Visit Mauritius (Maurice)

This post is a throwback photo blog post. It’s been a decade since I visited Mauritius (September 2007). This was my first trip with hubby. While going through the hard disk for pictures from other trips, I came across the Mauritius folder, and decided to share some pictures from our trip here. Despite the time gap, am assuming the details shared here aren’t obsolete.

Mark Twain said: “Mauritius was made first, and then heaven, and that heaven was copied after Mauritius”. A tiny gem in the Indian Ocean, Mauritius will steal your heart from the moment you set your eyes on it. Pristine beaches, the vibrant blue colour of the water, and the palm trees fringing the shoreline, perfect visual treat to start your vacation with. Here’s a recount of the places we visited, during our trip to Mauritius. Le Caudan Waterfront is a commercial establishment in Port Louis, the capital city of Mauritius. It’s a nice sprawling modern space comprising of various shops, cinema, restaurants, a marina and a five-star hotel. They even have a casino within the complex!

85% of the agricultural land in Mauritius is used for cultivating sugarcane, hence making it one of the prime industries in Mauritius. Despite the large cultivation, sugarcane juice is not available for sale openly, except for this one shop, which we found in the Le Caudan Waterfront complex. Sugarcane along with mint/ banana/ chocolate and coconut, are some of the cocktail versions available at this shop.

‘Hands of Fame’, at the glass gallery, museum cum workshop, houses hand imprints of local and international celebrities from all walks of life. Do watch the craftsmen showing glass blowing techniques, bringing various recycled glass objects into interesting shapes and form. Unevenly shaped wine glasses to household decorative items; you will find atleast one item that will catch your fancy.

Hinduism is the largest religion in Mauritius. We visited temples dedicated to various Gods along Ganga Talao. This picture, is of the 33 meters tall statue of Lord Shiva, standing with his trident at the entrance of Ganga Talao. It was inaugurated in 2007, the very year we visited Mauritius. Ganga Talao or Grand Bassin is a crater lake, located in the mountainous area. Ganga Talao literally means Lake of Ganga, drawing symbolic connection with the river Ganges in India.

Overlooking the Trou aux Cerfs,  a dormant volcano with a well-defined cone and crater. It is 605 m high and located in Curepipe, Mauritius. In the Chamarel plains of Rivière Noire District in south-western Mauritius exists the Seven Coloured Earth.A natural geological formation, the glimmering sand in red, green, blue, yellow, brown, violet and  purple, are a tourist attraction.

The Citadel or Fort Adelaide, was constructed in 1840, in a strategic location overlooking the harbour of Port Louis, in order to watch out for any incoming enemy vessels.

We also visited the National Botanical Garden, populated with 650 varieties of plants and 85 different varities of palm from across various parts of the world, along with other indigenous species of plants . The Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanical Garden, commonly known as the Pamplemousses Botanical Garden, is a popular tourist attraction in Pamplemousses, near Port Louis, Mauritius, and the oldest botanical garden in the Southern Hemisphere.

One cannot leave Mauritius, without indulging in one or more water sports. Water is clear and deep blue and is absolutely lovely! Kayaking, stand up paddling boarding, dolphin or whale watching, fishing, snorkeling, scuba diving, water skiing, wind surfing etc., there are an array of water sport options available. We experienced the undersea walk, with fishes swimming all around us and amazingly beautiful coral reefs adorned the under seascape. We even got to feed the fishes. Besides this, we parasailed, enjoyed the submarine and the underwater sub scooter…

Maurice or Mauritius is stunning, and holds a sweet spot in my travel memories.