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Is it possible to backpack thru Madagascar without speaking French for six weeks or will it be too complicated |
I would like to spend my next holiday (6 weeks in November) in Madagascar. But I don't speak french. Is it possible or will it be too stressy. I will be travelling alone with my rucksack. 'The people' I can't say it enough...they are fantastic. In general the Malagasy will do anything to make your trip something fantastic. I feel very lucky to speak some basic french and to be able to do some conversations. (I did feel comfortable speaking French in Madagascar since it is their second language as well). English travelers we've met did feel like it was a big disadvantage not to be able to speak French - However , people will talk whatever they picked up in English to help you for sure. And even if French is the second official language in Madagascar...not everybody speaks it. We choose to keep the same taxidriver for a couple of days and asked him to pick us up at the hotel...they helped to find a hotel , adviced us on restaurants and local places , brought us to the national parcs sometimes , did the big trip of the island. It was nice to get to know them a little bit better. In our experience , Malagasy are very punctual. Nothing elastic time. If you arranged to get picked up at that hour...there they were. If I can give you one advice is...never get mad and shout. I've seen it a couple of times , without any reason. And they just collapse. They don't know how to handle angry people. It is much much easier to smile , and keep smiling and tell them what you had expected and (even the angry people) you will get what you want if possible. And in Madagascar everything is possible. (In the picture you can see Frederik and Monique. Our guide in the national parc near Andasibe. She was great fun , a fantastic guide and she told us how to get back to Tana...etc) Don't miss out on a great experience because you don't know French. A smile and an ability to mime go a long way and you have a chance to pick up some French phrases between now and November. Some Malagasy people don't speak more than a smattering of French anyway and many people in the tourist trade have made an effort to learn a little English. Just take a phrase book with you and learn how to pronounce French words. Get Hilary Bradt's travel guide -- there's a new edition out. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/me... Enjoy your trip! |
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