Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
café.Makesureyouallowtimeforatouraswellasforlunchandshopping;thisvisitcould
be one of the highlights of your trip to Madagascar. Seriously! Book at least a day ahead.
AkanyAvokoislocatedabout1kmpastAmbohidratimo,thelastsuburbonRN4towards
Mahajanga, about 15km from Tana centre (look for the sign on the left with the small wav-
ing hands logo). For more on their work see
Click Here
.
CENTREFIHAVANANA
[143C5](
2227159;
e
bpfihavanana@moov.mg
)
Runbythe
Sisters of the Good Shepherd, Centre Fihavanana has a similar mission to Akany Avoko.
SitednearMahamasina stadium, thecentre issetbackfromtheroad,justtotherightofthe
orange-painted St Joseph's church. The women here work to a very high standard, produ-
cing beautiful embroidery and greeting cards. Judith Cadigan writes: 'We are so glad you
suggested visiting the Sœurs du Bon Pasteur. We bought lots of embroidered linens and
were shown around the school, shook hands with what felt like most of the 200 children,
were serenaded by one of the classes, and were altogether greatly impressed by what the
nuns are doing. We took along unused antibiotics and they were glad to have them.' Find
out more on
Click Here
.
GOLF CLUB INTERNATIONAL DU ROVA
(
24 310 55;
m
032 04 210 99/032 41
368 11;
e
golfdurova@moov.mg
;
www.golf-du-rova.com
)
There is a good golf course at
Ambohidratrimo, ten minutes from the airport. Designed in the 1950s, this 18-hole 72-par
6,670-yardcoursealsohasaswimmingpoolandclubhouserestaurant.Inexpensivelessons
and caddy services are available.
HORSERIDING
(
Villa Fahafinaretana, Ambodisaha;
m
032 07 039 04/033 08 765 68;
e
fedrova@gmail.com
) The
FermeEquestreduRova
at Ambohidratrimo offers horserid-
ing around the northern outskirts of Tana, including the Rova d'Ambohidratrimo.
POVERTY IN TANA - WHAT'S BEING DONE?
Hilary Bradt
The very poor of Tana are known as '
les quatre mis
' ('the four
mis
') after the Mala-
gasy words
miloka
(gambling),
mifoka
(smoking),
misotro
(drinking) and
mijanga-
janga
(prostitution). Some 10% of Madagascar's population of 22 million is estim-
ated to live in and around the capital, over half of them below poverty level. And it
can be grim. However, encouragingly, more and more local organisations are target-
ing specific sectors. Two that I know personally are
Akany Avoko
and the
Centre
Fihavanana
.Bothplaceswelcomevisitors,sellanexcellentrangeofhandicrafts,and
are guaranteed to give anyone's spirits a lift. See
Click Here
.
