The Catholic Church is predominate, but our first stop was at a Hindu Temple. Then we toured a vanilla plantation where we learned that vanilla is actually an orchid and must be forced to germinate. Vanilla is a major export on many of the islands. These plantations were developed by British and French citizens in the 18th century and are quite lovely. With vast land, mild weather and beautiful views, the island has been a destination for expats and vacationers.
Leaving the plantation, our van wound up hairpin turns toward the center of the island which is a dormant volcano. We stopped to see waterfalls that seemed to come out of the rocks. The mountain tops are steep, rugged and covered in foliage. After wandering through the tourist town of Hellbourg with its creole houses, we enjoyed a good lunch including a delicious chopped salad made from fresh shushu (see photo below).
Back on board, we had a romantic dinner for two in Toscana, one of the two separate restaurants on the ship. For some reason, there were small displays of fireworks in the town of which we had an excellent view. That added to the lovely evening.
The next day we went to Mauritius to visit a tea plantation. Major Guinbeau, a Frenchman who served in the British army, built a lovely large home which was turned over to the country when the last family member died. The house is filled with original furniture including treasures up in the attic. Bringing tea to the table is a labor intensive industry with leaves hand picked, hand sorted, machine dried and fermented and hand boxed. We walked through the plant on the plantation observing the process from start to finish and, to quote a fellow passenger, “I will have much more respect for my afternoon tea from now on.”
From the plantation we were taken to the obligatory tourist shop to look at local handcrafts. In this case, the visit was to a shop where model ships were offered for sale. You could buy anything from a replica of a Roman galley to the USS Constitution. Another guest, who we have become friendly with, did buy a small version of the Constitution, over much objection from his wife. Her comment was, “You don’t need that.” Sound familiar?
Our lunch was on the veranda of another plantation and included an outstanding fresh hearts of palm salad with spicy marlin and a chicken with vanilla sauce. After dessert, it was time to taste rum, another major export. Jerry found a rum with coffee that was to his liking. The straight rum was, as he explained it, strong enough to put hair back on his head.
We visited another Hindu shrine where a twenty-eight foot tall Shiva towers over the road with its special wide lanes for thousands of worshipers to march along during a major holiday. The nearby temple is on a lake filled with water from the Ganges.
After driving across a “questionable” bridge with a view straight down the canyon to the river, we went to the local zoo with crocodiles, giant tortoises, and monkeys (none of it impressive) although the children who were there enjoyed riding the tortoises.
A coincidence: while waiting for our onboard bridge game to begin, our opponents asked where we were from. Generally we just say Sacramento, bus this time we said Rocklin. A woman from the next table came over and said she and her husband were from Sun City Lincoln Hills, just a few miles up the road from us. We immediately made a dinner date with Lynn and Rab to compare notes and adventures.
Another one: a couple from Denver live two blocks from where Anna Lee grew up as a child. He was a doctor at Fitzsimmons Army Hospital and she an archeology prof at Denver University.
We know most of you are experiencing snow and rain, we send thoughts of warm air, mild breezes, blue seas and a very happy holiday to all of you.
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