la meilleure façon que je peux décrire mes vacances, hmmm… for a minute there I thought I was still in Mauritius lol, I can hear the French still buzzing in my ears from all the locals in Port Louis, “comment allez-vous monsieur” and ”est-ce que je pourrais obtenir pour vous monsieur”. The Mauritian people are very amicable, friendly and affectionate (Key word ‘very’) which made my stay very comfortable and all a sudden the word ‘Holiday’ started to make sense.
Friday 26th still not packed and my flight is on Saturday morning, had to do some shopping for my trip and of course buy my pack of Redd’s to keep me refreshed throughout. Back home, with all my necessary stuff for the trip I had to make sure I had a suitcase that fit everything including my pack of Redd’s, lol.
Saturday afternoon I arrive at JKIA where I meet Pinkie the SABMiller Marketing Manager and the rest of the team who we were to travel with. Boarded the Air Mauritius flight which was going to take us exactly 4 hours to Port Louis, our destination. Throughout the flight the cabin crew were tremendous - they’ve been specifically trained in customer care and customer service ensuring that passengers remain safe throughout the duration of the flight. On arrival at Port Louis, we were well received and taken to La Pointe aux Canonniers club Med, the place I’d be calling home during my stay in Mauritius.
When describing this beautiful resort at the Grand bay, I would say it’s an area with a lovely view of the Port that ends in a gorgeous beach. The sea is refreshingly turquoise and the sand white and silky. Mauritius is a diverse island waiting to be explored. It brings together a vibrant mix of Indian, French, Créole (the local language) and Chinese cultural influences. Boasting beautiful landscapes, mixing jungle-covered mountains, waterfalls, sugar cane fields and wonderful white sandy beaches. A holiday to Mauritius will enchant and refresh you once you step upon this country’s shores.
The next day I woke up excited and looking forward to adventure. I decided to choose snorkeling from the list of activities I saw that I could do while there. Almost completely surrounded by a coral reef, the island’s tranquil pools and lagoons are perfect for exploring the turquoise waters and plethora of colorful marine life. Diving, boat trips and deep-sea fishing are all the rage in Mauritius, as well as undersea walks, strolling the ocean bed with unique diving gear, I was all geared up with all the necessary swimming equipment. We went on a cruise in the Indian ocean then all of a sudden a school of dolphins doing tricks and back flips (showing off) started following us. The tour guide we were with told us we could go ahead and swim with them. I didn’t hold back, I put on my swimming goggles and jumped right in.
Oh my gosh! I have never in my life seen so much beauty - all these different colorful fish swimming in different directions and the coral! I was so dazzled.
I got back on the cruise and we docked on a different beach and had lobster for lunch. Aaaah, the life. While walking along the shore, we met other tourists from different countries also on vacation. What I really found intriguing and strange at the same time was that everyone kept thinking we were from South Africa. When I got back to the resort, I asked Gael (the bar tender who kept chatting me and Pinkie up for some strange reason), “What country do you think we are from?” He replied, “South Africa”, and when we told him we were from east Africa he was perturbed. I went ahead and asked him what countries he knows from East Africa, and this is when things got even worse! He said, Madagascar. Pinkie and I went blank and stared at each other then burst out laughing. He later said they NEVER get any visitors from East Africa and especially Kenya. So they were really honoured to have us around (made me feel like a God being worshiped).
The next day I wanted to do a bit of shopping and get the feel of Port Louis Town. Just because you’re on an island doesn’t mean you can’t be stylish. The hotel organised a car to chauffeur me to wherever I needed to go. My first stop was Arsenal (I know), situated between Triolet and Terre-Rouge, which consists of branded shops, cashmere clothing shops, and artisan product stores. There are also luxury lighting products stores in which fascinating illumination lamps and products can be acquired. Arsenal is considered an ideal shopping destination for high-end products. I saw some McQueen shoes I loved, and Vivienne West-wood dresses too, but, truth be told, Mauritius is an expensive country! Well lets just say I came for a vacation and to relax, not to get too much shopping done lol.
From Arsenal we went to galerie des iles, one of the biggest malls in Port Louis. One thing I noticed is that there are more shopping complexes in Mauritius than its 1.2m population would actually have time and money to visit. But with a changing lifestyle, Mauritians have gone ‘shopping mall crazy’ during the past decade. During the drive from the Airport to the Resort we passed quite a number of malls. The driver did his best to show us around but kept insisting we do a lot of shopping (In my head I am thinking, DUDE! Do you know how expensive your country is??), so we chose to ignore him and proceeded in the mall.
Lacoste, Prada, Mango, Andre, Armani - all these stores made me go crazy!! They had good quality clothes that made you wish you could rob a bank and go on a shopping spree!! I managed to get a few Items and when the shopping was done drove back to the resort for an evening of rest and got ready for my early morning flight to Nairobi
My stay was rather short but I made the most out of it. Talk about taking time out of your busy schedule to just relax and do stuff you hardly do while you are busy. I will definitely make a point to visit Mauritius and do it all over again. It’s good to develop a culture of travelling and get to see how things work in different parts of the world. My best part of travelling is meeting new cultures, sampling different cuisines and meeting beautiful people (Ladies you’d want to meet the Beach boys, am just saying).
Here are some things you must do when you visit Mauritius. I got to do some but not all
1. Visit Ile aux Cerfs
Have a day out in the sun on this pretty island, situated on the East coast of Mauritius. Tour includes transport from your hotel to Trou d’ Eau Douce, the boat trip across to the island, lunch and a trip to see waterfalls.
2. See the seven colours of the earth
See the seven colours of earth at the Chamarel Waterfalls, it is small, yet impressive and makes for great photos. You are able to get there on your own (bus, taxi, car) or you can book a South West Tour which will take you to on a day’s round trip all around the South West of the island and includes several stopovers- including the seven coloured earth, the diamond factory in Floreal, the extinct volcano at Trou auc Cerfs, the sacred lake at Grand Bassin and the Black river Gorges
3. Pamplemousse gardens
This beautifully maintained garden is very close to Grand Bay, and getting there is very easy by bus. If you get hungry for some local flavor; stop at Chez Tante Athalie which is 2.5 km from the gardens. This restaurant comes with fantastic hospitality and allows one the chance to experience real Mauritian home-cooked cuisine.
4. Markets in Port Louis and Quatre Borne
If you feel like getting away from the pricey shops of Grand Bay, take a bus to Port Louis and get a local taste of how real Mauritians shop. If you want to go even more local, take another bus to Quatre Borne and get lost trying to navigate yourself around the tiny passageways with stalls selling everything from clothes, to shoes, to hair accessories, to sari’s and fabrics of all kinds.
5. Beaches
Of course you cannot come to Mauritius without taking a dip in the turquoise sea and lie on the white silky sand. In the North the beaches are mainly white, fine sand, but as you go East, the beaches change colour and texture and the sea changes from calm lagoon to roaring ocean. In the South, in Riviere des Gallets the beach consists of pebbles and at Gris Gris the ocean is rough and can be dangerous to swim in.
6. Attend an Indian wedding
You can either go in search of a home that has been decorated with lights and a huge tent in their backyard and then proceed to gatecrash the wedding (you will be most welcomed!), or you can make friends with some locals and then hope that someone that knows someone is getting married and you can crack an invite. It is a great experience, and a chance to eat with your hands off a banana leaf and jam to the energising sounds of Punjabi and Bollywood hits.
7. Horse races
Horse racing has been in Mauritius since 1812 and every Saturday the entire country gears up for some horse action. There are 2 ways to enjoy the races at theChamp de Mars racetrack, the oldest racetrack in the Southern hemisphere. You can just pitch up and mingle with the locals in the stands, bet, enjoy the food and great atmosphere. Or, if you want to experience how the elite of Mauritian enjoy the races, you can buy a ticket and will have access to the upper boxes and Crowne Lodge (especially catered for foreigners) and sip champagne with the high society. The dress code for this area is smart, sleek and sexy and if you are lucky you could have your photo taken and published in the weekly race magazines and newspapers.
8. Grand Bay
Enjoy beautiful views of the turquoise- coloured sea, either from land or take a trip in a catamaran. You can also go water skiing; take a ride on a glass bottom or go para-sailing.
9. Enjoy the nightlife
There are numerous clubs in Grand Bay; a popular one amongst the locals is Insomnia. There are also restaurants to suit everyone’s taste dotted on every street, open until late. If you are missing home, try out the Beach House which overlooks the bay. It is a South African run establishment with the main attraction being the big screen T.V’s to keep the expats updated with what’s happening back at home. Drop in for a late afternoon cocktail.
10. Taste the local food
A good choice is dhal puri, which is an Indian street food consisting of a lentil pancake filled with a light vegetable curry and some optional chili. Wash it down with some homemade lemonade. Another tasty meal is a roti filled with vegetable curry. It’s easy to spot the men selling these as they are always on a bicycle with a little glass cabinet in the front. The roti -men mostly hang out by the beach, so grab one (or two) of these on the way and enjoy your meal in the most perfect of settings And, of course, you can always enjoy a refreshing Redd’s right along with that.