A Trip to Mauritius

The island of Mauritius (Maurizio), and not 'the Mauritius' as people often say, is a volcanic island 58 km long and 47 km wide. Mauritius is located about 2000 km east of the African coast, about 800 km beyond Madagascar, and about 220 km from the equally famous Réunion, and it lies on the same latitude as Rio de Janeiro. It has an area of almost 2000 sq km and over 300 km of coastline. Its morphology includes a vast central plateau, tropical forests, rivers and waterfalls. The highest peaks exceed 800 m.

The nation of Mauritius also includes the island of Rodrigues, located more than 500 km to the north, and, together with other scattered coral atolls (Cargados, Carajos and Agalega), it forms part of the Mascarene archipelago (named after their discoverer: the Portuguese navigator Pedro de Mascarenhas).

It is thought that Mauritius is the highest tip of a huge sunken volcanic chain that stretches from the Seychelles to Réunion. However, unlike Réunion, Mauritius has no active volcanoes, although numerous traces of volcanic activity are found. The Trou aux Cerfs crater at Curepipe and the sacred lake Grand Bassin are examples of extinct craters and volcanic lakes. The island is covered with millions of lava pebbles: in the sugarcane fields you can see hundreds of small pyramids, the fruit of the creoles' labour, made from these very stones.

Mauritius is surrounded by a coral reef that creates long stretches of pinkish-white sandy beaches and which breaks in some places; for example, along the southern coast between Souillac and Le Bouchon, where the reef is interrupted, the sea breaks against dark rocks, giving life to a spectacular stretch of wild, jagged coastline. Towards the south the island rises rapidly to a central plateau which, beyond the mountains behind Port Louis, slopes gently down to the north coast: the highest peak, the Pitou de la Petite Rivière Noire, reaches 800 m

Mauritius is also a remarkable example of cultural integration: Mauritians, in fact, belong to various ethnic groups and cultures. Wandering around the island you can meet all kinds of peoples: whites, Africans, Indians and Muslims. Each ethnic group tends not to mix with the others, but each community respects the traditions, customs and traditions of all the others.

Our Tour

We stayed in Mauritius for a week, lodging at the Bougainville hotel thanks to a package offered by Blu Vacanze. Without going into the detail of our story, we'll limit ourselves to listing the places we visited during our stay in Mauritius, adding a few tips and advice gathered from our experience. The island obviously offers many other attractions that we didn't have time to visit in our week there.

HOTEL BOUGAINVILLE

Let's start with a quick description of our home during the holiday. The hotel is located on the east coast of Mauritius, famous for its long beaches of very fine sand and its clear turquoise sea. The hotel is 45 minutes from the airport and 40 from the capital, Port Louis. The famous Ile aux Cerfs is reachable in ten minutes by speedboat. The environment and the structure are simple, but welcoming and clean (excellent cooking). There are also a couple of Italian entertainers, but the entertainment is very low-key (perhaps too much so). The structure is therefore ideal for a completely relaxing stay. Through the hotel you can book tours lasting at most one day that allow a quick visit of every corner of the island. To save a bit of money you can also rely on the services offered by the beach boys, who will come to find you right on the beach.

The taxis permanently waiting at the hotel entrance allow quick and cheap travel within the island. Together with the Indian Resort it forms the pair of hotels that Blu Vacanze offers as a package for a stay on the island.

PAMPLEMOUSSES

the public garden, a few km from Port Louis, the most important on the island and famous for the numerous species of plants that grow there, including the giant Amazon water lilies and numerous species of palm.

THE FLACQ MARKET

Flacq is one of the most important villages on the island. It's here that one of the largest open-air markets in the country is found. Much frequented by locals and tourists alike, this colourful market is a short distance from the Magistrature, an important historic building. The market is great for buying spices and souvenirs and for admiring the varied examples of humanity present on the island (particularly Hindus and Muslims). Don't forget to haggle over the prices you're quoted!!

ILE AUX CERFS

A paradise for water sports and for those who love relaxing in the sun: here are the most beautiful beaches of Mauritius. As mentioned, the island is reachable for a few euros and in a few minutes by the beach boys' speedboats.

CHAMAREL

A road full of bends leads to the village of Case Noyale and the multicoloured lands of Chamarel. This is an area with undulating terrain of contrasting colours. The phenomenon is of volcanic origin: it's actually ash laid bare by erosion that presents zones of blue, green, yellow, purple and red, minutely divided into different sectors and layers. Also worth visiting are the nearby Tamarin waterfalls, which emerge from a moorland covered in wild vegetation.

THE BLACK RIVER GORGES

This park, created in 1994, protects what remains of the original forests of Mauritius. Besides ancient tropical trees you can admire animals (particularly macaques).

TROU AUX CERFS

Mauritius was born from intense volcanic activity, as the Trou Aux Cerfs crater on the heights of Curepipe bears witness. The crater is about a hundred metres deep and offers an exceptional panorama over the western part of the island.

GRAND BASSIN

A suggestive legend is linked to this splendid sacred lake, which according to tradition was born from the drops of water that fell from the head of the god Shiva, fascinated by the beauty of Mauritius. Every year between February and March the basin is the destination of a pilgrimage that the island's Hindu population makes to pay homage to the god on the occasion of Maha Shivaratree, the most important religious festival outside the borders of India: dressed in white, the pilgrims process to the lake carrying a kanvar, a wooden structure adorned with paper flowers, and, once they arrive, they burn incense, throwing offerings of food and flowers into the water. The feeling of strong spirituality is in the air (literally) all year round.

CASELA

Located in the Black River district, this ornithological park covers 25 hectares and boasts the presence of over 140 species of birds from the five continents. The park also has other animals such as tigers, giant tortoises and monkeys.

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