After living on the island for five months we all agreed it was time to see the ocean! We decided to go to Nosy Be, which is a smaller island off the northwestern coast of Madagascar. Instead of driving, which would have taken at least two days due to the distance and poor road conditions, we took a 1.5 hour flight and arrived early on a Tuesday morning. We quickly found a taxi and headed to our Air BnB. The drive from the airport began on a winding road that took us through groves of the ylang ylang tree, which produces sweet smelling flowers that are used to make perfume, essential oils, and more. The trees are gnarled, bent over and look like something out of a Harry Potter movie that might come to life at any moment. The driver pulled over and plucked some of the flowers from a nearby tree and handed each of us one to take in the scent along the drive.
Our Air BnB was only a few minute walk from the nearest beach and we dropped our luggage and made our way there. The kids wasted no time in getting their feet wet and finding interesting shells on the shore. We quickly realized that the temperature on the island was much warmer than we are used to in the highlands of Antananarivo! Our first day was spent orienting ourselves, finding the grocery store, trying to stay cool, and figuring out the best prices for tuk tuks to get us around the island.
One of the reasons we chose Nosy Be as our destination was because whale sharks come to feed in the area between September and December. We were excited to take advantage of this opportunity! Our second day we loaded into a tuk tuk (five people in the back of a tuk tuk is not glamorous) and made our way to the meeting point for our first adventure on the water. After we ensured our snorkel masks and flippers fit us appropriately, we headed out on the boat to start our day snorkeling with the sea turtles of Nosy Sakatia. We were joined by a couple from England on vacation and two French women who live in Réunion Island. The women were volunteers for the
Madagascar Whale Shark Project, which meant that they were equipped with underwater cameras and permission to swim much closer to the animals than us (photo credit to them). After a short boat ride, we arrived and put our gear on. This was the first time any of us had snorkeled, so thankfully we started this way before moving on to the whale sharks. The water was a beautiful turquoise color, amazingly warm, and very clear. It didn't take long to figure out the snorkel and we spotted several huge turtles feeding and swimming about.
We loaded back on the boat and were on our way again to try and find the whale sharks. The first indication that a whale shark may be below the surface is the presence of many fish (tuna) frantically jumping out of the water feeding on plankton, and birds trying to capitalize on a potential feast. The whale sharks also feed on plankton, so there is a good likelihood there is one there below all the commotion. Otherwise you may briefly see the the tale above the surface of the water, but no other indication that a giant creature is swimming below. However, the guide, a French man, and our Malagasy Captain were experts in spotting them. They gave instructions about what to do such as; don't put your feet in the water when sitting on the back of the boat until given the okay so you avoid losing a limb, whale sharks' eyes are on the sides of their heads so if they are swimming right toward you they won't see you and it's up to you to get out of the way, avoid touching them as their skin is rough and can potentially hurt you and of course it's not good to share our human bacteria with them. It didn't take long and they instructed us to get ready and be quick! We all eagerly put on our snorkel mask and fins, along with life jackets for us, and got into the water. Unfortunately the first time we missed seeing it all together! Between getting the mask right and being a little nervous to get into the very deep ocean with a giant creature lurking below, it was gone before we even got our bearings. The guide gently reminded us to get in and quickly look down, the whale shark is not in the sky. After the first try, we had the opportunity to see several whale sharks and it was magical! It's like immersing yourself into another world, the quiet of the ocean enhancing your other senses, and watching this graceful creature swim with ease around you. Of course, I had to balance watching the whale shark with holding on to my seven year old son, keeping an eye on my husband who can't swim, and making sure my two older girls were doing well. The bright orange life jackets made it easier to do, even though both my daughters are proficient swimmers, it gave me a peace of mind to have them wear one. Despite the multi-tasking, it was an amazing experience!
We took another day trip to a smaller island called Nosy Iranja, which also included swimming with whale sharks and sea turtles along the way. Nosy Iranja consists of two islands connected by a 1km strip of sandbar. The water was such a beautiful turquoise color in contrast to the white sandy beach. It was so quiet and I could only imagine what the night sky would look like. We spent a couple of hours enjoying this spectacular place, wishing we had planned to at least stay one night. We even spotted a black lemur in a tree on our walk to lunch.
The rest of our trip included a lot of relaxing on the beach, tuk tuk rides, eating sorbet, playing countless games of UNO, enjoying some of the most incredible sunsets I have ever seen, and just spending quality time together. We can't wait to go back!
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