Mauritius Map

 

 

 

       Map of the Indian Ocean

latest picture: July 2, 2011

• click a picture to see details

301  The reef with the deep sea on one and

the shallow lagoon on the other side encircles

the whole 42 square miles small island of

Rodrigues. It belongs politically to Mauritius,

has a certain autonomy and lies 360 miles

East of the main island

302  On June 25th, 2011, we land

with a propeller aircraft of Air Mauritius

at the Sir Gaetan Duval airport in the

West of the island, because the

freighter with our LandCruiser is

arriving one week late in Mauritius

303  View over Port Mathurin, the

main city. There are two small

supermarkets, four restaurants

and one gasoline station,

the only one on the island

304  The village church of Grand Baie,

3 miles East of Port Mathurin with

its rural charm

305  The colorful Bougainvilleas

are always an eye-catching sight

306  A special show:

Sunset at Grand Baie

307  The evening mood at Grand Baie, where

we rented a small studio, is always peaceful

308  Who is catching the first fish?

309  It needs a lot of patient

to get a bite to eat!

310  The tiny “mom-and-pop” store at Grand

Baie reflects the unhurried island life …..

311  ..... it is the gathering place for a

cold beer and a chat with friends …..

312  ..... the idyllic corner table is still

empty. What a wonderfully relaxing spot!

313  What is happening out there?

314  Grazing sheep add to the

picture of this “stress free island“,

how Rodrigues likes to call itself

315  Three turkey males

compete to win the females favor

Here, children do not need sophisticated toys

316  A small boy is happy to play in

the sand with a flip-flop and a stick

317  A girl goes for a bike ride

318  Three girls are exercising

handstands at the beach

319  Rodrigues does not look tropically.

The hilly island rather looks Nordic.

Here at Grand Baie in the North

320  Limes grow in abundance

– carpets of fruits are rotting

on the ground

321  A rather unusual mixture: Palm

tree and cabbage grow side by side

322  A nostalgic painted public bus

depicting the scene of the arrival of

the ancestors, who came

from Mozambique …..

323  ..... Emil is waiting patiently

among other people at the bus

terminal at Port Mathurin.

There is no set schedule …..

324  ….. a cute little girl sits next

to him. School children take the local

bus. There are no school buses

325  Peaceful coastal road from

Grand Baie to Port Mathurin,

ideal for a walk …..

326  ..... traffic is very scarce

327  The well kept Christian cemetery

of Anse aux Anglais East of Port Mathurin

lies directly at the coastal road

328  The nostalgic Corner Store at

Port Mathurin recalls memories

of Georgetown in Guyana

329  A hairdresser salon in

Port Mathurin brings the “good

old times” back into mind

330  Emil allows himself a little break

from the Port Mathurin walking tour

331  Who does not feel tempted to

this fanciful ad of a tropical restaurant?

332  The choice of fresh fruits and vegetables

is big at the market of Port Mathurin

333  A legendary duo is selling apples and

oranges at the market place of Port Mathurin

334  View over Baie Malgache

in the West of Port Mathurin

335  A fishing boat hoists the sail at

Baie du Nord, the departure point to

the Cocos Island. The landscape towards

the West looks rather brownish and arid

336  The "frazzled" Baie du Nord is

dotted with young mangroves. The

coastal road to the East ends here;

we drive inland with our rented car

337  We enjoy the sight of these

white mushrooms sprouting out

of the green grass

338  Vacoas plants, also called Screw

Pines (Pandanus vandermeerschii),

endemic to Mauritius, belong to the

Pandanus family. Baskets, bags and

hats are woven from their fibers

339  The trees of the red-green

pomegranate (Punica granatum)

adorn the landscape.

The fruit is edible

340  Mangroves along

the Baie du Nord

341  View from Montagne Tonnerre

towards the Southwest. In the fore-

ground left the village La Ferme and

in the back right the Cocos Island

(Île aux Cocos)

342  View from Citron Donis to

the village of Rivière Cocos

on the South coast

343  The St. Gabriel church stands in

the middle of the island. As the biggest

church in the Indian Ocean it holds

2’000 visitors. Still, during the visit of

Pope John-Paul II to Rodrigues in 1989,

the mass had to be celebrated on

the soccer field of La Ferme

344  Two long stems of the Agave

flower bend towards the turquoise

Southern shore. Islands: Left in front

Île Hermitage, therefrom right

Île aux Chats, behind it Île Plate

and far right Île Gombrani

345  The lonely modest house

on grass covered hills above the

South coast adds to the Nordic

character of this island

The rural scene is evident

346  Squids are put on a line

to dry in the air …..

347  ..... “draperies“ of Chinese pork

sausages dangle on the roof of a house.

They contain honey and sugar giving

them a sweet taste. One pound costs

Rup. 94 = US$ 3.04 .....

348  ….. yellow maize

cobs hang in lofty heights

349  Pandanus trees are common. A

solitary group lines the Eastern shore

350  Most of the beaches are dotted

with Casuarinas providing wonderful

shade against the sun. Here at the

East coast at Anse Ally

351  The best sandy beaches on

Rodrigues Island are found on the

East coast: Here from

Anse Ally to Saint François

352  At Saint François in the East:

A cliff coast interrupts the sandy beach

to give later way to more sandy bays

353  The public beach at

Saint François in the East

354  Stepping into the Cotton Beach

Resort in the Northeast is a “light bulb

moment”. Who can afford US$ 170

per person/night. We cannot!

François Leguat Giant Tortoise and Cave Reserve in the Southwest

355  Bizarre stalactites and stalagmites

adorn the “Grand Caverne’ at the

François Leguat Reserve in the South

West. With its length of over 1’600ft.,

it is the biggest of the eleven caves

of the reserve

356  The Rodriguan fruit bat

(Pteropus rodericensis) is endemic

to the island. In the enclosure of the

François Leguat Reserve we see a

few of these golden-brown mammals

357  Giant turtles graze in the Tiyel

Canyon of the Reserve. In the hundred

of thousands back in 1691, they became

extinct in Rodrigues due to human

exploitation. With the breeding program,

over 1’100 Aldabra- und Radiata-

tortoises are now living in the reserve

François Leguat Giant Tortoise and Cave Reserve in the Southwest

358  Yes, we can get attached also

to turtles, especially when they

crawl towards us so trustingly …..

359  ….. this giant Aldabra turtle

obviously likes to be scratched at

the neck by Liliana …..

360  ..... who says that this

turtle does not look cute?

361  The tiny offshore rock on the

South shore is the „Île Hermitage“

– the “Eremite Island”

362  We like this monument in

Port Sud Est at the Southern shore,

but do not find out what it stands for

363  Typical for Rodrigues coasts are

the many land tongues with scattered

houses. Here in the South the arm

of sea Anse Grande Var

364  Casuarinas and tiny sandy

bays line the coast at Anse Mourouk

in the South

365  The police patrols also in the

remotest corners of the island like

here on the South coast

366  Phenomenal are the dozens of

spiders hanging everywhere in huge nets

woven between poles. It is a silk spider,

the “red-legged golden orb-web spider”

(Nephila inaurata)

367  On this tiny island, we automatically

see the same people all the time! Emil

and Rene, a German living already

eight months in Rodrigues

368  Lovely handicrafts are sold at

the Saturday market in Port Mathurin

369  At the Saturday market in Port

Mathurin a family is sitting in front of

their booth with baskets and hats woven

from dried “Vacoa” (Pandanus) leaves

370

371

372

Faces at the Saturday market at Port Mathurin that add the special colour to the place

373  A girl is selling dried squid at the

Port Mathurin’s Saturday market

374  Two school children are on

their way home in Grand Baie

and smile towards the camera

375  A mama is selling glasses of all

kind of preserved homemade foodstuff

like lemons, chilis, honey and pickles

• Mauritius (part 2: Main Island 1st part)
• Mauritius (part 3: Main Island 2nd part)

 

Articles in newspapers about us in Mauritius:

Article:  "Le tour du monde en LandCruiser", Daily Newspaper "Le Mauricien" - July 9, 2011

Article:  "Globe lovers", Weekly Newspaper "Le Dimanche" - July 10, 2011

Article:  "Emil et Liliana Schmid sur les routes à Maurice", Daily Newspaper "Le Matinal" - July 12, 2011