The South
The arid south is noted for its many remarkable species of cactus- and baobab-like plants and for the highly developed funerary art of its inhabitants, past and present.
Fianarantsoa, a provincial capital, is an important centre for wine and rice production and a good base for exploring the southern highlands. Places to visit in the surrounding mountains include Amabalavao, said to be the ‘home of the departed’, where antemore paper and lamba aridrano silk are made; nearby Ambondrome and Ifandana crags, where the revered bones of exhumed ancestors may be seen (the latter was the site of a mass suicide in 1811); Ambositra and the neighbouring Zafimaniny villages, where intricate marquetry products are made; the Isalo National Park, situated in a chain of sandstone mountains (camping is possible but it can only be reached by 4-wheel-drive vehicles or on foot with a guide); and Ranomafana, a thermal spa.
Mananjary is a popular beach resort on the east coast (but not for sea-bathing because of sharks). Taolanaro (formerly Fort Dauphin), in the southeast corner of the island, is the site of the first French settlement. Parts of the 17th-century fort remain. The city and surrounding area are famous for seafood and for orchids and carnivorous pitcher plants, which can be seen at the Mandona Agricultural Centre at Sainte-Luce Bay.
Western Madagascar was once covered with deciduous forests, but is now mostly savannah. The economy is based around the zebu, a species of ox introduced in the eighth century by settlers from South-East Asia. Toliara, a provincial capital on the southwest coast, has excellent bathing beaches and opportunities for skindiving, fishing, sailing and other watersports.
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