The Terminal

We recently watched the movie, The Terminal, which reminded us of the high security in U.S. airports. Here in Madagascar, the security is much lower. In fact, one of our favorite places to hang out on a day off is at the Ivato International Airport. It's just a 20 minute bus ride from the bus stop near our home. There is only one sit-down restaurant in the international departures and arrivals building but the view of the runway and the mountains is excellent. We like to sit there, order a big bottle of Classiko Cola (something like Coke made by the president's company), speak Malagasy with the waiters, and then watch the planes take off and land. These pictures were taken there recently. It's actually the only place in the airport where you are allowed to take pictures. Many of our co-workers find it amusing that we enjoy the airport so much, but a clear view of the runway is a thing of the past at most American airports. Even as a ticketed passenger, you often can't find a place to see clearly what is happening on the runway. But here in Madagascar, you can see it all! And, a trip to the airport is like a trip to another country. Depending on which flight is leaving that day, it might seem that you are in Europe or South Africa. The people we see in the airport are so different from the ones we see on the street and some of the foreigners are really intriguing. For example, when we went late in the evening to pick up a returning missionary, we encountered two American guys waiting for the flight to arrive. At first I was excited to hear them speaking English (we don't see many Americans) but before I had a chance to greet them, I realized they were a couple of hick southerners. One was drinking a huge bottle of Three Horses Beer (the national brew which is cheap and readily available, no laws managing the consumption of alcohol that I'm aware of) and the other had a can of Mountain Dew (which I later realized was not for drinking but for spitting because of the large wad of chewing tobacco in his mouth). They were walking around the arrivals corridor loudly joking in their southern drawl. It was one of those moments when you're not so proud to be an American! Yet it's another reason why hanging out at the airport is so fascinating!