Pointe des Galets is the principal port of Réunion Island, a visual paradise as it emerging from the blue waters of the Indian Ocean. Its dramatic landscapes include lush mountains and volcanic peaks and white- and black sand beaches. A major attraction remains the fascinating and still active volcano, Piton de la Fournais.
Reunion is an overseas department of France The citizens of the island are French citizens and hold French passports. Since it is a department of France, it is part of the European Union and the outermost region of the Eurozone. The island was first colonized by the French in 1665. It was held by the British for a short time 1810 to 1815 but was retuned to France by the Congress of Vienna in 1815. Until the Suez Canal opened, Reunion was an important stop over on the East Indies trade route. This is a new port and country for us. We are doing a free ship’s tour today.
Our tour today meets at 8AM so we are up by 7AM to get a bite of breakfast and get to the theater on time. Dick goes to the coffee bar for some cold cereal and Carolyn orders room service. By 8AM the theater is full of people gathered for the day’s five tours that all leave by 8:30AM. Ours is called Piton Maido and Handicraft Market and is scheduled to be 4 1/2 hours. We are on the bus ready to leave by 8:30AM. Regent does not fill the buses to capacity so we are usually able to get two seats each toward the back of the bus and we do again today.
We are off into rush hour traffic and how they get so many cars on this small island is a mystery. The guide says they import 25,000 new cars each year! It is stop and go for several miles until we turn off to head up to our first stop, Piton Maido. The sign says it is 27km up the mountain and the road is barely two lanes wide with tire killing drainage canals right beside the road and hair pin curves with barely the length of the bus between them. Fortunately, the bus has tandem rear tires because the outside right rear one is in the air most of the time, especially on curves. The driver blows the horn at each curve because they are blind also. We frequently have to stop and wait for an oncoming car(s) to back up to let us around a curve or through a narrow space. Most of the cars seem to know the rules and do back up as required. He slams on the brakes a couple of times because someone ignored his warning horn that he was in the curve and oversized and comes barreling around the curve! We finally breakout of the built up area and from the crews laying some sort of cable in culverts under the road and proceed up the mountain. It takes an hour and a half from the ship to the top which is a National Park.
At the top there is a car park but the buses just stop in the road and let us off. We walk a short distance and have an amazing view of the cirque of Mafate which stretches out below. Encompassing over 22,000 acres of almost untouched wilderness and with only 900 citizens in its seven small villages, Mafate is a paradise for hikers and nature lovers with over a 1,000km of trails. From this vantage point we have a magnificent view of the highest mountain in the Indian Ocean, the Pito des Neiges ("Peak of the Snows) across the valley.
There is no vehicle access to the cirque. To emphasize this, a helicopter is just landing way down in the valley and is only there a few minutes before it is up and away. Even with the long lens on the Nikon it is just a speck several thousand feet below. Our guide said that it was probably the medical helicopter.
This is a stunningly beautiful, remote place. It was originally settled by runaway slaves in the early 1800's and the people stayed even after slavery was abolished in the 1840's. The government basically left the families to fin for themselves until the 1970's when elementary schools, medical services and mail service were established. We are given 15 minutes here, but we could have used more time as there were several spread out viewing areas.
So, back down the mountain with a stop at a family owned Geranium Distillery where they extract oils and such from fragrant plants. We could have done without this stop as it was not really worth the time. The nearly 45 minutes here could have been better used at the other two stops. Our bus guide gives the tour since the third generation family member doesn’t speak English.
The reason Carolyn wanted to take this tour in the first place is a planned stop at St. Paul Handicraft Market where we are supposed to have 45 minutes to browse. We stayed too long at the distillery and the bus parks at least four long blocks from the beginning of the market which stretches for three or four more blocks. We are given the 45 minutes, but it is 15 minute hike to the entrance. So most of our time is eaten by the hike to and from the market itself. To add insult to injury it is hot and humid. It is a great market with food vendors, produce and craft vendors...worth at least an hour to look. It is located in a grassy park like area right next to the beach. Since it is Good Friday afternoon the whole area is packed with families having a good time!
We leave a few Euros in the market and make it back to the bus on time but it is not the pleasant experience it should have been! The worst part is when we get to the entrance we see two of the ship’s buses parked right there! This is too much for Carolyn and she expresses her displeasure to the guide. He can only offer the weakest excuse....”they came the other way”...well!?
Our next stop is port customs where everybody is made to exit the bus with all their stuff and present themselves to French Customs for inspection. This amounts to walking by a customs officer who waves you through unless you are carrying a closed bag or pack, like Dick! Then you have to go let some other office paw through your bag looking for your gun, bomb, knife, etc. So stupid and make work when the ship has an x-ray machine set up that our stuff goes through every time we enter the ship. We also had to carry our passports on shore today, but they didn’t even ask for them...just our ship’s key card.
Finally back on the ship we slip into La Veranda for some lunch just as they are about to close at 2PM. Then back to the room for a shower, work on someone’s Easter Bonnet and work on this blog.
We sit on the balcony and enjoy the 5PM sail away and the very nice sunset! We see the green flash again tonight. Though it looks more yellow in this picture. Afterwards since it is now 7:30 and we can’t get our favorite table, we go to Sette Mari for some more Italian. Good food and wine does us in. It is time to get in our jammies and stretch out.
Port Louis is the charming capital city of this tiny dot of an island. Situated in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar, Mauritius offers lush mountain ranges, fine beaches, stunning coral reefs and picturesque villages. The five districts of Port Louis have a rich cultural heritage and the volcanic island is loaded with natural beauty.
Mauritius was discovered by the Dutch and ruled by the French from around 1735. The British took it over after the Napoleonic Wars and ruled the island until its independence in1968. Mauritius is a delightful mixture of French and English historic buildings and the charm of an African, Indian and Asian way of life set on a tropical, mountainous island.
We spent a wonderful Easter weekend at the Mauritius Oberoi in 2015 and had a private car and driver for a tour of the island. The ship’s tours are mostly going the places we visited with the drive in 2015. There are a couple of beach activities that have an extra fee and one free beach tour, but no loungers etc. Carolyn decides to contact the Oberoi, the fabulous hotel where we stayed, and see if we can visit for the day. They agree since we were past guests and we are delighted to visit again.
We arrive at 8AM and the ship is cleared by 8:30AM when the shuttle to the shopping area starts. We are in no hurry so about 9:30AM, after a nice breakfast, we catch the shuttle and go into town to the Le Caudan Waterfront, a modern mall not only known for its designer shops and duty free jewelry, but also for its cosmopolitan craft market, covering two floors of spices, souvenirs, basketry and craftsmen at work. Carolyn also wanted to go to the old covered market, known for its fascinating cross-section of Mauritian life, but learns it is 15 minute walk so we pass. All we really want is a pin for the bears and a magnet for the RV refrigerator which we find at the craft market. We catch the shuttle back to the ship and pack our backpack for the day on the beach. Along the way we pass a Hindu Temple, a Chinese Temple and a Catholic Church all with in a bock of each other. They represent the three major groups in Mauritius
The Oberoi Hotel car picks us up at 11:30AM and takes us to the hotel. It is a 30 minute ride to the hotel where we get a warm welcome back with a virgin Mojitio at reception and walk to the beach. We find a pair of loungers in the shade right on the water and the beach staff set us up with towels and cold water. The hotel, grounds and beach are just as beautiful as we remember. We just relax and read for a while. Dick goes swimming in the crystal blue waters and Carolyn wades and looks for shells. She finds some prizes.
After a couple of hours we walk over to the infinity pool for a swim and some lunch. The staff fixes up another pair of loungers and we go for a swim. The pool is stunning! Dick orders us a hamburger with extra fries when we are ready to get out. The food is delicious and the view spectacular. We read and relax until about 4PM. Then the hotel car then takes us back to the ship. All of this cost us approximately $100 including the car, use of the facilities and food. It has been a perfect day. The Oberoi Mauritius is a beautiful place to stay and Mauritius is a nice place to visit. The hotel is built around a 1700French fortress. They use the old ammunition bunker as the Wine cellar.There is a lot to see, but it is fun to do nothing too!
We get cleaned up, fix cocktails in the room and watch sail away before going to the Compass Rose for a later than usual, light dinner. We are too late to get our favorite dinner table and waiter, so we eat in Mario’s section. Terry is doing one of his evening sing-a-longs at 9:30PM, but even eating later we still can’t mange to stay up long enough to go. Plus we have another port day tomorrow.
