Mosquito madness in Madagascar

It’s not just the landscapes that can prove interesting – or dangerous – in faraway lands

- Tom Mackie

As the sun sank behind the majestic baobab trees, I watched as all of the other tourists headed back to the safety of their cars. Baobabs are often referred to as upside-down trees, as the root-like appearance of their branches spread out above a bulbous body. They have been known to live more than 1500 years. Darkness crept in and it was like a scene from a vampire film, where no one was safe after dark. As I stood there, waiting for the colourful afterglow to fill the sky, it wasn’t vampires I was afraid of… it was the blood-sucking mosquitoes! Malaria is a major health problem in Madagascar and I wasn’t about to become a statistic.