Well, in case you are wondering... Mauritius was the closest we got to Africa and hence the title!!
It was an overnight transformation from hot, humid Chennai to pleasant, breezy Mauritius. A string of scenes - super regulated traffic, lush greenery, hectares of sugarcane fields bordering the highways and most importantly, roads sans humans – convinced us that we were out of India! On the other hand – Velmurugan Kalyana mandabam, Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital, SBI Mauritius, advertisement hoardings of LIC / New India Assurance company etc. - that we encountered on our way to the resort assured that we were not too far afterall. Dreamy eyed, we rode through all of this to our much awaited Sands resort.
As we zeroed in on Mauritius, we realized that selecting “the” resort was a bigger task. Hours spent over Google, tripadvisor.com and quotations from SOTC/Thomas Cook led to the final decision – “The Sands Resort”. From the moment we stepped in, we could not wait to dive into the pool after a quick lunch at the restaurant. The white sand beaches at Mauritius are shallow for about 500 meters, making it perfectly safe and fun to play around in. The cold evenings were best spent chit-chatting on the hammock or the beach chairs by the sea – which had one of the most picturesque views from Sands. Our favorite evening pastime was to get lost viewing the sunset in Mauritius, considered one of the best in the world. We also had some sweet surprises at the resort – chocolates left on the bed, free snacks for trial on the beach, African dance and bonfire evening, bed decorated with floors etc.
16th Sep: We had 2 choices - lazing around at the resort or exploring “quad biking”; we chose the latter. A quad is a four wheeler mini tractor of sorts (2-seater) with jumbo wheels that can maintain stability through roughest of roads. All the other 3 couples had prior experience with quad biking and the guide was cynical about our skills. I proved the guide quite right but the I-will-not-give-up man managed to convince the guide otherwise after 15 mins of test driving. All through our journey up & down 3 mountains, we witnessed lush greenery, breath-taking views of the ocean and encountered herds of deer & wild boars. The bumpy tracks, water-logged stretches and the steep downhill journey did give us the jitters at times, but we managed to sail past it all. Exhausted but happy, we concluded it was one of the most challenging and satisfying activities ever! The authentic Mauritian lunch included in the package happens to be the best meal we had in the week.
17th Sep: Our guided tour series started with a North Island tour. Nothing exciting though about visiting few monuments / structures / botanical gardens / malls that paid commissions to the tour agent. The water lily plants at the gardens are supposed to be a treat to the tourist’s eye when they fully bloom in December-January. The day’s tour was only worth the delicious lunch and a relaxed time spent at Le Caudan Waterfront, Port Louis.
18th Sep: It was time for the South Island tour which started off pretty disappointing with a souvenir gift shop and ship-model selling outlet. The tour turned much better as we climbed few mountains to visit craters, temples, waterfalls and seven-colored earth (the varied colors owing to ferrous deposits). Thanks to the cool breeze, 5 min drizzles at regular intervals and 22 degree temperature - we had a lovely time with our mini-walks around the greenery at each location. Our enthused driving guide Vimal provided tons of interesting information on the island. The potential of Mauritius, the virgin island, was unleashed by the British in early 1800s by getting tons of slaves from India to work in their sugarcane fields. The Indians who managed to survive 6 months of journey back then, have spent generations in the island ensuring that Indian descendants form more than 60% of the current population. Almost whole of the sugar produced in the island is exported to Europe. So, inspite of being the highest exporters of sugar in the world, the localites import low quality sugar from China for consumption…..
19th Sep: The most awaited journey to Ile-Aux-Cerfs started with the undersea walk. With about heavy 40 kg helmet on my head, I was excited to step on the sand under sea (about 5 ft deep). The sheer feeling of moving under water amidst the colorful fishes and corals was thrilling. The helpers gave us bread crumbs which the fishes nibbled from my hands leaving behind a sweet ticklish feel!! I had half a mind to stay back, but 15 mins later I was forced back on the deck…. sigh! Couple of hours later, we were cruising through the bright blue ocean on a speed boat to experience the much-hyped parasailing. My articulation skills would do complete injustice in expressing the elated feeling I went through flying mid air over the ocean alongside the only person I wanted to be with at that moment. Deep into the sea and up above the ocean within few hours – what a day!! The immensely satisfying day ended with some great African dance & music… the dancers even taught us a couple of hip shakes!
20th Sep: We had reserved the day for the exciting complementary water sports that Sands promised – wind surfing, water skiing, kayaking etc., only to be told that we need to be excellent swimmers to try those out. We were shattered… but did not want the discouraging boat club members to influence us. Seeing few other tourists perform these activities, we realized that wind surfing was beyond us. However, the water surfing experience at Dimna Lake (Jamshedpur) way back in 2005, cheered us to try out water skiing. The brave & energetic duo failed so miserably at the end of it all – Karthik drank 2 litres of sea water before he gave up and I conceded defeat after trying to turn myself around in the ocean for 10 mins. Keeping the disaster aside, we had the perfect relaxed day with an hour in the pool, a pack of cards, yummy pasta and a long walk!
21st Sep: Our return flight was in the night and we had decided to visit the Casela Bird park in the morning. We aren’t big fans of birds but the main attraction at Casela was the possibility of being up, close and person with the king of the jungle – Lions! The cabs were working out to be too expensive and we wanted to try public transport. I was surprised to find the condition of buses worser than in India but the bus stops were very cute – colored in bright green, yellow or red. The bird park has too many alternate attractions and so little birds that one may wonder why its called so. Our chief objective was to meet & interact with the lions and we wasted no time to reach our destination. It is an irony to see the beasts tamed to such an extent that they behaved like dogs. Inspite of the reassuring staff around, it wasn’t easy for me to get off the fear factor. Nevertheless, I felt quite elated to touch, feel and be around the lions.
At the end of the 6 days, it was tough to leave the bright blue beaches behind us…. but Karthik was delighted at the prospect of his mom’s sambar & rasam for the next meal!
Few tips & tricks:
1) Try to stay in the western coast of Mauritius; the eastern coast gets very windy & cold in the evenings forcing tourists to stay-put inside their rooms. In case you opt for guided tours, avoid resorts way up the north/south borders of the country. Staying around the central region would reduce travel hours and give you more time to enjoy the luxurious beaches.
2) Sands resort: Much recommended for its great service & ambience. Since we were the only vegetarians in the resort, the restaurant staff volunteered to prepare customized dinner everyday based on the cuisine of our choice. Pros – Very few Indian tourists, customized service, breath-taking Infinity pool, helpful staff. Cons – Tendency to give preference to white skin over brown skin among few hotel staff, most free water sports require one to be an excellent swimmer, remote location (about 2 km walk to the nearest village) – compelling one to buy food/beverages for exorbitant prices from the hotel
3) Try avoiding the 3 day guided tours – atleast the North Island trip was totally not worth it.
4) Food options at the resort especially for vegetarians are limited. Mauritian food is a slightly modified, bland version of Indian khaana – it is worth trying! There are lots of Indian restaurants outside the resort areas throughout Mauritius. Though we did not try those out, we heard good feedback
5) We strongly advise you not to pay for the lunch as a part of your package. On the days of touring, they pack sandwiches / burgers which get really cold by lunch time. Also, it is totally worth trying out restaurants / cuisines outside – some of them turn out to be wonderful.
6) We used SOTC – the services offered were good – no complaints. All Indian tourists seem to be attended by Seaside Tours, a local agent in Mauritius. Only Thomas Cook as its own branch located in Mauritius.
Our Take:
Priya’s rating – 8/10
Karthik’s rating – 8/10
Definitely Recommended!
