The West - Madagascar - page 659

The village itself is a collection of lagoon-side houses shrouded in palm trees; each fam-
ily keeps a pig which is allowed to forage at night - Belo's mobile garbage disposals. Off-
shore, nine coral-fringed islands offer excellent snorkelling and diving. Little-known and
seldom-visited, the reefs are in very good condition.
There are huge cargo vessels ( boutres , gaffe-rigged goelettes ) among the coconut palms
at the lagoon, and these are still built by hand, mostly using exactly the same designs as
the Bretons used centuries back (see box on Click Here ) , taking some four to six years to
complete each ship. Normally the lagoon presents a picturesque setting with boutres in all
stages of construction, but Belo was hit by Cyclone Fanele in 2009, destroying or badly
damaging many of the boats (not to mention the hospital, school and most houses), seri-
ously impacting villagers' livelihoods.
Getting there and away Adventurers can go by pirogue, but it's easy to be overcharged
for this uncomfortable trip. The normal price is 50,000-60,000Ar for a three- to four-day
return trip. Under good winds it can take six to ten hours to sail to Belo from Morondava,
but be prepared to camp overnight on the way. It's much easier to take the taxi-be de mer
(see Click Here ), when it runs.
Overland by 4x4 is also an option from Morondava (4 hours) or Morombe (1½ days).
Once the river levels drop the road is open - typically mid-June to mid-October. Air Mad
has scheduled flights between Morondava and Toliara (sometimes via Morombe or Manja)
twice a week each way.
Where to stay and eat
Marina (8 bungalows & 1 suite) 95 249 50; m 032 02 803 68; e lamarinabe-
[e-mail] . €€€€
Ecolodge du Menabe (9 bungalows) [phone] (satellite phone);
e [e-mail] ; www.menabelo.com . Well-run hotel with dbl & twin rooms with
solar power in nice garden. Diving, fishing & boat trips. €€€
Dauphin (6 bungalows) m 032 40 310 97. Spacious, clean bungalows with shared fa-
cilities. Excellent restaurant. €€
Dorotel (Chez Dorothée) (7 bungalows) m 033 01 863 54/032 04 703 54. Low-price
simple seafront bungalows with shared toilet & basic shower. A range of land/sea excur-
sions including transport to Morombe. €
Chez Lova m 033 16 114 43/032 40 192 49; e [e-mail] ; ht-
tp://lovabelo.voila.net . Much praised family-run business. Good food too & excursions. €
Bonne Bouffe m 033 19 115 85; 12.00-20.30. Malagasy food including takeaway.
NOSY ANDRAVANO AND OTHER ISLANDS Belo is the base for visiting a cluster
of nine interesting offshore islands, the largest of which is Nosy Andravano, but there are