October 18, 2010
The idea was simple enough: A tropical island in route to places elsewhere that were interesting begged for a brief stop to do some diving.
It hasn't quite worked out that way.
The transfer to Sainte Marie was straight forward enough. A pickup at my hotel at the ungodly hour of 5:20am brought me to staging area and then a three hour minibus ride to the ferry at Soanierana Ivongo. There, I had to stand in line and show my passport three times but, by mid day, I was in my little hotel next to the peer. Practically stumbling distance to the dive shop, it was perfectly situated for a few days of fun under the waves.
Too perfect.
The first bad news was the price: about $50/dive. That's about double what I paid in Egypt, Honduras, and Indonesia and similar to rates in the Galapagos. Then there is the issue of where. & Since I was the only diver (I wonder why?), these would be shore dives near the harbor where the coral is inevitably damaged. I decided to give them a little more time. Another day passed and no change. I was willing to give them until Monday.
On Sunday, I rented a bicycle for more than I should have paid, and set out on a two part mission:
I left at about 9:00am. After nine miles of pedaling, including a overshoot to near the airport, I reached a sign saying “closed on Sunday”. I retreated back to town, recovered some and set out again at 2:30pm for the snorkeling bit. It took nearly an hour to reach the island including the brief and overpriced pirogue ferry.
The canoe ferry is actually a bit silly. The distance is short enough to swim. Unfortunately, I needed to rent snorkeling gear from the island side. That took a bit of time given the staff's limited English and my phrasebook French but eventually I had my gear and manged something less than hour over coral. I've seen better but I don't think I have seen a Scorpion/Lion fish while snorkeling before so it seemed like a worthwhile endeavor.
Exhausting, though. By the time I finished pedaling the nine miles or so back to town (about 30 for the day), I was truly spent. Any Internet or serious decisions would have to wait until th next day.
Which is where I am now. I could stay though Wednesday, where the real diving is supposed to be possible. But I have already been here too long and my sinuses may not be fit for diving anyway. I could leave today but I don't think I will have everything together in time.
The next move is North toward Masoala and it is off the grid. No ATM's. No Internet. The roads are barely recognizable. I am told there are some taxi-brousses but their scheduling is not known. I tried to find a cargo ship Mananara. I checked at the docks and was told to check back tomorrow to see if there might be ship going there. So much for reduced uncertainty. I booked a ferry to Ivongo. I may not know when I can catch a taxi-brousse but at least I have some confidence that they go.
Tonight, I just need to pay the rent and hit the ATM several times so that I have enough cash to last me through the no-ATM zone. I already bought my flight fromj Maroantsetra back to Antananarivo. At least that part won't be subject to the local cash crunch.