult to age. He also told us the story behind why the Great Baobab is sacred. The tribe that settled Western Madagascar is called the Sakalava. Many years ago, a Sakalava princess was traveling through that area and stopped at the nearby village asking for water. She sat down at the base of the Great Baobab, stressed out because she had thus far been unable to give her husband a child. As she sat there, she spoke to the baobab and wished that she could get pregnant. She promised that, if she did, she would come back and sacrifice "many zebu" in its honor. Six months later, she was pregnant. She didn't think much of it until a year later when she remembered sitting under the baobab tree and the promise that she made that day. So, she rounded up a number of zebu and took a caravan of people out into the country to find it again and fulfill her promise. When she did, she told the villagers from that day on, no one was to harm the Great Baobab because it was sacred. To this day, the Malagasy believe that tree to be connected with their ancestors and venerate it accordingly.
The highlight of the day was undoubtedly the Allee des Baobabs, and we hit it perfectly! We got
there maybe 15 minutes before sunset (and the sun sets fast here). The only way to describe it is as "incredible." We got some amazing pictures, but even they don't do it justice.
We finally made it to Morondava around 7:00, and driving through the city at night was an entirely different experience. There was still a lot of hustle and bustle, but of a very different kind. We stayed at the Palissandre Cote Ouest Resort & Spa -- way on the Western end of Morondava, and right on the coast. I was still recovering from my illness, so we grabbed a quick dinner (I still ate very little), and then retired to relax in the room. The only problem was that, even though we had an "air conditioner" in our room, it didn't really cool anything off very much and we were forced to sleep in the sweltering heat.
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