It's Madagascar time again. By about 18 hours from now, I will be far gone from WordForge for over 4 weeks. It will be very warm (summer is coming right along down there) and the rainy season is on its way. I will be out in the "brush" (the outback, the sticks, the boondocks...) for a good part of the time. I'm hoping the rain doesn't cause too many problems. I'll be visiting an orphanage again that I haven't seen for a couple of years, among other things. It will be nice to see them all again. I will also be into a part of the island (in the southwest) that I have never visited. Madagascar is a pretty big place, as you can see by the attached map with Madagascar superimposed on the USA, at the same scale. In a country where travel is never easy (the very best roads are the equivalent of back county roads in hill country in the States, with lots of curves, almost no white lines, and very few services available anywhere but in the infrequent cities and the worst "roads" are nothing but slippery, muddy footpaths), being 500 miles from the capital is a long way. I'll let you know how it goes, if the board hasn't crashed again when I get back, like it did last time. Maybe some interesting pics. And for the next 18 hours, I will be around the board a bit, so don't think you can get away with trolling me behind my back just yet. Not that there's anything to stop you trolling, of course, but it won't be behind my back... View attachment 4954
That's not too likely, as most people in Madagascar are Christians and that does not bother me at all. (Of course, I wouldn't "convert anyone" anyway, I have never converted anyone, nor do I want to. People make their own choices, and they are totally entitled to do so. If someone wants to know what I believe about God and why, and I tell them, it is still up to them to do what they want with that information.)
Good luck Async! Nice to see someone helping out the less fortunate. Honestly things like this are why I always appreciated Christianity in general, it does do an excellent job of giving an outlet to those who wish to perform selfless deeds and help others. Far more than secular Demi does. Honestly it's the best part of Islam as well, it's just clouded by those who use their charitable works as cover to exhort violence that I can't stand.
Good luck Asyncritus. I hope you convert Dan, somehow, while you're there, even though he's in England!
Do you have any idea how much better a person Async is compared to you? Take care Async. Bring us back a t-shirt!
Hey, I might be wrong but I thought Async was going there as a missionary. I must have been mistaken...
Madagascar doesn't need missionaries, except in the sense that you could say that people who do social or humanitarian work have a "mission" and thus are "missionaries." Unless you hold to some relatively weird branch of Christianity and think that only your group is right, or hold to some other outlook on religion than Christianity and want to "convert" people to it (like Islam, or Buddhism, or atheism--and yes, atheism is an outlook on religion, even though it is not itself a religion; there are plenty of atheists who are as eager to "convert" people to their outlook as the most zealous Jehovah's Witness). Then, I suppose you could say that Madagascar needs missionaries. But as a fairly open-minded Christian, I think the Malagasy are doing just fine on their own as far as their religious outlook is concerned. But there are lots of things that people in a poor country like Madagascar do need help with, and whether people like Christians helping them with it or not, we like to do it. It's what God's love is all about.
Madagascar must be such a cool place. Formerly or also called Malagasy. Madagascar's a microcontinent in many ways. Once connected to India back in the Mesozoic. Have fun & be ever bug conscious while there.
No, Madagascar was not "formerly called Malagasy"... Malagasy is the name of the language, of the adjectif for the people (pronounced "mal-gass"). Sometimes in English the adjectif is "Madagascan" as well, but "malagasy" is more correct. Anyway, this time I'm really out of here. Leaving for the airport. Bags stuffed full of clothes for orphans, medical supplies for a dispensary, documentation, and all kinds of other stuff. I'll get back to you all on December 9 or later. Have fun until then.
I did. And I will, maybe tomorrow. Just got back. Tired, but a great trip. 20,000 km by plane, bush taxi, boat, and various other modes of travel, in some pretty crazy places. Loved it, but right now I'm pretty tired from the trip back. What's up around here?
Don't expect WF to pay the ransom when we see your face on the video . Seriously, have a great time, and if you get bored post a warm , balmy picture to make us feel envious.
We hadn't seen you post in a while, and started to think the head-hunters had you Anyways.. Welcome Back! :santa_cheesy:
Asking if I got diarrhea while in Madagascar is like asking Noah, when he got off the boat, if they got any rain during the trip. It's just part of being in Madagascar. I didn't take any pictures of that, though; you'll just have to take my word for it. I hope you'll find it in your heart to forgive me...
Well, I finally started putting up some pictures. For now, they're in the Green Room, in this thread. I'll maybe have a subject for the Red Room one of these days, but this is a start.
