Candlestick, base for pots, base for iron… maker

This post is maybe Afrigadget-able Yes, people from Africa are amazingly resourceful, they can always create new nice items really useful for everyday life with something that others prefer to throw in the trash bins.

Saturday, just in front of my bus stop in Ambodifilao, I saw a man selling bases for pots which I really need for my new home. While coming nearer, I got immediately an idea. Why don’t I blog about this? I asked if the man didn’t mind and he nicely agreed.

Hery was his name. He was making a candlestick when I was talking to him.  Next to Hery, on the ground, laid a cloth where several items were diplayed: candlesticks, bases for pots, bases for irons, coffee strainers.

The raw material is the iron which is used as a embeddings of second-hand-clothes packs. And the  tools: a nipper and creativity. 7 minutes are enough to make a candlestick, 10 to 15 minutes for other items.

After beeing a jobless, he had learnt this job from a friend and practices for three years now. He moves a lot and doesn’t have a permanent place for selling. This day, he has stopped in Ambodifilao because “I felt a little bit tired so I wanted to take a rest. Plus, the streets are kind of crowded over here so, we never know… this may be good for my business“, Hery said.

Enjoy the video

BOMBS’09

I am thankful to everyone who has supported my blog in this contest. I congratulate everyone who took part in the BOMBS’09 and encourage you all to keep up the good work. Big hand for the winners

Click on the pic to see who are the Best Of Malagasy Blogs for 2009:

Current Malagasy banknotes

Two weeks ago, I’ve been called by a friend telling that he had withdrawed money from an ATM and then noticed that the banknotes were different than usual. He explained that it  wasn’t the Governor’s signature and there was no transcription into Malagasy Francs (MGF) on the banknotes.

Alerted by some today’s tweets, I think I should share the little thing I know about it for now.

to mavana

nouveaux billets 10′000 Ar ne portent pas de signature du gouverneur Banque à #Madagascarhttp://bit.ly/2hexjZ src orange.mg [New 10,000 Ar banknotes do not bear the governor's signature]

saveoursmile

So what’s the deal behind those non-complying to central bank MGA money specimen that circulate in #madagascar ?

to mavana

@solofo vola baoritra tena vola.. satria ny fanjakana no mamoaka azy.. sa ahoana? [real or fake banknotes... since it is the Sate which issues them?]

The pic above shows what my friend tried to tell me on the phone. Wanting to know more about it,  I went on the Central Bank of Madagascar’s site and this is what I’ve discovered.

To start with I know nothing about the banknotes without signature. I haven’t seen such banknote yet.

About the signature (see blue arrows on pic above), the one on top is Gaston Ravelojaona’s signature, the former Governor. The second signature is Frédéric Rasamoely’s, the current Governor. See Central Bank of Madagascar’s official announcement related to this.

La Banque Centrale de Madagascar porte à la connaissance du public que des coupures de Ar 2000, portant la signature du Gouverneur RASAMOELY Frédéric, ont été mises en circulation depuis le début du mois d’Octobre 2007. [The Central Bank of Madagascar announces to the public that  Ar 2,000 banknotes bearing the signature of the Governor RASAMOELY Frédéric , have been  issued since the beginning of October 2007]

La Banque Centrale précise que les autres billets portant la signature du Gouverneur RASAMOELY Frédéric seront également mis en circulation au cours des prochains mois. [The Central Bank of Madagascar specifies that the other banknotes bearing the signature of the Governor RASAMOELY Frédéric will also be issued for the next months]

I think that the current banknotes are not fake but the Central Bank of Madagascar has failed to make an official annoucement concerning the change (no transcription into Malagasy Francs – see red arrows on pic above), – I’m wondering why??? though it is a very “big mistake”. I hope they will have it fixed soon. Due to the political turmoil, this situation has created a lot of rumors and psychosis. For now, see  the applicable banknotes on Central Bank of Madagascar’s site.

Gasigasy: Vary amin’anana sy kitoza

My husband and I had recently lived in Andoharanofotsy, 12 km in the South of Antananarivo. It’s quite far from our offices where we had to leave home at 6 am and arrived back at around 8  or 8.30 p.m. This didn’t let us have much time to prepare foods cuz we were always too tired. We then were attracted by this little shop selling “Vary amin’anana sy kitoza”. That’s a typically Malagasy food; a mixture of rice and anana (difficult to explain in English if you guys can help ) some of my friends call it grass some other green vegetables, dictionnaries online said there’s no translation for brède – French – that we eat with smoked beef. Yammeee!

Last Friday, I was on leave and then decided to make a short video about this. Mrs Raharimalala was so enthousiatic about the report. After selling the same thing in Isotry and Ambohimanarina, with her family, they have moved in Andoharanofotsy 20 years ago. Regulars, mainly taxi be drivers and conductors, early in the morning, come and eat there. Taxi brousse drivers and travelers from Antsirabe or Ambatolampy also stop by. Saturday is the busiest day.

The Vary amin’anana sy kitoza is available from 4 a.m to around 9 p.m 24/7.  Guess what? Mrs Raharimalala cooks around 40 kilos of rice and 30 kilos of beef everyday.

Enjoy the video!

Dirty clothes, dirty water

I was in a bus, stuck in a traffic. And when I wanted to watch from the window, I saw this so sad picture. Two ladies were carelessly washing their clothes with dirty water from a conduit. And look around them, only trashes and dirt.

Drinking with a Corsairfly cup

One day, before going home, some friends and I decided to stay for a while for a drink and snacks.We needed some cups and got these Corsairfly cups from the grocers nearby. Wondering where do they come from? Used then washed cups? Or …???

Fozaorana

Ahaha… On my way to the market this morning, I saw this seller of Fozaorana. We have heard a lot of Fozaorana this year and I took this pic for those who don’t know the real ones.

Fozaorana is a kind of crayfishes which live in ponds and ricefields. They are eating any little insects and grow very fast. Despite the fact that it is not advised to eat them for they may have  microbes, people still sell them cuz they fill the ponds and ricefields and some still buy them cuz they’re cheap.

The Fozaorana became famous these last two years. It became an expression that the Malagasy people use in  their everyday life. The main meaning is combined with these words: numerous, popular, cheap.

- A girl called Fozaorana is an easy girl

- A phone is called Fozaorana when it’s cheap  since the three phone operators here in Madagascar have scrambled to promote mobile phones so everyone can get one (or two ).

- I would not comment on the political meaning but will just report what it is said. The  TGV strikers were called Fozaorana because when you cook these “crayfishes” they become orange – the colour that these strikers were wearing during their rallies.

The First Three Posts

Kindly tagged by Lova Rakotomalala, I don’t want to break the chain. So the first three posts?!… Let’s check them … And… this is what we  have:

• From Dago at the place of the common Hello World. Not inspired at all . Shame… Joan, coatching the “creating blog workshop” at Tecknet was kind of disappointed. She said we were too slow
• No old and uggly banknotes anymore … Yesterday, during a radio show entitled “Trano Gasy” on RDB – a local radio broadcast – in which the audience can share news, opinions… a lady called on air and then talked about the poor condition of our Malagasy banknotes which reflects poverty. She is the kind of person who gently ranges the bills in a wallet and then becomes mad when the groccers or the conductors folds them in their pocket. The radio host added that in the coast regions, people won’t accept a dirty or torn note. I smiled cuz this was the main message in this post.
• “Mampiada-maso” TV aerial … a Made in Madagascar TV aerial… Compared to any other  antennas, I tell you, this one is cheap but and good

These first three posts was published on September 21, 2008. I have to admit that they were written a while before this date and were published in a local newspaper in a special English page named English Corner produced by ICE Club. I told you I’ve always loved writing

My turn to pass on the baton to other 3 Malagasy bloggers. Moonlightirl, Lay Andriamialy and Stéfane would you tell us about your first three posts please?

Sick shoes Doctor :)

The title of this post is inspired from a book I used to read when I was a kid. Well, in this book we could see some pics taken in African countries showing the “misuse” of French language. “Docteur de chaussures malades” is an example of this. But finally, “shoemaker” won’t really help so I’ll keep on borrowing this – a lil funny – title

With shoemaker you may think of a man who makes shoes… Here, he doesn’t make them… He repairs them!

New shoes are expensive for many families nowadays so other options are offered to them: either they buy second hand shoes or they will try to keep their “old” shoes as long as possible by bringing them once, twice, or even more to  our “Sick shoes doctor” like Ra-Noré on the pic above. For 7 years now, he has worked on  a corner of the streets in my neighborhood. See, he was even repairing a boot when I stopped by.

Misadventure in Analakely

Oh my goodness! I have been assaulted by a pickpocket this evening. It was 6.30 p.m. It started to be dark yet the streets were crowded. In Analakely, I stopped by a streetseller to buy some mangoes. While bargaining, someone touched my shoulder, for a second I thought it was someone I know… but suddenly, this person pulled my ears violently. When I turned back, I saw a guy running and disappearing behind a shop. Then I understood that he wanted to rob my golden earings. Thank God, he could not get the earings. That happened so quick and it was so amazing that noone had noticed this act. (Actually, I did not yell)

I had to meet my husband at the bus station, though the way was dark and quiet so I was afraid to go there alone in case the guy was still following me. I then called my husband from a taxi phone to pick me up. People there could hear me telling my misadventure. Then, they said that it was not safe to be around this place in evenings, they have witnessed some other cases of assaults these last days. And I said, how come??? My earings were not even big!!! But the lady said that gold are expensive now and since there are these buyers in Analakely, those pickpockets become more and more dangerous.

Tahina and I wanted to take a pic of those “buyers of gold” all along the sidewalks near Lycée JJ Rabearivelo but we believed that it was not safe so we gave up. If you go by this place you will see cars parking there with the right side doors opened. As you will pass by, you will not miss them asking  wether you have gold to sell with you. I am wondering if the authority may someday react to such situation because this really increase the insecurity in Analakely and surroundings.

By the way, I am thinking of selling my earings to them now to avoid wearing them and being attacked again because next time I may not be luckier. [joke ]