J' <3 L'ile Maurice

"You gather the idea that Mauritius was made first and then heaven, and that heaven was copied after Mauritius." –Mark Twain
Oh Mauritius…. I’ve never been to a more picturesque island. The white beaches and clear waters and green mountains are like what you see on the postcards, only they actually look as beautiful as the postcards. It is heaven for sure, and being there for less than 2 days was such a tease!
The first morning I decided to go hiking with some of my friends Lauren, Zach, Erin, Eliza, Caitie, and Spencer. We set off, and not surprisingly it takes forever to get from our port to the actual town, so we walked a few miles until we found the bus station in Port Louis. Walking by the waterfront was beautiful- it’s filled with shops and restaurants and markets all with the most beautiful architecture. We got on the public bus and rode for a long while mostly uphill through streets of colorful shops and markets  until we got off in a town somewhere. We were planning to hike around the highest peak on the island where you can stand over the giant volcanic crater. So we wandered down the street and of course stopped in the first bakery we came to, where we basically bought one of everything they had so we could share and try it all. The Mauritian food is very eclectic just like the people who live there. It’s a big mix of Indian, French, Asian, and a little bit of everything else. So all the sweets and pastries at the bakery were delicious despite having no idea what they were. After wasting about an hour there we kept walking, asking people for directions and somehow Zach and I fell behind the group and stopped at this street vendor looking at the yummy samosas and Indian snacks. We were wondering what they all were and this nice little man who was buying some explained them to us. We kept talking with him (he spoke perfect English), found out his name is Parma, and he asked where we were from and it turns out he’s been to DC and Maryland and Pittsburgh (where Zach lives) and basically he’s been all over the United States. We asked him how to get to the crater and he said he actually lives a 5 minute walk from the crater and he could take us in his car and show us around! So we found our group up ahead and all 7 of us shoved in his little car and he was soo happy to take us around. We found out he grew up in Mauritius and as an adult has taught in basically all of Europe and the US and several other countries! He is now an adorable retired grandfather and lives with his wife in a beautiful house on the highest point of the island…. how nice right? He was the sweetest man I’ve ever met though….. he taught us how to say Mo content toi which is “I love you” in Creole and said how you should always greet someone with ‘I love you” because “it’s the very best type of greeting!”. Haha… he just kept talking about the importance of peace in our world and caring for the environment.. he was so cute! Mauritius is such a cool place in that it’s so multicultural—there’s Africans, Indians, Asians, French, and all kinds of people—all living together and getting along in perfect harmony.
Anyway, Parma drove us all around his home town, gave us a little tour, and then drove us up to the peak where we could see the crater. He says he walks around there every morning on his daily walk since his house is only a few minutes away. It was a little rainy and foggy that morning but it quickly cleared and we could see the enormous crater and a view overlooking the entire island and all the mountains in the distance. Parma then took us through the neighborhoods of beautiful houses and gardens and we ended up at his house! He’s in the process of renovating it so it was empty and a little torn up but still gorgeous. It was full of windows with these intricate steel designs in them and he had a roof terrace up top where he has breakfast every morning and can see over the entire island.  It was gorgeous- what a lucky little man.
So after spending some time with our new Mauritian friend he drove us to a bus stop where he suggested we take a bus to another town to walk around and do some shopping. Right before we left him he also revealed to us that he used to work for NASA as a rocket scientist… he’s done everything! Everyone I end up randomly meeting turn out to be the most interesting people. So we got on the bus and headed to the next town, where we walked around the streets and the markets and Zach and Spencer found a place to try dholl puri, a mix of spicy beans and veggies wrapped in a pancake, kind of like the dosas in India. I had to meet Courtney back at the ship around 5, so we headed home and took forever finding the ship after it had to moved to yet a different port while we were gone.
I found Courtney, and me, her, Zach, and Lauren were talking to one of the Mauritian customs guys on the ship asking how safe it would be to sleep on the beach. He said not very safe and it sometimes rains overnight but he could take us up to Grand Baie, where we wanted to go, and find us a villa to stay in for the night so we’d have the entire next day at the most beautiful beach on the island :) That of course sounded perfect to us so we all went out to dinner on the waterfront and then the customs guy Ashwin and his friend drove us up north to Grand Baie. I never expected to make so many friends during my 2 days in Mauritius! We hung out on a little beach (and I could tell how clear the water was despite it being pitch black out!), stargazed for a while, and had an awesome night and then Ashwin found us a villa that had 2 bedrooms, a living room, and kitchen! I was expecting a little hut on the beach, but this was like a house! If only we had one more day…
We woke up early and sadly left the villa with its beautiful gardens outside, to get an early start on our day at the beach. Ashwin drove us to what he thinks is the prettiest beach on the island, a few minutes drive from Grand Baie. He dropped us off and said goodbye, and I swear I have never seen a more perfect beach. Crystal clear turquoise water and the softest white sand…. 50 feet out from us were boats pulling waterskiiers, tubers, parasailors… it was a paradise. It was also not at all crowded- there were only some French vacationers and a few locals walking their dogs. This beautiful remote paradise was all ours. To make the morning even better, an ice cream truck drove by on the sand road behind us, where we got huge soft-serve cones filled with wafers and sprinkles… for breakfast :)
Needless to say we had a wonderful morning relaxing on the beach and taking it all in. In the afternoon we took the bus back to Grand Baie where we walked along the beachfront in the more developed area and found an awesome outdoor restaurant for lunch before finding the express bus back to Port Louis. We found Mychaela, Chris, and Steven on the bus, so it was a nice long ride sharing our stories and amazement at Mauritius. I think everyone underestimated Mauritius because it was only a two day stop and everyone was just looking ahead to Cape Town. But by the time we got back everyone was dying to stay longer, and I was surprised to have met and learned so much from the people in such a short time. The most beautiful moment was while we were taking a water taxi from the waterfront back to the ship and a giant rainbow appeared over the island, crossing over the waterfront and disappearing into the green mountains beyond. It was beyond both words and photographs.
It’s sad to think Mauritius is probably the place I’ll never get back to because it’s so remote! I can’t believe I’ll be able to point on a map and say I’ve been there. But it was definitely two days of ultimate paradise and I learned so much more about the people and the culture than I expected to.
I can’t believe we’re already this far on our journey. There’s only three ports left… but all I can say now is helloo AFRICA! :D
Mo content toi, Micha