Antananarivo

Madagascar's capital city is built across a series of steep ridges and hills at roughly 1,300 metres elevation, giving the city a distinctive layered silhouette visible from surrounding rice paddies. The upper city holds the Rova, a royal compound of traditional wooden palaces, while the lower city contains the colonial-era market of Analakely and the busy Avenue de l'Indépendance. The city's mix of Malagasy and French colonial architecture reflects the island's complex history.