Go on, see more!
by Amber Lidell
July 13, 2005

I have discovered that walking farther than required can have added benefits. I am not a regular hiker, so I assumed I would perform the minimum standard everyday and be satisfied. However, I recently realized that this assumption was wrong. Picture a girl so worn out that she literally cannot take another step. Five minutes of rest later with electrolytes replaced, this girl can walk three more kilometers at a fast pace.

Now imagine her ready to head home after a long day, but instead she agrees to walk down a forty five minute long alternate path, “just for fun”. So what happened completely by accident? I, as that girl, learned about animist culture; something in which I am deeply interested. I saw a representative house of the location where these people held séances and zebu sacrifices for the crocodile gods. Apparently the crocodiles haven’t always been a threat to humans, but became so when the people abandoned their old ways of one line fishing and began a more modern method of net fishing. With native fish disappearing , hungrier crocodiles, and people now wading right into the water. What was good for the environment was good for the people.

A bit of a further trek on this same day would take me to the Baobab trees, one of Madagascar’s many wonders. I wouldn’t be surprised if the trees were fifty times my size, and so they were a great sight to add to my journey. I can really respect and understand the cultural desire to pronounce certain if not all trees as “sacred”. Passing by one on this elongated “secret garden” trail, I was reminded of my childhood dreamland and a tree of wisdom.

Had we not taken a few extra steps out of the way, neither would we have seen Lavaka the huge erosion canyon that is breathtaking. I know that my field science teacher will freak out with enjoyment when he glimpses my photos, and I can’t wait to brag that the reason I saw these amazing things was because I took the extra steps.