We have another deep dive planned this morning. I however went to bed with a terrible hay fever, not helped by the fan which is running because of the heat.  With the aircon being switched off because we are diving the next day and that just makes the allergies worse! It’s a catch 21!
Also a bit of blood in my sinuses so it is a hard decision to cancel the diving. Especially since the weather is fantastic and the sea is calm! In the end we decide to use the last day to take the local bus to Grand Baie to do some sightseeing and some last minute curio shopping.  We walk over to the bus stop and wait for about 20 minutes. Some of the locals help us get on the right bus. It is 62 rupees for the 9km trip and what an experience. We sit right in the back because we discover that our South African shoulders are to broad for these 3 seaters. Big mistake because we also discover that the bus does not have any shocks and we feel it at the back – it was more like a roller coaster ride rather than a bus ride.
The little village before Grand Baie looks likes very interesting spot to get off but Callie is on a mission – yet again. Grand Baie is beautiful with a lot of big boats and touristy shops. Luc buys some expensive berries (and this time he pays for it!). Callie heads straight for the Billabong shop and at this point the tour group splits up. The two of us decide that we can no longer follow Callie into a clothing shop, so we set off on our own. We discover that the large UMark is just around the corner and we pop in there (for more than an hour) to finish all our curio shopping! We are very impressed with our shopping – which includes French chocolate.
We end up with a few large bags which we spilt between us. Now we follow the road back home – the plan to walk a bit until we find a bus stop. Luc immediately stops at the first, but I would like to wonder on a bit. With much protest he walks to the next and the next. After which he becomes as “steeks as ‘n donkie”. I have to bribe him to get him to walk to the next stop. We pass many interesting sites. The local library which looks about 100 years old, the detective services, a stunning Hindu temple and a mafia meeting (check the photo!).
By the third bus stop Luc refuses to go any further. So, we wait and wait and wait. We miss a bus to Port Louis because we do not realise we can take this bus. Eventually we get on a Pamplemouse bus (this is after waiting for nearly 30 minutes – we could have walked another 3 bus stops!). In the end we got dumped at the beginning of Trou Aux Bitches in front of Beachcombers. We discover they have the best bus stop in town – a beautiful stone one with benches which we immediately invade as it is 1 and very hot outside. We then also discover that most of the busses take a left turn here and do not go straight to our villa!
Eventually we decide to cross the road and wait on the other side of the crossing as we will be sure any bus on this route will stop at our place. After another 25 minute wait I am ready to walk, but Luc is complaining bitterly. As I am about to start walking a bus comes around the corner and Luc runs to stop it. “Veranda Hotel?” is all I can get out – just to make sure we are on the right route – no way I am taking another bus or walking another meter! “Wi”  says the bus driver. As we speed pass Scuba Doo we see Callie having a drink with Louis. Too late to get off! We can see our villa and the bus stop right in front of the villa coming up. But as we get up the bus driver tells us to sit down. Oh no- we are on the wrong bus again!  Then I realise what is going on – he ignores the bus stop and stops right in front of the Veranda Hotel – like we asked him! We are in hysterics as we walk back to our villa! More walking!
Callie eventually arrives home – seems that his shopping was much shorter than ours – but much more disastrous! He comes parading out in a bright blue short with white flowers – and his black bulb hat! Oh no! Luc immediately pretends not to know him! We chill out next to the pool for the rest of the afternoon. This is followed by a bit of packing. Not sure how we are going to get all Callie’s clothing shopping home!  As we are busy with late lunch, Louis arrives with a gift of Island Rum and local orange juice – this is his favourite cocktail mix! He is so funny!
Callie goes for a last snorkel. I manage to persuade him not to wear the silly flower shorts, for just in case he is washed out to sea and they have to rescue him in that!  We laugh at him trying to get to deeper water. Our beach is not so great – lots of rocks and shallow reef. Turns out he had a great snorkel in the end – saw another snake eel.  There is also another late afternoon wedding on the beach in front of the Veranda Hotel and we end the day off with a glorious sunset. Cannot believe that our stay here is nearly at an end!

ALIENS IN MAURITIUS

13 OCT - Deep Diving and Scuba doo

SCUBA DOO

SMOOTHIES

REAL SA LUNCH FOR REAL BOERE!

We are up early for our deep dive. I am a bit concerned  because I cannot equalise in my left ear – the same old problem ear, but this dive I am not missing out on! Louis picks us up again and we hang out at his place for a few minutes whilst the boat is being loaded. The sea is much calmer but it is overcast again and the water has an eerie dark grey colour. Callie, who has packed the dive bag, seems to have forgotten just about all our gear! This must be a blessing in disguise with all the leaky combos and self-inflating BCs! This is not the sort of thing you want to deal with on a deep dive!
There are a few tense moments as we all get ready and fall/jump overboard. The whole plan is to get down as quickly as possible to out manoeuvre surface or top currents. I have added extra weights, but still have to flip over and fin down! What is going on! Seems that the African Dignity buttocks are filled with air! Initially all we see is a blue abyss and then way down below I can see the outcrops of a reef with fan coral and fan trees. Before we know it we are down at 30 meters. We then start descending down the side of the reef. It is absolutely stunning. The enormous coral trees of Black Forrest Reef are stunning. These coral trees are actually dark green, but so deep down they look black. We hit the 45 meter mark and I can see the men wanting to go deeper, but the dive briefing said 45 and this is where I stay! Turns out Richard was tempted to do 50, but turned around on 47 because of the same reason.
We stay down here for about 10 minutes after which we slowly start going up on the side of the reef. We are all in decompression time, mostly 3 meters for 3 minutes.  We keep on ascending all along the reef. It has a beautiful landscape of large boulders, coral and lots of fish – including my favourite (!) the Titan Trigger fish (I was attacked by one in Tioman, Malaysia many years ago!).
We spend some time on 30 meters. There is a mild current and it takes us over the Anchor Dive site where we see a six meter plus anchor embedded in the reef. Apparently it dates back from the years of the Portuguese seafarers! Our DM is not ready for a safety stop in the open sea so he makes us swim up against the current. This is hard work, especially if you are the only girl!  We reach the safety stop at 38  minutes and hang around the 6 meter mark. Turns out that Richards 47 meters pushed his deco time. He still has deco on his computer. In the end the rest all decide to finish the dive. With a stunning view of the reef and still enough air left I decide to stay with him whilst he sits it out.  At 45 minutes he is finally clear! On the surface the group cannot stop talking. Seems that even Richard has not yet dived this spot. He says with the Scuba Doo underwater scooters, the dive centre has not attracted our calibre of serious divers and that is why they seldom get the chance to do the great sites.  The other DM, Pepe, has logged more than 4000 dives in Mauritius and he tells us about so more sites. We concoct a plan to bring a group of advanced divers to Mauritius and to persuade Louis to do a package deal where we can do all these dives!
The three DMs are so impressed with this diving that they immediately persuade us to convince Louis to book another deep dive.  No one told Louis that we had planned such a deep dive for today! There is another site that is just as great, so we are keen to do this as well!
Back on shore we pick up an elderly couple from Meyerton who are booked to do the Scuba Doo with Luc. The Scuba Doo is basically little underwater scooters for people who cannot dive. I grab my dive gear and used the last air to dive with them and make a little video for them.  Luc is absolutely in his element. He loves it! We laugh at him because he tries to use his hands (like he does in diving) to control the little scooter!
Back at Louis  we are once again treated to chocolate cake and Louis rum cocktail. Oh man – this is definitely the way to finish a great day of diving!
Luc is still hungry, so Louis drops us at the International Cafe, which belongs to South Africans (Riaan, Louis says!) and where you can get the best imported meat. We order smoothies, a burger and Mauritian chicken Stir Fry. Turns out Riaan is Deon and he is very friendly. They have a little curio shop next door, where mom works. It is only much later whilst we are busy shopping that Deon’s wife pops in. She has recognised us and tells us how much the prayed for us. Their story of how they got to Mauritius is also one of faith. They were told that they were going to come here and it was confirmed twice by strangers. One was a Chinese man who could barely speak English and walked up to them and told them that a “bright man” told him to bring them a message!  They also share with us how difficult it is to work here. They could not find a place to open in the tourist area to open their restaurant and was forced to set up in a Hindu neighbourhood – but this has given them a great insight in the people. Now they are on the main road in Trou Aux Biches, but they are getting a lot of resistance from the locals. When we comment about the outside lampshades (straw hats!) – they tell us that the competition kept on breaking the shade and lights, so this was there solution. Apparently they have also put spells on their restaurant – but luckily they know they are protected! It sounds very similar to the stories Louis has been telling – having to wait 18 months for a license to set up his business.  Up front it all look so idyllic, but when you have to make a living here it is not so easy!
After all the cake, smoothies and enormous meal we are stuffed and take the long road home. Callie decides we have to walk on the beach, but forgot that Luc did not bring his plakkies with. It goes with much complaining of burning feet and eventually he has to abba him!
We chill out for the rest of the afternoon next to the pool. I take some time to make the videos of the Scuba Doo promised to Louis.  We all end up in bed watching Simon’s new X Factor show. Here everything is 2 hours ahead – so when it is on at 7:30 Central African time, it is allready 9:30 – so our clocks are a bit off!

12 Okt Ile Aux Cerfs

Le Toulouse Rock - or something like that!

Finding lunch!

The Princess and her following!

R100 sandwich!

Not our boat, Bonnie!

Getting ready for the boat ride!

Fun in the sun!

Lunch and drinks - check out the drumstick in the middle!

Entertainment!

Fish!

Today is yet another excursion day. This time we are going East – to the idyllic Ile Aux Cerefs. Moya, our SAfrican friend who lives here, recommended this trip. So, you can to it one of many ways. You can book a really expensive tour – that is if you are staying at a really expensive hotel, where they add serious commissions, or you can book with a local travel agent situated in a side street. Then you can also book a day on a catamaran – where your meal and all drinks are included, or you can do the “cheap skate” tour – like we did. Which always promises to be the most fun.
Well, the fun started with the 5 South African (Bonnie, Kerri, Luc, Callie and Myself) forcing our minibus driver to stop at Chez Popo for a good stock of French chocolates. He saw that this shopping was going to take some time so he left us there to pick up the rest of the tour group. About 5 large chocolate bars later, we are picked up. Our fellow tour group, consisting of a very young and very reserved French couple does not seem very impressed with this loud group.
What we did not take into consideration was “Aunti” Cyclone which was causing havoc on the East side of the island. Halfway through our 1 hour trip all we could see was dark cloud, rain and wind – and we are all dressed in swimming costumes and little dresses! So this called for immediate action – we eat one big slab of French chocolate – white with nuts!  The French think we are crazy!
On arrival at Trou Deau Douce we are very reluctant to get out of the car. It is cold and wet and the sea looks rough.  Callie runs across the street, to get the blue tickets that will take us across the rough seas! And guess what – the shop does not sell rain coats, so we are going to be soaking wet.  We are then commanded to the beach, where we join a big group of tourists all looking like “nat hoenders” waiting for a boat. As on que, a great variety of boats, pull up to shore. Luc immediately picks a speedboat with a “200” and for the rest of the day everything is measured by cc’s.  Bonnie immediately refuses to get on that one! I stare in fear at the little tug boat loading in a group of tourists – hope that is not our boat! Callie decides he wants a 200 too and is about to get in when we discover that this is not part of the “cheap skate” tour! Guess what – we get the little tug!
In the end it turns out to be the best bet. The sea is pretty rough on the crossing over to the lagoon area, but we get to see Le Tousserok Hotel from the sea. We all decide that this must be stunning in great weather. Our tug goes around the hotel and enters a lagoon area surrounded by many mangrove plantations. It is really beautiful.
Before we know if we dock on a little jetty.   A bit unsure as to what is going to happen next, Callie tries to establish what the game plan is. We finally figure it out – on the “cheap skate” tour, you are dumped on this side of the lagoon where you can tan, swim, do parasailing, drink and eat for two hours. Well, that is if the sun is shining and you have money. Because to rent a beach chair is Rupees 500 (note the whole trip was Rupees 1000 per person).  So, whilst Bonnie, Kerri and Luc set off for a walk in the lagoon, Callie chats up the lifeguards (hopefully trying to get a discount) and I venture to the sea side looking for snorkelling spots. The wind is howling here – so I quickly join the others.
By now Bonnie and Luc has decided that they are starving – it is now 11 – and Bonnie has seen a faded poster of a pizza at a little tuck shop. We stroll over to the pub on the beach, where we are told that they only make pizzas from 12. Tell Bonnie she can not have pizza when she is hungry (remember she is Miss Roman’s!) and you are in big trouble! When telling the young waiter what will happen when she does not get food, he immediately gets together a table and some chairs and says he will organise some sandwiches for the “princess”. So, there on this beautiful remote island, Bonnie became a princess.
Also there on this remote island, Luc decides he wants a chicken mayonnaise sandwich – the most expensive one he has ever had @ R 100 for a sandwich and chips! And how do R50 for a beer or a coke sounds!  We bump into a young South African couple from Kuruman who is on honeymoon and shares a plate of chips!  After breakfast the group is feeling slightly better and we wonder back +to the jetty as we are being picked up from there for the trip to the waterfall and the lunch spot. Here we find a large group of tourists all sprawled out on the wet beach – tanning in the slight drizzle!
We all decide it is now time for the second chocolate – this time it is the dark 1848 with nuts and orange. Amazing how the chocolate seems to lift our mood on this cloudy day! Luc has now gone off on a mission to find a cheap trip to the marine park for some snorkelling. The start price was Rupees 500 per person on a speed boat. He comes back with another option – Rupees 300 on a glass bottom boat (with a 15cc engine – which does not suit his standards!). Turns out that Callie and Luc are negotiating against each other for the trip.
Finally it is 12 o’clock and once again a whole armada boats converge upon us as we are waiting on the jetty.  This time Luc makes sure we get on a speed boat with a 200 engine. A funny Frenchman with a bright pink shirt and a camera with a lens that goes on forever and his wife/or mother take the seat right in the front. We end up right next to him and Luc, Bonnie and Kerri opposite us.
The boat sets off on a slow cruise down the lagoon with cameras clicking and the funny Frenchman waving at everyone on the catamarans. But then, just as we all begin to chill out, the fun starts. With a shock we discover that we were left in the hands of a lunatic skipper as he opens up the throttle and that 200cc starts to work. This is also when we discover that Bonnie is terrified of boats, especially fast moving ones! Initially she holds on to Luc but minutes later she is on the floor of the boat. Her fear seems to spur on our skipper, who heads straight for islands and then swerve just in time to clear them. It is only when we hear the hysterical shrieks from the front of th boat, that we see what is going on. The funny Frenchman is sitting with his camera high up above his head, pointed at Bonnie’ cleavage (which was now dangerously exposed because of her precarious position on the floor) and he issnapping away. Not bothered by any one else – screaming with delight!
By this time we are all in hysterics – not because of Bonnie, but because of this funny man who looks like a little boy let loose in a car toy shop!  Finally, the boat slows down and we manage to calm Bonnie down enough to tell her what happened.  By now the Funny Frenchman and his partner realised we knew exactly what he was doing, but he seems to get even more pleasure out of our conversation and telling Bonnie what he did – much to the embarrassment of his partner. Of course, by this time, we have decided that she must be his mother and that he still lives at home!
The boat now enters a wide river with high cliffs covered in giant fans and trees. High up in the treetops we see fruit bats hanging upside down.  As we go around a bend in the river, we see a beautiful waterfall ahead of us. It is not large, but has a lot of water coming down. The sight of this causes the funny Frenchman to start shrieking again, which sets off another domino effect – the skippers opens the throttle and heads straight for the falls, Bonnie grabs Luc and the rest of us screams.  The skipper pushes the nose of the boat right into the falls and the funny Frenchman tries to hug the falls! My goodness – I am sure he is going to go home and tell all his mates sharing his office about his wild Island adventure!
The trip back is just as crazy, but this time Bonnie handles it a bit better and even manages to threaten the skipper. Who is now also in love with the “princess”. We are dropped off on another island where we are going to have lunch.  It is very rustic with tables and benches under canvasses on the sandy beach.  It looks like great fun. We are welcomed with a large beer and a bottle of sprite. Soon to be followed by a bottle filled with white sprits and some pineapple. Callie pours some and Kerri realises that this is pure alcohol and you need to mix it with something soft! Much later we notice the French couple (who came on our taxi) drinking this clean. By the time we realise that they have not realised that you need to mix the drink, it is too late – they have just about finished their bottle. And this result in them becoming our entertainment for the afternoon.  They have no idea of how sloshed they are – he poses and she takes photos – each of their own mission without getting anything done!
We are starving and lunch turns out to be the best event of the day (not sure if it was the Jungle Juice!). It starts off with a grilled fish – whos stare makes Princess Bonnie uncomfortable and all Luc wants to do is to pull it’s teeth and put it around his neck. This is followed by toasted French bread, Cabbage salad and the best chicken (we immediately name our waiter Nandos!). Later in the afternoon, three of the waiters pull out some musical instruments and we get a real, local show. We do a bit of island dancing, go for a swim – much to Luc’s embarrassment and are invited to do a local rum tasting. This rum is made on the island and there are various options – rum with vanilla, rum with ginger, rum with orange – and much more – but the best is the rum with chilli. Being SAfrican we do not trust any of this, so we take little sips. But then we see the tasting tray arrive at the table of the Frenchies. And they try it all as quickly as possibly. Knowing what is about to come, we get the camera ready and film the poor girl as she throws the very potent chilli rum down her throat! My goodness – no sign of the very reserved couple we picked up that morning.
Just before 4 we are told that our crazy skipper and speedboat is waiting. Bonnie asks him to marry him so that she can get possession of the boat. He, in true character, opens up the throttle and then invites Bonnie to come and sit on his lap. Then he calls Luc and allows him to steer the boat! Oh my – the wheels, engines, everything just came off on this trip!
The ride back home is great fun – we have fantastic rugby conversations and all sorts of other conversations with the Frenchies. Our taxi driver had enough – we ask him to stop at Chez Popo for some more chocolates – but he saw double trouble and decides to drop Bonnie and Kerri off first. Sies vir hom! (Please note that we finished all the chocolates we bought!).
We are exhausted by the time we get home. Quick dinner, a bit of TV and I am asleep by 9. Remember tomorrow we have a deep dive planned!



Lunch table!



11 OCTOBER

Slow start to the morning. Chilled out, did some washing, some writing, some reading and Luc watched a lot of TV. A bit worried about this Anti Cyclone which is still messing up the sea – wind and rough seas! I asked my Facebook friends what an Anti Cyclone is and Karin Hougaard and Paul Booysen said it is the opposite of Uncle Cyclone – so lyk my ons moet oppas vir die tannie. Well, Louis phones us to tell us that the diving is on and we are all happy. He picks us up at one. At his house we grab gear and then he takes us to the beach where we meet DM, Richard. Sounds that Richard is not keen to take us to the Stella Maru Wreck without doing a checkout dive with us first. He does not trust these South African divers! Well, he has no choice because Louis tells him that we do not have a lot of days left for diving. The Scuba Doo boat is a big cat type boat and it is great to have so much space. The wind however is howling and on our way out it lifts the seat with our towel and takes it straight to sea. Thank goodness I just picked up my dive computer from the seat otherwise it would have been down under! We kit up very quickly. Back at the boat it is either the option of a back roll from a very high beam or a giant stride. We opt for the latter and Richard tells us to be quick as there might be some current and we might get washed off the wreck. As we are about to go down, Callie discovers he has left his fins on the boat! Oh no! I think Richard just about had a heart attack. He immediately wanted to know who the Divemaster was and is slightly relieved when he hears it is me! He tells Callie to meet us down at the bottom and the two of us go down. The viz is very good and we can see the wreck from the top. It is a beautiful wreck – well not one, but two – as there is a bicycle “wreck” too!  We get to see one of the giant eels the Stella Maru is famous for. Would have loved to have been  able to penetrate the wreck – but will rather not stress Richard out further!  After spending a good 25 minutes on the wreck we start going up towards the reef. Callie is low on air long before me and I am pretty sure it has to do with this leaky hoses! Ai, why does he not listen to me!

Back on the surface we decide not change cylinders immediately as the sea is very rough. This time Luc goes with and he does his first giant stride! It is a shallow dive – no deeper than 11 meters and the viz is not great with surge.  Not easy diving conditions but Luc copes very well. He still uses his arms a lot, but I think he was struggling with the surge and Richard was finning quiet fast. We see a snake eel and a pipe fish. Also a school of barracuda – Luc’s first! Luc manages yet another 45 minute dive!  The surface current is very strong and we have to hold on unto Luc and the boat to keep him from being pulled away.
Seems that both Richard and the other DM is very impressed with our diving and the plan is to take us to a 40 meter dive on Thursday called Black Forrest!  Back at Louis and Lola’s house we are received with a tall glass of Louis’s Jungle Juice and Lola’s famous chocolate cake! Man, this is the best diving! Lola immediately wanted to know if I showed the men – she told me earlier on that the men on the island think women cannot dive! I tell I think I managed to impress them! Of course we all have a great laugh at Callie with no fins – the story made it to the shore! Louis and Lola are absolutely fab hosts, jungle juice if followed by local rum tasting session and it after dark when Louis finally drop us at home! We discover that he was an deputy MD of a large insurance company in SA many years ago.  With his personality I think he did very well! And Luc decided that Lola’s chocolate cake is the best he had in a long time!

10 OCTOBER

Chez Popo Supermarket
Beautiful colours!
Stunning beach of Trou Aux Biches

MONIQUE:
We have a late morning start. Decide to put on the walking shoes and head into Trou Aux Biches to check out the village. So in exercise gear and off we go. At 10 it is already hot and after about 500 meters Luc is trying to find the bus stop! We stop to get some prices on car and scooter rental. Our next stop is at the only “supermarket” in the village,Chez Popo. We discover a cute little curio shop on the first floor, so spend some time getting little things. From there we stroll over to the main beach – which is an exquisite white beach with blue turquoise water. Apparently the snorkelling here is great. We also get to see the Beachcombers Trou Aux Biches Resort from the sea side – in Mauritius beaches are public property, so the fancy hotels cannot stop you from walking on the beaches although they can control the access to it. We stop to chat to the skipper of the TAB resort dive boat to find out where to get hold of Prodive. He phones the owner, Kevin, who is out on sea, right in front of us. It is another 800 meters walk on the beach before we get to the hotel where Prodiver is situated. We chat to Kevin, but the prices are very expensive and he is very negative about the dives far away and even the day trip we have planned. We leave there not so sure that we want to book a dive.
We decide to find Dive Dream, who got a good writeup on Tripadvisor. After another Km (and now it is about 12 and very hot) we find their office – but they are also closed on a Monday. There is another stop at a tour operator to organise the day trip to the Lagoon island on Wednesday. By this time we are very hot and tired of all the walking. It is nearly one and we are very happy when we see Chez Popo where we stop for Indian Kulfi Icecreams. On our way back we also pop into Atlantic Divers, a local dive operation where the prices are considerably cheaper.
A block from there Luc notices that the Scooba Doo Gate is open. They are a dive operation who also offers underwater scooters for non divers and Luc has been wanting to do it since we got here. At R2500 we said NO – we can do two dives for that price. Well, we decide to check out the diving prices and as we walk in we see a SA flag on the stoep.
Then we are welcomed by a very loud Frenchman, Louis, who immediately switches over to Afrikaans when he hears we are from SA. “I am a Mauritian Boer!” he shouts. He then calls his wife, Lola to come and meet us. Turns out they lived in Jburg, Houtbay and Stellenbosch for many years. He shows us photos of his grand children, who has no trace of his Mauritian blood, but look like real Boere kids. We end up at Louis and Lola for more than an hour – and Callie scores the best expresso in a long time! Lola tells us that they came to retire in Mauritius, but that the business has taken over. She is not happy at all – she will rather be in Johannesburg with her children and great shopping! But you can see that Louis is passionate about his business. After hearing that Luc wants to do the Scooba Doo, he offers to through it in free with the diving! But there is one problem – this anticyclone has made the sea conditions not great and not a lot of diving has been taking place off his tropical platform boat – which was specifically designed for the scooba doo. So we hope that the weather will be better by tomorrow.
It is well after two when we get home after our long expedition on foot. We are hot, hungry and exhausted. We chill out for the rest of the afternoon. I am frustrated with the internet as the connection is not great and trying to upload photos and videos take forever.
Dinner is a disaster. Try to make Biryani with a local mix, but we cannot understand the recipe on the packet and have to guess and it tastes strange! So, the brave ones have strange biryani and the rest have salad. We end the evening with a major Uno challenge and poor Luc gets trashed.

PS: Oh and the Kumon did finally arrive. After a long journey. Luc forgot it in CT. Mandy couriered it to Bonnie to bring with. Bonnie forgot it and had her office DHL it to Mauritius! Poor Luc – no way out on this one!

The Video!