Mauritius: Week 2

If there are two things to describe Mauritius as a whole I would say breathtaking sea views and sugar cane. All over the island there are rolling hills and expansive fields filled with sugar cane. The long leaves follow the breeze as cars and motorcycles zip along the winding roads. This foliage gives the island an extremely lush look and is something that you rarely see in China. Between the sugar cane fields, town centers pop up. The houses were generally one to two floors and were made mostly of cement. Like most tropical islands, they were an array of colors from neon yellow to cobalt blue. The town centers were often congested as shoppers, cars, stray dogs, and motorcycles competed for space along the narrow streets. To an outsider it looked like mayhem.

Visiting the South

Rochester Fall is a lovely waterfall nestled in the forest. A short hike through some sugarcane fields leads you to the rushing water in about 5 minutes. If you are lucky you will meet a local man selling coconuts and the sweetest pineapple. Find a spot on the rocks and then look up. You are most likely to see some of the local teens jumping from the rock edge and/or trees. The water in the swimming hole is pretty clean and feels super refreshing on a hot day.

Chamarel Park contains Chamarel Waterfall and the 7 Colored Earths. Both sights are very intrigiung  and worth a visit if you are in the area.

Natural Beauty

In our opinion, Blue Bay had some of the better beaches and snorkeling in Mauritius. We took a glass boat ride over the coral and saw a greater variety of fish, coral, and sea life. There were small and medium fish of varying colors darting in and out of the coral. Although the coral didn’t look very healthy there was still a lot of activity. Our boat dropped us off on a semi-private beach. The sand was a beautiful white color and over looked calm aqua colored waters. Ahh paradise!

Grand Bassin is a crater lake in the interior of Mauritius. This place is a scared place to the Hindu religion. Although it was pouring rain when we visited it still was a beautiful visit. There were many worshippers visiting making their offerings for the new year.

Trou aux Cerfs is another crater area in Mauritius. The volcano is dormant and much of the crater is overgrown with foliage, but you can still see down to the bottom where there is a small lake. It was a great area to take a view of the surrounding area as well as get some exercise in.

Northern Excursion

Port Louis is the capital of Mauritius and a hub for transportation. We started the day at the waterfront area. There are lovely cafes, restaurant, and shops. We ventured to the Craft Market, which was a great place to pick up souvenirs of all types. We then proceeded to the Central Market. This bustling market is a maze of beautiful fruits, veggies, and dry goods. There were so many options to choose from. There weren’t many stalls selling cooked food that we saw (we got to the market around 11:00) so we walked outside of the market and settled on some Mauritian curry and jasmine rice. A short ride from the city center lead us to the Citadel. It was not open, but we could walk around the grounds to get a birds eye view of Port Louis.

SSR Botanical Garden is an excellent spot to cool off a little from the Mauritian sun. Well shaded, we strolled through the paths checking out the varieties of trees and flowers. There is also an old plantation style house that you can enter toward the exit of the park.

Notre Dame Auxiliatrice Church in Cap Malheureux, or the Red Roof Church, is a spectacular church located on the waterfront north of Grand Bay. The location is perfection. The small and simple church overlooks the water and the five northern islets. Walking to the back of the church many folks were lying in the sun enjoying the scenery. The combination of black volcanic rocks, blue waters, and green trees made for a perfect hour or so of relaxing.

We are so glad that we decided on taking this trip. We got in some much needed relaxing while also having the chance to explore a new area. We didn’t find the language barrier to be a problem and the food was devine. In general, the Mauritian people were very hospitable and really wanted us to enjoy the island. And that we did!