Because of the creatures.
After 30 hours of travel and two missed flights, I arrived at my hotel in Tana. To be honest, I slept for most of the day and binged a show on Netflix.
And then . . . Starving and desperately in search of a G&T I went downstairs to the open and I’m the first to sit at the bar compiled of 4 seats. A very sweet young man with kind eyes asks me in excellent English:
Sergio: So, what are your plans for Madagascar.
Me: I have none. I missed my flight to Ile Sainte Marie and now I have no idea where to go.
Sergio: If you want, I can write a plan for you and a price. I can have it ready in the morning.
The next day he hand wrote a plan for me, said his uncle would pick me up the next morning, and in typical California fashion I said . . . “Okay cool!”
Thus began the 3 hour drive to see the creatures at “Madagascar Exotic Reserve Peyrieras”.
A short walk and a kind guide took us to the closed habitat filled with different chameleons. I wonder about the confidence of chameleons. Is it because they’re able to fade into the background or just their general emotional state? They casually walk on your arm, a tree, a cement wall and they do it all with a sense of peace.
Maybe we should all be chameleons, we fade into the background when convenient but are also happy to be seen.
I learned a lot about chameleons. Some are constantly changing colors, some can’t change at all, they climb down trees to lay eggs on the ground . . . and they’re the chillest creatures I’ve ever met.
I would not say I’m afraid of snakes, I would say I have an appreciation for nature. Sometimes that means appreciating from afar.
This snake was very sweet and I think was generally trying to give me a hug. However, we had just met and I felt that it was important to move slowly. Just like on a first date, you’re not going to ask them to marry you. You wait for a bit, give it time until you’re both comfortable with each other and are ready to fully commit.
This creature, although it looks like a baby crocodile, is actually a leaf-tailed gecko. Named literally because it’s tail looks like a leaf, it hides well in trees (of course)!
The creatures are best shown in photos instead of words.
Enjoy the gallery!
