Africa Travel: Comoros

Instead of trying to find one event or activity to focus on in the Comorian archipelago why not try island hopping and experiencing all four? Created as the result of volcanic activity, the islands are situated in the western Indian Ocean not too far from Madagascar. The four major islands are Ngazidja (Grande Comore), Mwali (Moheli), Nzwani (Anjouan) and Maore (Mayotte). Of the four, Maore or Mayotte is the oldest island, the only one belonging to the French and said to have one of the biggest lagoons of the planet with a surface of more than 1000 sq. kilometer, protected by a barrier reef of over 160 km long. So for those of you fancying lagoons you may have already found your stop in Comoros, but don’t look pass the others.

Ngazidja is closest to Africa and is the home of Karthala, a very active volcano with the largest crater in the world. In addition to the crater a site worth making note of is the Friday Mosque which the surrounding area (if I’m not mistaken) has culture mixed with Arab and African influence and architecture to eye for days. Comoros, in short has a good variety of things to do and see, but I urge you to explore all four islands more by visiting this well put together site at K-State.edu. I’ve still got a lot to learn about this one myself. For additional island images click here.