King's Palace

After the amazing lunch (see previous) we went up to the tallest mountain (hill) in Antananarivo where King built his palace.

It has been a sacred site for many generations, affords excellent protection from surprises, and is a bit cooler than the valley. At 1,600+ meters (about 5,000ft) the views are lovely, the air is fresh(er) and the King slept higher than everyone else, which is important.

This king is of particular significance in that he is the first to unite the Malagasy tribes into a nation. Sadly, this set the stage for French domination about 100 years later (but see my next post for more of that history).

The palace itself ... I was surprised at the humility of it. Simple, attractive, and probably a good indicator of how good life was in Madagascar in the late 1700's.

My theory is that when fruit and animals are abundant, and the weather is agreeable, people don't build complex edifices. They just aren't needed.

But also, the traditional belief is that homes should be wood because it is warm and alive; tombs are made of stone, not homes.

One very cool detail: there's a large wall that was built entirely from fine sand and egg whites! Feels exactly like concrete and is several centuries old. Love it!

An interesting thing: jacaranda is widely planted here and is either "embraced by royalty because they considered blue to be good" or "planted by France to assert their authority"

Jacaranda is from Brazil. There's not much chance that the Malagasy went and found it themselves.

Sure is pretty right now.Read more