46. Beitrag - Nosy Iranja

We had booked an overnight stay on Nosy Iranja for this weekend . It was an absolute must-see for us, even though it was really expensive. But up until now we had really vacationed in anti-luxurious conditions (frequent power outages, no doors, only one breakfast and half a pizza a day), so we treated ourselves. We paid €135 per person, but that included the three-hour boat ride, meals, drinks and some activities as well as accommodation.

We packed our things in the morning and waited for a tuk-tuk that the provider would send to pick us up. At around 7:45 a.m. we got in and drove off towards fun&boat . For reasons that were still unclear to us, they had even sent two tuk-tuks, but that would become clear later.
When we arrived at the agency, we met our fellow travelers, but only we and a mother-son team were staying overnight; the rest would return to Nosy Be by boat in the afternoon. We left our suitcase at the agency and went to the harbor with two backpacks, where the boat was already waiting for us.

We were given life jackets on board and the 1.5 hour boat trip began. Nosy Be quickly disappeared almost completely from sight, but Grande Terre , the "mainland" of Madagascar, came ever closer. The closer we got to our destination island, the clearer and more turquoise the water became. It looked really surreal in places, it was so beautiful.

A few meters before Nosy Iranja we unpacked our snorkeling gear and I was so happy because the water was crystal clear and the color was indescribably beautiful. We could already see the white sandbank of the island in front of us and it was like paradise. In addition, we could see lots of turtles in the water from the boat. So we got off the boat with diving masks, snorkels and fins and swam with turtles and fish. It was somehow magical because the water didn't offer any visual barrier between us and the fish, it was far too clear for that. This place definitely deserved the name "Island of Turtles".

After a while we were called back on the boat and we moored at the sandbank. From there we only took a water bottle and flip-flops and went to the left. The island is split in two at high tide, but at low tide you can walk across a white sandbank from the right to the left part of the island. On the left part there was an abandoned hotel that was closed when the president changed to protect the turtles. They had buried their eggs everywhere in the sand, which we were later able to see first hand. The hotel was super luxurious and even after so many years of being empty it still looked really good, almost better than our current accommodation :D

After we had looked around, the guide left us alone and we were able to enjoy the stunning beach for about 30 minutes. It is difficult to describe how beautiful it was and photos don't even begin to convey it. We stood on a white sandbank with the finest sand I have ever felt. In front of and behind us was the sea, but it was as calm as a small lake. And the water was like air, so clear you could see through it. If you looked further into the distance you could see all kinds of turquoise, dark blue and light blue, it was really too beautiful to be true. I felt like I was sitting in a photoshopped reality.

After half an hour we walked all the way across the sandbank to a house where our guide picked us up to go and eat. To get to the dining area, which consisted of several tables set for the whole tour group, we had to walk a little further through the village, which was also interesting.

For lunch we had rice, pasta salad, fish, shrimps, zébu (a type of beef), chicken and bread, so we couldn't complain :D It tasted really delicious and was our first proper meal in a few days.

We tucked in and were more than full afterwards. For dessert we had pineapple and oranges.
After dinner we were shown our tent, which was actually just a small room with a roof down to the ground, really cozy and beautiful (and right by the sea!). We put down our luggage and spent the next few hours digesting and getting a tan by lying on the beach.

At 5 p.m. we met up with our guide and the other two people who had stayed overnight in front of the sandbank, which had since been flooded by the sea. He was waiting for us there at a table made of sand that he had dug into the beach. I was more impressed by this than I perhaps should have been, but it was really, really cool.

We snacked on peanuts and banana chips, the other two drank juice and Laura, I and the guide drank a lot of rum in the form of mojitos. They were really delicious, with cane sugar and limes straight from Nosy Be. The evening progressed slowly and we had a really good chat, it was really nice.
At some point I had to go to the toilet so badly that Laura and I moved a little away from the table so we could pee in the dark. But just as we got far enough away, a strange woman ran up to us and informed us that a turtle was laying its eggs on the beach. So of course the toilet plans were immediately abandoned and we gathered around a turtle with everyone else.

We watched her as she scratched the sand over her eggs and then headed back towards the sea. The turtles always dig and bury two such holes to confuse any predators of the eggs. After 45-60 days, the little babies hatch at night.
It was really exciting to watch and I was really glad that the woman had called us. We all then returned to our sand table for a short while and then made our way back to the dining area. Here we had dinner, which was really delicious.

We were very lucky later and were able to watch two more turtles laying their eggs. Unfortunately, you can't upload videos here, but it was really cool to see.

After this spectacle, our other two overnight friends said goodbye and went to bed, while Laura, Constantin (our guide) and I opened the bottle of rum again. Unfortunately, Laura was no longer so enthusiastic about the idea of alcohol, which is why Constantin and I drank the liter of rum almost alone. But it was delicious and a really fun evening!

At around 11 p.m. we lay down in the luxury tent and I fell asleep immediately.

—————

Waking up was very nice and very unpleasant at the same time. The view from the bed was unbelievably beautiful, it was a gentle sunrise over the soft, clear water.

Unfortunately, I had to swap the view from the bed for the view from the toilet, because I had a bad case of food poisoning. And I was also sick from the alcohol, a dream. In retrospect, I think that the ice cubes in the mojito were probably made with tap water rather than drinking water. I hadn't expected that, since we were traveling with a real agency, but oh well, that's how it is :D So I struggled a bit on the toilet (with many flashbacks to the first Madagascar vacation), took 2-3 activated charcoal tablets and sat down with the others at the breakfast table. I had been going through coffee withdrawal for a few days now thanks to not eating breakfast, but I really didn't want to add that to my gut. So I ate a crêpe and an orange and left it at that. I couldn't sit still any longer anyway, because the toilet was calling.

The next item on the agenda was a pirogue trip to go snorkeling, which scared me on the one hand because I would be away from my toilet for at least 3 hours, and on the other hand because the pirogue really looked like a complete nutshell. Unfortunately I wasn't able to take a photo, but it was honestly 6 wooden slats that had been poorly shaped into the shape of a boat. And there was even a bucket on board to scoop the water out of the boat during the trip. My kayak trauma made itself known, but I ignored it.

So six of us set off, four paddled and two emptied the boat. We made good progress and arrived at our snorkeling location after about 30 minutes. The water was once again incredibly clear, and you had the feeling you could stand upright the whole time because you could see the bottom so clearly.

Unfortunately, we didn't see any turtles this time, but we did see a lot of fish and very beautiful corals. After about an hour of snorkeling, I gave up my snorkeling gear and just swam around a bit. When you swam out to the open sea, you felt like you were in a video game or virtual reality, because it was too good to be true. You swam and only saw transparent waves lapping towards you, with the shallow light blue of the sea in the background. It's hard to describe, but I just hope that these images will stay in my head forever. After a while, we set off back home in our floating saucer and managed to get all six people back to land safely.

We then had a short time to get ready (or rather, time for me to use the toilet) before we continued on with a tour of the village. We actually just walked up the stairs, past souvenir stands, to an old lighthouse that unfortunately no longer worked. Past the lighthouse we came to a really beautiful viewpoint, because you could see the contrast between the white sandbank and the light blue of the sea, the color of the clayey earth and the green of the trees and bushes. A really great sight!

We use the chic backdrop for a selfie with the other two and Constantin.

After the return journey, I had lunch, the last meal on this beautiful island. I ate despite the discomfort (don't worry, I will refrain from any further explanations of the inner workings of my intestines from now on) and the upcoming 1.5 hour boat ride, because I had paid for it and besides, it was sooo delicious again *-*
Luckily, we had about an hour left after lunch to spend on the beach before we had to head back to the boat. During this time, we tanned a bit and enjoyed the incredible view and the magical water one last time. Unfortunately, it went by far too quickly and we were already back on a boat heading for Nosy Be .
Everyone we asked here what the most beautiful place on Nosy Be or even all of Madagascar was answered with " Nosy Iranja ". And they were all so right. I'm not a huge beach person, but that was a really amazing sight. I've never seen anything like it and I probably won't find it anywhere else. I'm really glad we treated ourselves to this trip, it was worth every cent. Constantin, our guide, was also just a sweetheart and really really pleasant, as were the mother-son team who stayed with us.

Back on Nosy Be and at the agency, we asked Constantin if he could get us a tuk-tuk to take us to our next accommodation in Ambatoxavavy . His boss should have organized this for us a long time ago, but he had forgotten. And it's not easy to find someone who wants to drive the long distance (45 minutes) on a rather bad road at night, because he has to drive it back alone and is unlikely to find any clients on the way home. Fortunately, Constantin was able to convince the driver who had also taken us from the port to the agency. The price was steep, but what could we do, we just had to go :D Constantin was then nice enough to accompany us to the AirBnB and then let us drop him off at his place on the way back, so the poor guy was still in the tuk-tuk for 90 minutes after work.
When we arrived in the village of Abatoxavavy , all the residents already knew that we were coming. We didn't have a specific address, but as soon as they saw us they guided us in the right direction and we arrived safely.

The room we had was actually really nice, I had expected worse. The bathroom was pretty bad, especially because there was no running water. And yes, I didn't want to talk about it anymore, but I would like to point out the need for a flush toilet. And we hadn't had the opportunity to shower on Nosy Iranja, so it would have been really necessary. But hey, what can you do.

The rest of the village was really small and there was nothing, but it was kind of cute. The people were very nice and open and our host, who lived a little further away, was really nice too.

After the long drive we went to sleep pretty quickly.