East Oregonian : E.O., November 10, 2018, WEEKEND EDITION, Image 17

LIFESTYLES
WEEKEND, NOV. 10-11, 2018
LEFT TO RIGHT An owl peeks from dense foilage in the Isalo reserve in southwestern Madagascar.  A chameoleon stays motionless on a branch in the
Isalo reserve in southwestern Madagascar.  A ring-tailed lemur hides behind a branch at the Vakona reserve.
MADAGASCAR
Island of wonders
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
Three girls run along the road in southern Madagascar.
Trip shifts paradigm for traveler
By KATHY ANEY
East Oregonian
A
rriving on the island
of Madagascar was a
bit like being thrown
headlong into a Dr.
Seuss book.
Everything seemed strangely
unfamiliar — plants and
animals, culture and language.
My husband Bill and I didn’t
realize it then, but the next two
weeks would change us more
than we could know.
Madagascar isn’t an easy
vacation destination. For ease,
stick to Waikiki or Cabo. It isn’t
a short jaunt — Madagascar is
a 12-hour flight from Europe.
We traveled to Madagascar to
photograph lemurs and baobab
trees and the rainforest — which
we did — but we also came
face to face with poverty and an
exuberant enjoyment of life that
defies explanation.
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
A trio of baobab trees stand like sentinals.
See MADAGASCAR/4C
Photo by Bill Aney
Everyone gets in on the action: A lemur checks out Kathy
Aney’s camera during her recent visit to Madagascar while
her husband, Bill Aney, takes a turn behind the lens.
Glossary
Zebu — Humped cattle used for meat, milk and agricultural
work.
Malagasy — The language of Madagascar or a resident of the
island nation.
Antananrivo (Tan) — Madaghascar’s capitol city and home to
1.4 million people.
Andasibe National Park — Sixty-square-mile forest reserve in
eastern Madagascar, home to many species of lemur.
Baobab — Prehistoric tree species that lives up to 5,000 years.
“All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.”
Martin Buber, German philosopher