On our last trip to South Africa, we decided to stop over in Mauritius on the way back to Perth.What seemed like a smart idea at the time turned into a bit of a mission from the start! It might be handy to mention that we were traveling over Christmas & this should immediately put things into perspective!
Mission no 1: Trying to get accommodation in peak season when you are only there for 2 nights! This was tough. All the fancy pants resorts that we all wish we could stay at (and should stay at) required a 10 night minimum over peak season. Even though I booked nearly a year in advance, I spent hours on end trying to find accommodation that would take us for our measly 2 nights. How dare we!
I had heard that Pereybere was a lovely spot & had decided that we would stay at a self catering apartment. Now before you make judgments and laugh at my expense - there really was no other choice!
Ok...let's fast forward to the good stuff. We arrived, the weather was slightly humid but lovely. Driving through the cane fields and seeing the island "mountain" scenery was a treat. There also seemed to be a trend - unfinished houses. Apparently if you don't complete your house, it essentially remains a "building site" and you don't have to pay taxes (or something like that) So as you drive along, you see house upon house three quarters the way complete with metal beams etc.....
So we arrived at the "hotel" without much struggle. First thing I noticed was that the hotel was not right on the beach - as mentioned on the website but actually across the road from it - and then across a big park. At this stage, I smile and shrug "It happens right?" The room was fine, no complaints there. We were excited and ready to go out and get amongst it. We heard the best place to go out was a 10 min drive to bustling Grand Bay.
The night life is great. We ended up drinking cocktails and watching amazing live bands playing Latin American/funk style music on both nights. I remember thinking, well this is the life, get me another Pina Colada!!! Got ripped off by a cab driver on the first night but by the second night, we were savvy to the whole situation!! It's amazing how fast you learn.
Mission No 2: Waking up on the Saturday was fairly painful after the night before but a swim would sort that out. Firstly, needed Coke immediately. Hmm...first problem. We never bought anything the day before did we? So off I go in search of a) something to eat and b) some coke. I go downstairs, the restaurant is closed (8am), I go across the road, the restaurant is closed. I walk 5 minutes down the road to the left, nothing. By this stage, I feel like I might die. My cotton mouth could not be worse and my head is pounding. I had to push on! So back the way I came and I just kept walking. I am not sure for how long but in hangover time, it felt like days.
Eventually I came across a little old lady with a giant french loaf. I wanted to steal it but instead I asked her where she got it from. After eventually figuring out what I wanted, she pointed down the street. So off I go....down the street, down a little alleyway...passed some stray dogs who might have been looking for the same place.....and then success. A tiny little shop, no signage, just a door. Inside had such a low roof and almost no lighting. But there was bread...and coke! They had nothing for the bread though, except some little packets of Nutella. So that was it. The breakfast of champions.
So back to the apartment with the 'breakfast', the sleeping boyfriend totally unaware of what I had to go through for it! Eventually, feeling slightly more alive, I got my stuff ready for the beach. Boyfriend needed more sleep so off I went.
I walked across the park, saw my stray dog buddies again and eventually got to the beach. Oh the beach! It made it all ok. I saw the sun lounges and headed for one. It was just like you see in the pictures. Except that my bum wasn't even on it when a little skinny indian guy wanted money off me for sitting on one. Damn. I decided I would be better off in the water anyway.
This was a good decision. The water was like a refreshing, yet warm, bath. You just walked right in and the sand is so fine, it is an amazing feeling on your toes. I could have spent ages in there. We ended up snorkeling and swimming really far out. The fish are beautiful & the water is like a pool. It is exactly how you imagine it to be (once you are passed the park!).
Later on we decided to try the public transport. This would be scary for any adrenalin junkie, let alone a normal person. The bus was packed & felt like it would topple with every turn. The driving was chaotic. Nobody else seemed phased. We got off and had a good giggle at the situation - mostly due to the endorphin kick we had just received. Either way, it was a pretty cool experience.
The markets were high on the agenda. They are very well known & we wanted to grab a bargain. It was a great experience. So much to see, so many lovely things, so much crap! It was a great day and I highly recommend it. We picked up some stunning things, including a massive table cloth I set out to find, for a steal. One of my best parts of the whole trip was a restaurant/bar called Cocoloko. It was amazing. The decor was brilliant, the food was delicious and the chilled out French lounge music completed the island paradise picture. I had the best pizza of my life there and I still dream about it.
Also got to drink the juice out of a fresh coconut. Something that still haunts me to this day. It looks so exotic & islandy! But picture warm, salty juice through a straw. Yeah. Not good.
Sunday morning we got up at a reasonable time which was obviously still not reasonable by Mauritian standards! Again battled to find somewhere to eat & since we were getting fetched for the airport at 12am, we needed to find somewhere, and soon. We went to a restaurant by the park at 10am. It only opened at 11. What breakfast did it serve? None, but we could have roast chicken & chips. We waited ages for it and then when it came, we think it might have been chicken from a couple days ago that was re-roasted. It was bad, the flies were bad and the fact that the stray dogs were allowed into the outdoor area was odd. On that note, finding somewhere that served traditional Mauritian cuisine, something I was eager to try, was almost impossible.
So with an fairly empty tummy, we went to the airport where we were told we had a 5hr delay.
If anyone has been stuck in an airport over the Christmas season - an airport meant for no more than a couple hundred people, you will feel our pain. There was ONE place for food and drinks. You had to wait for an hour in the queue just to get anything so when you got there, you bought double. There were tired, hungry, crying kids, no where to sit & I was with a smoker that had no where to smoke. It was hell. And that is no exaggeration.
In summary, I felt Mauritius has a lovely culture with a lot to offer and is definitely worth a visit but has it's own serious 3rd world issues. Infrastructure is pretty bad. As a traveler, most of the time you want to go there to experience this culture and get amongst it but then go back to your stunning resort and laze in the pool with cocktails. You don't want to stay where we stayed where the dirtiness and poverty is inescapable. My advice: Always stay in a resort where everything is included & food and drink are there on request. If you are going at peak season and can't get into a resort, don't go at all.
My score for Mauritius - 6/10
Points to remember:
* Always lock in the cab fare with the driver before you get in. You can probably barter at least 50% off what they originally told you. They WILL try to rip you off.
* Stay in a resort
* Always barter at the markets and you will get very good deals
* Make sure you still have cash on you when you leave for your flight home. You may have a wait and will need to buy food and drinks.
* Check the shop opening times on weekends, they are very different to what you are probably used to.
* Buy an underwater camera :)
* Probably try and avoid peak season - the airport is a bit crazy & it can't really handle the amount of people that go through it
http://www.mauritius.net/index.php
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