r/Madagascar

Hello Everyone! I am coming to Madagascar for the last week for July. Basically, I got a Fellowship/award to explore unique and innovative forms of public history around the world. I have always had an interested in Malagasy history/cultural heritage since College. I plan to got to Royal Hill of Ambohimanga of course. I don’t know Malagasy, but I am here looking for suggestions for places, people, or even events.

What would be an easier cheaper and larger dish I could bring to a potluck like event that represents Madagascar’s food well?

Je voulais travailler en tant que freelance, mais je ne sais pas comment exactement pour obtenir le NIF /STAT.

- Je voulais savoir quelle sont les démarches à faire.

- Les dossiers qu'il faut apporter.

Mercie pour ceux qui réponds

Hi, I don't feel like traveling around Madagascar this year. I would like to settle in a city and rent an apartment for 1 month in October/November. I don't know whether to go to the seaside or to the mountains. jejejeeje The only thing I know is that I don't speak French, but I use the translator very well. Where do you recommend me to go? Don't tell me not to go to Madagascar. hahahaha

Bonjour, je n'ai pas envie de voyager à Madagascar cette année. J'aimerais m'installer en ville et louer un appartement pour 1 mois en octobre/novembre. Je ne sais pas si je dois aller à la mer ou à la montagne. jejejeeje La seule chose que je sais, c'est que je ne parle pas français, mais j'utilise très bien le traducteur. Où me conseillez-vous d'aller ? Ne me dis pas de ne pas aller à Madagascar. hahahaha

Grazie!

Hi everyone!

I'm French and planning to spend several months in Madagascar. My boyfriend is Malagasy and has been living and working in France for the past two years. I'd really like to understand Malagasy culture beyond what I can read in guidebooks or watch on YouTube.

I'm not looking for stereotypes or universal truths. I know Madagascar is incredibly diverse, with different regions, ethnic groups, and family traditions. I'm simply interested in hearing your personal experiences and perspectives.

I'd love to know:

• What role does family play in everyday life?
• What are the expectations for men and women in a relationship?
• What makes someone a "good husband" or a "good wife" in Malagasy culture?
• How are mixed couples (Malagasy + foreigner) generally perceived?
• Is it common or expected for adult children to financially support their parents or extended family?
• How important are work and career compared to family, community, and quality of life?
• How do people usually handle disagreements or conflicts within a couple?
• What are the biggest cultural differences between the different ethnic groups or regions?
• My partner is Mahafaly, from southern Madagascar. Are there any cultural values or traditions that are particularly different there compared to other parts of the country?
• What are some things foreigners often misunderstand about Malagasy people or culture?
• If someone wanted to integrate respectfully into Malagasy society, what advice would you give them?

I'm genuinely curious and would love to learn from your experiences. Feel free to answer only the questions that interest you, and don't hesitate to share anything else you think would be helpful.

Je peux écrire en français si c'est plus facile pour certains d'entre vous

Thank you so much

I'm undecided whether to go to Tulear or Morondava for a month. I will be alone, I like to take it easy and do some excursions, but above all I need to rest in an apartment with air conditioning because the intense heat makes me tired. I don't like seeing too many tourists. If you know both places well, which of the two do you recommend for a month's stay? Thank you.

Hi!

I'm a girl of 20, living in Tana. I have a disability that makes it hard for me to go out much. It's not so bad to stay at home but I feel my mental health is a bit critical these days. I'd like to try to know some people and maybe eventually find my people. I've always been very shy and introverted since I was a kid but I feel now is the time to get out of my comfort zone for my own well-being and future. My interests are: reading, listening to music and I just like to learn stuff.

So if anyone is interested in knowing me or being friends with me, please hit me on my DMs or leave a comment.

Thanks.

Hi all, is there a limit on how many times you can eo a visa run to get a new tourist visa?

I'm currently on my second tourist visa in a row (60 days plus 30 days extension with Swedish passport) and I'm thinking about doing another visa run to get a third tourist visa.

I wonder at what point immigration will stop giving me the tourist visa.

I also wonder if anyone knows a good agency or can give advice regarding long term visas

So I am a large, 6 ft 5in (195cm), weighing 260 lbs (118 kg), man in my 30s. I have lived in the bad parts of Baltimore and other areas of the US. I know how to navigate cities and identify safety. How dangerous is it truly for me to be out after dark without obvious signs of wealth? With that said, I am white and it is obvious I am a tourist.

If I buy a shell necklace from a market in Mada, can I take it with me to the EU? (The same goes for a small shell self-picked on the beach)

I know that some species are CITES protected, but I’m pretty sure most sellers at markets cannot show any sort of export permits or perhaps don’t even know which species it is.
I can try to determine the species myself, but there is no guarantee I can.

So I’m wondering if anyone has any experience with this? I really don’t want to accidentally mess up 😅

So my fiance says that in Malagasy culture a man is to provide for her. I have no issue in that, whatever she has needed since we been together I bought her or gave her the money to go buy. During genazi I paid for her business to be renovated. I paid for it to be restocked. I bought her food and eventually a new house. I pay for every day living expense whenever she ask for help. So I have no problem paying for when she needs me but recently she asking for 200 dollars a month (like a bill) I’m like why am paying a flat 200 a month to you ? That makes no sense she says it’s so she don’t have to beg or ask because she don’t like to ask she rather already have money to pay for her needs. Issue is she has a business already with not a lot of clients but enough to pay her bills so why is she asking for 200 month from me ? Especially when I already take care of her bills when she needs me. It feels like if I do it I’m paying for a relationship at that point. I’m from America. Is that what Malagasy culture is? Someone educate me. Or am I being scammed?

I visited Nosy Be earlier this month (June ) and had a fantastic time, so I'm considering returning in the first half of November. I'd really appreciate some opinions from people who know the island well or have been there at that time of year.

I know November is the start of the rainy season, but how bad is it in reality?

A few specific questions:

- Does it normally rain all day, or is it more like short afternoon/evening tropical showers?

- Is the humidity uncomfortable enough to affect your holiday?

- Can you still do boat trips and excursions to Nosy Iranja, Nosy Komba, Nosy Sakatia and Lokobe, or are cancellations common?

- Are the roads around Ambataloaka and Madirokely prone to flooding or becoming difficult to use?

- I had just 1 mosquito bite in 10 days in June. Is there a massive increase in mosquitos in November?

- Is Nosy Be still reasonably busy with tourists in early/mid November, or does it become very quiet?

For context, I loved my June trip and would happily return if November is still enjoyable despite the wetter weather.

Thanks

hi, so i’ve been trying to figure out how to get my ariary into my us bank account. theres some online payments i need to make and my partner opened a bank of africa account and i put my ariary in there but i bank with navy federal so cant do a wire transfer and the banks say they dont know how to send money or its not possible. please help! i dont want to go to america and not have money and i dont want to be limited at ivato currency exchange or be walking around with a lot of cash

Hi all,

I have a family member arriving at the start of July for a month.

I have no experience with tourist visas as I live here but I've been told you can do it all online now?

Any feedback? Is the site good? Do you just print out a bit of paper and show it to the border officials when arriving? Do they ask for any more money or does the whole process actually work ?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance