Monuments to visit Fort-Dauphin – Taolagnaro

This fort, or rather its ruins, overlooks the Bay of Farodofay (beautiful panorama). The entrance gate dates back to 1643; even today, it is through here that the soldiers access Camp Flacourt. We take the opportunity to visit its museum which recalls the habits and customs and the history of the Antanosy people and its tumultuous relations with Europe. Through photos, maps, we have a good overview of the colonial history of the city. At the beginning of the visit, the remains of a fortress, erected by the governor of the city between 1768 and 1770 and restored in 1950.

Fort Dauphin exudes a peaceful, pleasant atmosphere, and is a great place to take a stroll. In the center, a pleasant stroll takes you along the Rue Circulaire and the Corniche, with a well-deserved break at Libanona beach. Rue Circulaire runs alongside the false Bay of Galions and Faux-Cap beach. Dolphins can sometimes be seen offshore. The locality is home to some fine examples of colonial architecture; one of the most beautiful is the Kaleta family's large white house, surrounded by greenery not far from the Hôtel Le Dauphin. Around the post office, the ochre buildings, colonnades and architectural testimonies of the past are worth a long stroll through the town. A visit to the fishermen's quarter (Ampotatra) is recommended. If you set off on foot towards the circular road overlooking Libanona beach, take time to explore the Indo-Pakistani community quarter. Rising out of the vegetation, the new mosque with its graceful domes bears witness to the important role played by this community in the local economy.

The most beautiful and safest beach is Libanona, where the sunset is magnificent (climb up to the belvedere overlooking the beach on the left, at the Lavasoa bungalows). You can also go as far as Lokaro, where the sea is calmer. L'Anse Monseigneur and the site of the old port: here you can observe fishermen and rocky flats (you can snorkel to see corals, black sea urchins, moray eels and jumping gobies).

Along the roads and tracks that drive north, east or west, there will be a lot of funeral monuments. The oldest are recognizable with the sacred statues of carved wood. The most recent are surmounted by stone obelisks. Elsewhere, we will find levées and accumulations of zébus skulls. Here, too, the dead are not forgotten.

These funeral works have only a role as a mausoleum (the tombs are elsewhere). However, it is necessary to visit these monuments accompanied by Malagasy friends: the villagers are very suspicious. Every year, sacred statues are sawn in hundreds and disappear… these flights would be due not to tourists, but to dealers in antiquities of the world art market.