Travelling Toliary
Before You Travel
Toliara (or Tulear) is often called "the White" as opposition to the “Red Tana". This nickname comes from the exceptional luminosity of the sky. In fact the town itself with approximately 60,000 inhabitants is relatively modern, just created in 1895 by a French architect, who laid a big importance in planting tress in the city, which offer now a welcome shady protection from the blazing sun. Today Toliara, the capital of the same named region, is a lively and young city with an important university, which is founded in 1970 as the second institution of tertiary education behind the University of Tana.
~~ What to see
· * Museums
Despite being a rather small university with only 2,000 students the University of Toliara cares for the maintenance of the main two museums of the city, which are also two of the most important attractions in town, the municipal museum and the sea museum. The first one is located on Boulevad Philbert Tsiranana. It offers some remarkable exhibits like some Sakalava erotic tomb sculptures and several masks of the Mikea tribe. Malagasy call anyone who lives in the forest by hunting and gathering Mikea, who are actually not an ethnic group or a tribe. Being Mikea also entails managing connotations of primitivism Many people in Madagascar class Mikea among the "tompontany taloha" (past landowners), folkloric beings thought to have inhabited Madagascar before the arrival of the proto-Malagasy from Indonesia and Africa. Some believe Mikea to be Vazimba, ghosts or living relicts of a primitive people.
The sea museum (Musée de la Mer on Route de la Porte) will fascinate marine enthusiasts. The main attraction is a not so well preserved coelacanth, the only in Madagascar. Coelacanth is prehistoric fish once thought to be extinct since the end of the Cretaceous period, until a specimen was found in 1938. The entrance to the museum is free of charge.
The third main attraction of Toliara is its market, which is lively and interesting, as well as one of the best places to buy lambas (pareos).
~~What to see in the surrounding area
· Arboretum d'Antsokay
Antsokay is a botanical garden specialised in the flora and fauna of Southwest Madagascar that should not be missed by anyone. The Arboretum was created around 1980, on the initiative of a Swiss amateur botanist, Hermann Pétignat who died in 2000 and is located at 12 km south-east from the Toliara town.
On a surface of 40 hectares there are almost 900 species of plants, 90% endemic to the region. A trained English-speaking guide takes you on a two-hour tour of the impoved area, where visitors see around a hundred of species of Euphornia and 60 species of Kalanchoe, as well as an abundance of reptiles and birds. Try to arrive as early as possible in the morning to miss the heat of the day. Excellent meals à la carte are served at the restaurant Dry Forest, situated in the heart of the reserve. Long time visitors can overnight in Antsokay. Accommodation is in bungalows (30,000Ar for a double bungalow) designed for one or two persons and equipped with private bathroom and mosquito nets. It is also possible to camp (10,000 Ar).
· Tombs
The most spectacular tombs within reach are those of the Masikoro, a subgroup of the Sakalava. The tombs are off RN7, a little over an hour of Toliara, and are visible on the right. There are several large, rectangular tombs, painted with scenes from the distinguished military life of the deceased. These are known as the tombs of Andranovory. On the outskirts of town beyond the university there is the Tomb of King Baba, descendant of the Masikoro kings of Baba, who died about 100 years ago. The tomb is set in a grove of Didierea trees and is interesting more for the somewhat bizarre funerary objects displayed than for any aesthetic value.
Toliary Tours
