This was our first trip to an African country. Mauritius proved to be a strange and beautiful place. This French speaking nation was uninhabited before European colonists began settling there. Subsequent waves of emigration have been largely Chinese and Indian.
The food, people, and culture are definitely eclectic. We ate a lot of delicious seafood like octopus curry and a lot of Chinese noodles and rice.A beach destination proved to be a great way to enjoy traveling on a year old baby's schedule. Cata began the vacation mostly crawling and ended it mostly walking, including right into the Indian Ocean. She played in the shallow water gleefully and loved the sand. One day blurred into the next and mostly consisted of exploring the beaches within a few minutes drive of our apartment, in Grand Baie, in the far north part of the island. We did drive to the Southern part of the island to explore Black River Gorges National park and also went on a catamaran cruise, but we mostly enjoyed the relaxed pace and lifestyle the island promoted.
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| Mauritius was once home to some very unique mega-fauna, including a now extinct species of giant tortoise. These Aldabra tortoises live in a reserve which is open to tourists. |
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| Chinatown in Port Louis |
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| Cata loves the beach. |
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Each day offered a beautiful sunset
Hiking Le Morne Brabant, a small mountain that is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is believed that a group of runaway slaves jumped off the cliff into the ocean rather than be recaptured.
