Saturday, February 23, 2008

The Seychelles – Our Visit to Paradise









As we sailed away from India, all we were fantasizing about is reaching the Seychelles for the 2 days off we had on the schedule. Visions of pristine white beaches and snorkeling among coral reefs were preoccupying everyone. All we talked about during our communal meal was, “so, are you just going to disappear once we get to the islands? Ha, ha?” We were craving some time away from each other and a chance to be back in nature away from car fumes and honking horns…
Some of the students actually slept on deck so they can get the earliest view possible of our arrival to the Seychelles. The rest ran to the deck when we started approaching the amazing view of the main Island of Mahe, with its tall maintains all covered with greenery and surrounded by calm blue waters… wow…
As soon as we got the “all clear” signal from the immigration officials, we scrambled to get off the ship and embrace even the clean and welcoming port area where a slew of brand new rental cars and taxis awaited us. Like any family (which we have now become), most of us ended up choosing to spend time with each other despite our previous proclamations to the contrary.
I joined a group of students who were hosted by the Victoria Rotary Club. As we got off the jeep, a group of 5 Rotarians arrived to greet us am immediately separated our group of 10 into the 4 cars they were driving to take us on a trip to the Southern part of Mahe, where they said we can have a day of swimming, snorkeling, eating local foods, and just relaxing. Huge smiles emerged on everyone’s faces as we got into the cars and immediately felt right at home with our gracious hosts. Being a Rotarian myself and having a father who has been one for many years, I was not surprised by their warm welcome. However, our students were deeply touched.
Our student coordinator chose a diverse group of students from: Germany, Morocco, Ghana, The US, Mexico and Canada to come to this activity and by that had allowed our hosts to get a real glimpse as to the global spirit of our Scholar Ship. On our hosts’ side, we learned how diverse the population of the Seychelles is, with our hosts coming from Chinese, African, Indian and Zimbabwe roots.
Driving along the winding road by the ocean, we ooh’ed and ah’ed as the turquoise beaches unveiled themselves on one side of it while the green mountains rose on the other side. As it was Sunday morning, we passed small townships and many people strolling in the narrow streets. Some of them where barbequing on the beach with local island music playing in the background in the Seychelles 3 languages: English, French and Creole (our hosts were chatting away to us in English while switching to the other two when speaking among themselves).
When we got to our destination at “Chez Batista’s”, we discovered a beautiful little compound on a secluded beach of an outside bar/restaurant with several bungalows. We all ran to the inviting water as our hosts watched with amusement our sheer delight in washing off the previous weeks’ experiences. The students were laughing and frolicking in the water while I swam and swam as far as I could until I could just float and look at the sky saying silently to myself, “I am so lucky…”
At lunch time, we were treated to a sumptuous buffet of local Island fair from sword fish, to octopus curry, red snapper grill, shredded mango salad, pumpkin salad, bread fruit in caramel sauce, and many many others. We shamelessly went back for more and sat down looking at the water and enjoying a lively chat with our hosts. We learned the story of the place as it was described by the brochure we got (note the English being used):
“In 1984 Mr. Batista Horter started work as a beach boy on AnseTakamaka. Eventuel he only fished for his own, before more and more guests on the beach were frequenting his “private BBQ Grill.” In no time at all the guests were sitting under a sunshade enjoying his fish and coconut drinks. Salat and garlic bred were added to the menue and out of this humble grill a small restaurant was born. Italian guests named the restaurant “Batista” and peu a peu, Batista was a “secret Tip” on Mahe island. Today Batista is considered the number one seafood restaurant on Mahe. Chez Batista’s beach, one of the best on the island, is renowned for great swimming and snorkeling. On some days, the coral banks and colorful fishes are host to distinguished “special guests”, such as Sea Turtles and Dolphins.”
After our lunch, the hosts took out several masks, snorkels and fins and took us on an underwater tour of the coral reef just further a bit from where we ate, by a collection of volcanic rocks dominating one side of the beach. Mid way, when I asked one of the hosts how much time do we have left, the answer was: “As long as you need… we have all the time in the world for you…” Did I mention this was paradise???
Eventually we got back in the cars and were driven to another beach where two of our hors wanted to show us the latest posh resort they helped build on the Island, the Maya Resort. Since the entry to it is fully restricted due to its exclusive status, we came from the beach side (there are no private beaches on the Island) to gawk at the beautiful villas built with volcanic black stone and grass roofs, all with private pools, outside dining patios and beautiful waterfalls amongst them. “This is the life of the rich and famous,” was the sentence I kept hearing in my head as we sneaked a peak. Did I mention that the Seychelles is a place so expensive that a can of coke in a discount store costs $1.5?...
We were whisked away through the inland road to the famous Mission Ruins on top of Morne Seychelles. As we drove through the national park, the hot temperatures of the beach were replaced with cooler ones and a nice mountain breeze. We were watching in wonder as the road climbing to the peak passed by tall trees surrounded by thick vegetation. The Seychelles have a population of only 80,000 with 60,000 residing on the main island. There are almost 100 islands in the archipelago, which makes the Seychelles a global natural treasure.
Standing in the Mission’s monument area (the mission was a school built by missionaries to educate the sons of freed slaves. The Seychelles was at one time a major hub for African slave trading) looking at the beauty everywhere, our hosts sheepishly admitted that they feel very fortunate to live amongst all this serene beauty. By the way, it is very difficult to become a resident of the islands. Many laborers from India, The Philippines and Madagascar work on the islands in the hospitality, construction and tuna canning industries. None of them can remain on the Island. They earn about $250 a month and live in special quarters supplied by their employers. A foreigner cannot buy property on the island either, even though we were told that there have been some major real estate deals by Russians and Arabs from the Emirates in Mahe.
We invited our hosts to come on board the ship on the following evening so we can thank them for all their wonderful hospitality. We were happy when they took us upon our invitation and came to have dinner with us and take a tour of the vessel. It was our turn this time to be proud in our environment and chuckle at the comments: “How do we come and live with you guys?”…

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