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Our hotel near Fianarantsoa, short form Fianar,is located in a beautiful garden near a small lake.
We spend a night before we take the train to the east coast.
The train station is about 50 meters from the hotel.
Here runs the only railway line of Madagascar, which is currently in operation.
It runs from Finar down to the east coast city of Manakara.
It was constructed by the French in the thirties and was suspposed to connect the highlands with the east coast.
It took 10 years to build this railway, and was only possible because thousands of forced laborers were used.
The railway line runs over 160 kilometers and the whole trip takes about 10 hours.
The railway has been privatized in the year 2000 and runs four times a week, assuming the diesel locomotives are not under repair.
Since the railway has to overcome a vertical drop of 900 meters during a 40 miles ride, the downward slope is up to 3,5%.
The railway construction required 57 tunnels and 76 bridges.
We co not continue to the the terminus, but only go from after Fianar to Tolongoina.
This is the most spectacular part because Fianar is at 1200 m altitude in the highlands and the town Tolongoina is near the coastal plain (at 400 meters).
This trip passes from the temperate zone, which prevails in the highlands, to the wet tropics, which are typical for the east coast.
After we arrive in Tolongoina we first look for a picnic area.
We see a Chameleon, which presents itself before the lush greenery.
On one of the large granite boulders along the river, we find a nice spot for lunch.
After about two hours two picup taxis collect us for the ride back to Fianar.
The track offers spectacular scenic views, but the trip by train was a lot more comfortable.