Antananarivo in 3 days

Lemur's Park (Ampefy, 22km west of Antananarivo on the RN1 — the private lemur conservation sanctuary in a 4-hectare riverine forest: the most accessible lemur encounter for visitors to the Antananarivo capital without venturing to the national parks (which are 100–400km from the city)): 7 species of lemur live free in the park, habituated to humans and approachable to within arm's length: the ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta — the most recognizable of all lemurs: the large orange eyes, the long black-and-white striped tail (longer than the body), the distinctive "stink fight" (marking territory by rubbing glands on the tail and waving it at rivals)), the brown lemur (Eulemur fulvus), the black-and-white ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata — the largest living lemur: the ruffed lemur emits the loudest call of any lemur species — audible 1km through dense rainforest), and others. The Park also maintains a crocodile lake (the Nile crocodile — the most important sacred animal in Malagasy culture after the zebu: the crocodile is both feared and revered across Madagascar).

Parc Botanique et Zoologique de Tsimbazaza (the national zoo and botanical garden of Madagascar — the most important collection of Malagasy endemic animals accessible in Antananarivo: the aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis — the most unusual primate in the world: the aye-aye has the largest brain-to-body ratio of any primate after humans, uses echolocation (unique among primates) to find insect larvae under bark, and has the most highly specialized hands in the primate order (the middle finger (finger 3) is elongated to an extreme degree — 3–4× longer than the other fingers — with a ball-and-socket joint to reach into bark crevices): the aye-aye is considered an evil omen (fady) by many Malagasy — the appearance of an aye-aye near a village is interpreted as a death portent), the fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox — the apex predator of Madagascar: the cat-like carnivore (actually related to the mongoose, not the cat) that hunts lemurs: the largest terrestrial carnivore in Madagascar, looking like a combination of a cat and a small puma), and the Parsons chameleon (the largest chameleon in the world (up to 70cm total length)).

Marché Artisanat (the craft market in the Basse-Ville (the lower city — the area at the foot of the Antananarivo hills, between the Avenue de l'Indépendance and the Lac Anosy): the most important craft shopping location in Madagascar: the Malagasy silk (the "Lalandahy" or "Lamba mena" — the wild silk of Madagascar: the silk is produced by the endemic Borocera cajani silkworm (which feeds on the tapia tree — the endemic Malagasy tree that produces the silk cocoons): the Malagasy silk (the "soie sauvage" — the wild silk) is creamier and less lustrous than the Chinese domesticated silk but with a specific character that makes it one of the most valued luxury textiles in the world), the zebu horn crafts (the combs, the jewelry and the figurines made from the horns of the Zebu cattle — the most important sustainable craft material in Madagascar), and the raffia baskets (the plaited baskets from the raffia palm (Raphia farinifera) endemic to Madagascar).

Trondro gasy (the "Malagasy fish" — the freshwater fish of the Malagasy highlands: the tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus — introduced to Madagascar in the 1950s and now the most important freshwater food fish in Madagascar: the tilapia has colonized all the highland lakes, rivers and rice paddies of the central plateau (the vazimba), growing to 500g in the highland lakes), the carp (Cyprinus carpio — also introduced, now the most popular festive freshwater fish in the highlands), and the endemic Malagasy freshwater fish (the Paretroplus dambabe and other endemic cichlids (the cichlid family, of which Madagascar has 9 endemic species): cooked simply — grilled over charcoal or fried in oil, served with the heapings of vary (the Malagasy rice) and the laoka (the "accompaniment" — the greens cooked with salt and a little oil that always accompanies the rice).

Ambohimanga (the "Blue Beautiful Hill" — the most sacred place in the Merina Kingdom and in all of Madagascar: the UNESCO World Heritage royal city and sacred hill (listed 2001) 19km north of Antananarivo: the Rova of Ambohimanga (the royal enclosure on the summit of the sacred hill (1,468m): the wooden royal residences (the Mahitsy palace of King Andrianampoinimerina (the most important king of the Merina Kingdom — the unifier of the Merina people and the ruler who conquered most of Madagascar in the late 18th and early 19th centuries): the wooden palace (the Mahitsy — the "House of Comfort") in the traditional Merina style (the narrow wooden building with the pitched roof (the "trano gasy" style) and the carved wooden pillars): the palace is the most important surviving wooden royal structure in Madagascar), the large ceremonial disc stone (the vatolahy — the "male stone": the ceremonial disc of granite that seals the main gate of the Ambohimanga Rova and is rolled across the gate entrance each evening, requiring 12 men to move it: the stone disc has sealed the gate of the sacred hill since the 18th century, and is still rolled across each evening by the keepers), and the sacred pools and forest within the enclosure.

Analakely Market (the main covered food market of Antananarivo — the most important food market in Madagascar): the zebu meat section (the huge zebu carcasses (the Zebu cattle — the humped cattle whose hump is a water and fat storage organ for the dry season) hanging from the ceiling: the various cuts of zebu meat (the tendrons, the côtes and the tripes (the zebu tripe — the most important offal dish in Malagasy cuisine)), the highland rice section (the Malagasy rice varieties (the red rice (the "vary mena"), the white rice (the "vary fotsy"), the fragrant variety (the "vary be" — the "big rice", the most prestigious variety), and the hillside dry-field rice varieties from the central plateau)) and the vanilla section (the Bourbon vanilla (Vanilla planifolia) from the northeastern coast of Madagascar (the Sava region — the Sambava and Antalaha area): the finest vanilla in the world (95% of the world's natural vanilla production is from Madagascar, and the specific flavor profile (the high vanillin content (1.5–2% versus the 1% of Tahiti or Mexico) with the creamy, sweet and slightly woody note) is unique to the Malagasy Bourbon vanilla).

Famadihana (the "turning of the bones" — the Malagasy ancestor worship ceremony practiced by the Merina and other highland Malagasy peoples during the dry season (July–September): the ceremony where the remains of the recently deceased (within the past 5–7 years) are exhumed from the family tomb, wrapped in fresh silk burial cloths (the lambamena — the red silk shroud: the most valuable object in Malagasy culture, the silk shroud is worth several months' wages), and carried around the family tomb on the shoulders of the living relatives (to the sound of a brass band and the singing of the entire extended family) before being returned to the tomb: the ceremony is a celebration (not a mourning): the family members dance and sing around the tomb holding the silk-wrapped remains: the most extraordinary mortuary tradition in Africa and the most distinctive expression of the Malagasy concept of ancestors (the "razana" — the ancestors who continue to influence the lives of the living). Attending requires an invitation from a Malagasy family or through a cultural tourism operator.

Akoho sy voanio (the Malagasy coconut chicken — "akoho" (chicken) and "voanio" (coconut): the most celebrated festive chicken dish in Madagascar: the chicken (the Malagasy village chicken (the "akoho gasy") — the traditional scrawny, free-ranging chicken of the Malagasy village, very different in texture and flavor from the commercial chicken: the meat is firmer, darker and more flavorful) slow-cooked in fresh coconut milk (from the "voanio" — the coconut, grown on the coastal lowlands and brought to the highland capital markets) with fresh ginger (the Malagasy ginger — strongly flavored, smaller than the Asian varieties), turmeric (the "tamotamo" — the yellow turmeric powder from the Malagasy highlands), garlic and tomato: the most complete expression of the Malagasy coastal-highland culinary fusion that characterizes the Antananarivo kitchen.