Christmas in Mauritius

For Mauritians, "Father Christmas" comes on a boat. "Why does he come on a boat?" you ask. Well, silly, because it would be awfully hard for him to get around in a sleigh. And in Mauritius you do not put your stockings on the mantel, but your flip flops under the tree.
There are, however, some traditions which are similar. There were family dinners and gift exchanges. Everyone kept asking what my family does for Christmas and I didn't think "Go to Hunan Gourmet and see all the other Jew's who didn't feel like cooking so were left to eat Chinese food at the only restaurant open in Northampton" was the answer they were looking for. So I said that Americans also get together with their families and open presents and eat - I hope I represented you all well.
Merry Christmas!

Americanish Thanksgiving

I got it in my head that I wanted to attempt to pull off a real American Thanksgiving. The first step was to find an accomplice in this endeavor and since there was no real competition for this role, I immediately called my only American friend Miles. He agreed. Miles is incidentally one of my only friends with an oven so this worked out well in multiple ways. (By the way, you really don't think about how much American food is made in an oven until there isn't one available!) So, armed with recipes I had copied from the Internet and seriously limited culinary skills, we went to the supermarket to see what we could find for our feast. Here were some questionable substitutions we made:

green apples instead of celery

butternut squash instead of sweet potatoes

bags of white, green and pink marshmallows (the pink ones are strawberry flavored, the green ones I'm still not sure about)

onions to fry instead of French's Fried Onions (like anything could replace their canned goodness)

Our biggest problem turned out to be a lack of casserole dishes. Having no real use for ovens here, there is not much use for baking dishes. In the end we had to use what we had, which included a large glass salad bowl for the stuffing which did not break (as the phone call with a horrible connection from my mother in the middle of our adventure suggested it might) but did not cook very evenly either. At the end of the night, we served our friends the following:

• Chicken made by Miles' wonderful cook of a roommate. She also made peas and potatoes.
• Stuffing which really did taste like stuffing, even with the apples and the 15 minutes it spent in the microwave trying to cook the middle
• Green beans not casserole. Due to the lack of French's Fried Onions and the fact that we gave up on frying our own, we made a mixture of green beans, sauteed onions and cream of mushroom soup (Knorr's not Cambell's), sprinkled with almonds and baked. It was not horrible.
• Butternut Squash with maple syrup and melted marshmallows. Having not enough room in the oven, we decided to make this one on the stove.

All in all, it was a wonderful evening. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Cyclone Season

Cyclone Season is upon us here in Mauritius. Above is a picture of tropical cyclone Anja. Anja was a medium-sized cyclone with tropical storm-force winds extending out to 100 miles from its center, and cyclone-force winds out to 45 miles from its center. Anja generated waves as high as 24 feet but did not threaten any land masses. Thus, my first cyclone was just a lot of rain. I'm a little nervous and a little excited for the next one...

Meet Pépé - my new car

Well here he is, my new car. And by car I of course mean glorified ride-on lawn mower. He is a 1997 Suzuki Maruti with an 800cc engine.
Pépé has taught me what a choke is and that not all cars have a 5th gear. We spend a considerable amount of our time together lost, but I love him anyway.







The boys were kind enough to pose in order to give the picture some scale. Yes, it's really that small.

Rotaract Fun Day at Serge Cotet

I have been working closely with the Rotaract Club of Quatre Bornes. Recently, the club had a Fun Day at Serge Cotet Government School. The day was about teaching the children the importance of good nutrition while having a day of fun. The kids participated in games, quizzes and races.
Serge Cotet is a ZEP school, meaning it is part of the "Zones d'Education Prioritares" program. A school is listed as a ZEP when the pass rate for the Certificate of Primary Education (CPE) is lower than 40%.


The project covers 30 out of 290 schools in Mauritius and aims at contributing to poverty alleviation through reducing failure at the primary level in relatively deprived regions of the country. Part of the initiative, in addition to aspects such as school feeding programs, is to enhance community participation in the education sector. Thus, this day was only part of a larger project Rotaract is doing with the Serge Cotet School.


Jane, shown here, is all out Rotaract in her shirt and cap. Clearly, a proud vp.






I was part of the face painting team which proved to be a very popular activity. As we had only planned to allow the 1st and 2nd year students to participate, the school seemed suddenly to have an increase in the number of very large 2nd year students. Although fun, please don't ask me to paint your face as Spiderman in the near future. I'm gonna need some recovery time.







All in all, it was a wonderful day. Both the students and the Rotaractors had a great time. At the end of the afternoon, the Rotaractors put on a skit about two kids learning the importance of eating well. The kids were very amused!










So, the kids learned about nutrition and the Rotaractors learned how much energy primary school kids can have. But we call went home happy.

Grandma & Papa

As many of you know, my grandmother Shirley passed away on the 7th of October, and my papa Paul, who could not live without her, passed away ten days later. I thought I would share with you what I read at my grandmother's funeral and what my sister Jo so eloquently read at my grandfather's. The other day marked what would have been their 65th wedding anniversary. They were wonderful, loving people and incredible influences and I miss them horribly.

Grandma (read October 9, 2009):
My grandma was kind; she was caring, she was smart and she was funny. I feel so lucky to have lived a life with her in it.

The day she met my papa she came home and told her mother “ I just met the man I’m going to marry”. And every time she told me this story her eyes would sparkle like they must have 67 years ago.

She was more than a grandma, she was a caregiver and a friend. She would not only listen, she would remember. And she was truly someone to lean on.
I was sitting with her in the den one day when a familiar sound came from the bedroom.
“Toots” my papa called and when she didn’t answer he called again louder. These common shouts for “Paul” and “Toots” became sounds of comfort to all of us over the years, even if they were shouted while the car was drifting into the next lane and we’d already missed the turn. On this day, however, there was no response and after papa called for the third time, Grandma turned to me and, suppressing a giggle, she said,
“You know, I can hear him, I just don’t feel like answering sometimes.” And we laughed.

We all had our activities that we like to do with grandma when visiting. She would play cards with Danny, go shopping with Jo, and take me bargain hunting at Goodwill.

Even though she’s no longer physically present, she is a part of my everyday life. From the diamond I wear around my neck that she helped papa design to the brisket recipe I will teach to my children, her love will always be present. The hole that her passing has left in our lives can never be filled because her presence in our lives was so great. Besides afgans and birthday card, besides hand holds and hugs, she gave us the gift of her love, and it’s a gift which will live within us, forever.


Papa (read October 20, 2009):
Papa Paul taught us how to pack a suitcase,
How to ready a box for shipping. (It should take more than one sharp object to open at its destination) Anticipation (mixed with a little frustration) makes the contents that much more exciting.
He could have written the Duck Tape Book.
He taught us how to eat corn on the cob
And that no meal was complete without dessert.
He taught us how to bowl- two graceful steps and let it go. (His favorite activity with Danny)
He turned the other cheek when we cheated at mini golf. And felt that a “do-over” was common golfing etiquette,
And always thought of an excuse to stop for ice cream.
He would magically appear with a Cinnabon at the end of an excursion to the mall.
He loved a bargain. And shower shoes. And sneakers. And sweaters. And more sweaters. And plastic bags. And sweaters in plastic bags. Actually, anything Papa Paul valued found its way into a labeled Ziploc.
And you had to be careful, because if you complimented him on an article of clothing, you might find it in your suitcase when you got home.
He held our hands with the strongest grip. And if you walked behind him, you waited for the inevitable invitation to hold his hand as he reached out behind him.
And had more extra batteries/ rubber bands/ stolen Equal packets than anyone we knew. They weren’t really stolen, they were on the table.
He was the disciplinarian. When Leah and I fought, we were terrified of him storming into the bedroom, demanding to know why we weren’t asleep.
Papa Paul, we weren’t asleep because we were deprived of sugar in Western Massachusetts and your pantry was a virtual Willy Wonka Land. And the reason that we woke you up is because all of the candy was tripled wrapped in labeled Ziploc bags. It was loud, but easy to locate.
He valued hard work- and was one of the few people that was interested in hearing our stories of waitressing and bartending. And he was a damn good tipper. We would have been happy to have had him as a customer any day.
As I got older, I began to see how cool my Papa was. We took a trip to the Casino and he gave me and Grandma each a $50 bill to gamble away.
He always invited me to join him in his evening martini and was the only family member not to object when I made a second round.
I got to gamble and drink with my Papa, and later in life, when he began to enjoy shopping, he was truly my perfect date.
When Leah went on her adventures to Africa, he would print her emails and on-line photo albums. He would do his own research in order to experience these places along with her. And when she wasn’t sure she could leave this year for Mauritius, he was the one that told her she had to go. And then he found a map with Mauritius on it and posted it on the fridge.
He always combed his hair and wore matching belts. He owns most of the belts in Palm Beach County. Papa matched.
He combed his hair before he visited Grandma in her hospital room. And shaved. He wanted to look nice for his Toots.
And he was a bashful romantic. He would design jewelry for Grandma. And every night, before they went to bed, he told her he loved her.
Somehow it doesn’t feel real, he doesn’t feel gone. His influence in all of our lives runs deeper than these memories which, even in these miserable moments, still make us smile.
We are stronger because of him. We have always wanted to make him proud and we will continue to live our lives and make decisions believing we need his approval.

Exploring the South

My friend Jimmy played tour guide for me and Ervin for a full day of exploration in the south.


Walking from Souillac to Gris Gris provides views of the more rugged Mauritian coastline. The black rocky cliffs are due to a break in the coral reef that surrounds most of the rest of the island.


The far rock in the picture to the left is knows as La Roche qui Pleure (the Crying Rock). It is said to resemble the profile of a man and when the waves crash over, he looks as if he's crying. I didn't see it but Jimmy said the weather was too calm.





The term gris gris traditionally refers to 'black magic' and looking at the tortuous coastline, you can see how the area got its name. There are signs at the "beaches" warning against bathing, but every once a while we would see a lone fisherman out on the rocks.

Next we visited Rochester falls. The path winds through sugar cane fields, and with the sun beating down, entering the serenity of the falls felt like a beautiful escape. I, of course, went swimming. The river water and shaded trees reminded me a lot of summer days in western Massachusetts. It also reminded me a bit of those swimming pools in skymall that have a continuous push of water coming at you so that you can do laps without actually moving. I enjoyed attempting to get to the rocks in the middle but to no avail.

Next up was Ilo Sancho. The island we are standing on here is made entirely from dead coral. We waded across from the main island to stand on the spiky earth and survey the coastline we had just covered.

As I sat looking out at the ocean from the south of the island I could feel it's enormity. Travelling due south behind this wave, there is nothing until Antarctica.

Mahebourg

Mahebourg is beautiful. While it is the main town in the southeast of the island, it is mainly a small community of fisherman with a population of about 20,000. It was in Mahebourg that the first colonisers set foot on the island (although they later decided that Port Louis would make a more convenient capital). There is a great market near the bus station on Mondays, but my favorite part of Mahebourg is sitting by the waterfront. The blues and aquas show the various coral and sandy bottoms of the ocean. The view of the small island shown in the top photo is the cover of the Lonely Planet for Mauritius, Reunion & Seychelles and I would have to agree with the cover designer that it is one of the most beautiful sights ever.

Bicycling to Blue Bay

Blue Bay is a beautiful lagoon in the Southeast of the island. My friend Julia and I started in Mahebourg where we rented bicycles from a small shop (at least they fit the general definition of bicycles) and biked the coast to Blue Bay. The bikes were rusted and had some gear issues but the views were spectacular. Small, colorful boats line the edge of the water.
Blue Bay is a small beach, but on a weekday at the end of winter is was relatively quite.




The lagoon makes for wonderful snorkeling, even within the ropes of the swimming area.

Scuba Diving

A Note on lack of pictures/posts: From what I've heard from most of you, it's the pictures that keep you interested in this blog. Don't feel bad, they're what keep me interested too. Unfortunately, about two weeks ago my camera was stolen and I haven't quite gotten around to getting a new one. And without pictures I've been reluctant to write new posts. But I'm working on getting a camera and will be up to speed before you know it. Until then, I'll have to rely on friends and tourist websites.



So, Scuba. Yesterday I went scuba diving in the way north of the island off of Cap Malheureax, near the small island shown in the picture above, Coin De Mire. On the way to the first dive site we saw humpback whales from the boat. We didn't see them from under the water but oh my goodness could we hear them! I felt like I was in a National Geographic documentary. They're long, low cries sound highly emotional and are followed by responsive whistling. Their communication made for incredible background music as we explored a shipwreck surrounded by thousands (maybe millions) of tropical fish. We saw a yellow spotted eel that was not much smaller than me and huge rays which my friend Kenny insisted were still babies, but were way bigger than any I've ever seen. We also did a drift dive, letting the current take us through coral arches and over bustling marine life. So far, all three dives I've done in Mauritius have been wonderful and I cannot wait to do more!

How small is Mauritius?

you mean other than one-tenth the size of New Jersey?

Well, the answer is: small enough for one traffic accident to cause the entire country to shut down for four hours. Tuesday at 7 am on the motorway to the capital city, Port Louis, a truck carrying 30 tons of sugar crashed into a bus. The tragic accident proved fatal for four of the bus passengers. The news of the accident spread fast as the motorways came to a halt. There is only one road leading into the main city and almost everyone in the country works in Port Louis. Therefor, traffic over most of the island was back up for at least 3 hours while the motorway was cleared. Offices were unable to open or were forced to operate without enough staff. University classes were canceled because professors and students could not get to campus. The buses ran off schedule for the rest of the day. In short, one road accident shut down the country.

Moreover, no one thought this was weird.

Ganesha Chaturthi

Ganesha Chaturthi is a Hindu festival celebrating the birthday of the Lord Ganesha (also spelled Ganesh), the elephant-headed son of Shiva and Parvati. Ganesha is widely revered as the Remover of Obstacles. To celebrate Ganesha, communities come together to make offerings of fruit and money to the deity and pray that he will remove obstacles in their lives for the upcoming year. I was able to observe and participate in this celebration. On Sunday night, I went to a friend of a friend's home where about 80 friends and family members had gathered to eat and pray. In the main room was an alter with a large statue of Ganesha. As people arrived, they took off their
shoes, entered the room and waited to give their offerings of fruit and prayers to Ganesha. In return for your offering, you receive some fruit back. The room smelled heavily of incense and sweetness with a touch of coconut. After our prayers were offered, we sat down outside in plastic lawn chairs set up in rows facing a stage where a dozen or so men and women sat singing prayers and playing a harmonium, various bells and drums. The tunes were rhythmic and slightly somber but people swayed and sang along creating a palpable spirit of positive energy. After the singing came dancing. Two men sat facing each other, drums on laps, playing both with each other and against each other to create a sensational beat. The other men and women put down their instruments and began a call-and-response sort of singing as they danced counter-clockwise around them. Not long into the dancing I was called for to come on stage and join the circular dance and song. The rhythm of the drums echoed through the floorboards to my feet making all of our movements as fluid as the songs themselves.
After dancing, we went out to the back yard to sit at a long picnic table under a tent and were served rice and Dal and all sorts of other vegetarian Indian dishes that I need to learn the
names of. Being exhausted from hiking all day, I opted out of coffee, thanked my hosts and headed home.
Monday, the celebration and prayer continues much in the same way for the morning and afternoon. In the late afternoon, the statue of Ganesha is either carried or transported on a vehicle to a body of water. Everyone follows the statue in a colorful procession. Around 5:30 pm the statues are brought into the water, dunked three times and on the third time fully sunk where they are left to melt back into the earth. As the statue sinks last prayers are sung out as this is the moment when Ganesha is listening to all of the prayers so that he can help to remove obstacles in this coming year. I watched from a beach in Flic en Flac where multiple processions had met up to make a great big crowd. The statues were lined on wooden tables and were brought one by one into the ocean. By 6:30 all of the statues had been put in the sea and the festival was officially over. The beach, which only an hour before had been filled with colorful saris, magenta paint, flowers, candles, fruit and beautifully decorated statues, was dark and quite but the feeling of prayer and celebration remained and a cheshire cat moon smiled down.

la randonnée

Hiking Piton de la Petite Riviere Noire (Little Black River Mountain) - 828 meters, the highest point in Mauritius

Through friends of friends I found a group of Mauritians who organize hikes around the island a few times a month. The word "organize" should be used loosely here because I'm not sure putting 60 people on a bus, bringing them to a remote area, taking them on a 14 km hike and then leaving with whoever ends up back on the bus is the most organized outing. And, while playing with the English language, I think I must also attempt to redefine the word "hike" in a way which more appropriately describes my experience. Apparently what I know as hiking, is, in Mauritius, more like a walk or even a stroll through the outdoors. The hike began on a large, well cleared path, but after hopping over a small river, we took a detour directly into the forest. The hike took us scrambling up some small rock faces and through dense branches. It felt a
bit as if the forest was a kindergarten bully, attempting to trip and scratch me while pulling my hair (and probably laughing at me behind my back). After a few hours of battling the forest, we stopped in a clearing overlooking the valley of hills for lunch. We had some food, chatted, got rained on a bit and continued back into the forest which had gained a new and exciting element - mud! The same branches that were still threatening to permanently change my ability to see became handles on either side of a path of thick, oozing mud. The whole thing was pretty hilarious. The very last push to the top was the densest part of the forest. But just when I was having a hard time believing anyone had actually been down this "path" before, we reached a small summit and a torn white flag on a stick announcing we had made it to the top of the island. And the view was amazing. I'm not sure these pictures do it justice, but I hope they'll give you an idea.






This was were the path became quite steep. We assumed we were at the top which is funny looking back on it.







The view from the top.



























There are a few different groups of people that do this sort of hiking around the island, so expect more stories like this!

I live in Paradise

As my classes seem to eternally be starting "next week," I've been spending my weekends at the beach home of my host Rotarian, Jean Yves and his family. Last weekend the weather was perfect. Saturday friends and family went to a beach on a small island off the coast called Ile aux Cerf. The island is a public beach that can only be visited by boat. The green mountains of Mauritius made the perfect backdrop to the soft white sand and the aqua water (which was not, as some of them believed, cold). The channel of water shown here was about waist deep, making it the perfect stroll through paradise.
Sunday we took the De Fleuriot's boat out and ended up in a small bay where we all took turns water skiing and wake boarding. I attempted to water ski for the first time since the age of 10 and, although I was incredibly sore the next day, I managed not to embarrass myself too much.

Here is the beach on the bay we were skiing. The helipad is for wealthy people coming to the hotel located to the right of the trees.


Jean Yves and Alexandre getting the boat ready.

While this is not the best picture of the series, it's better than most of the rest in which I look somewhere between seriously concerned and slightly terrified.

Mauritius - history and economy

Mauritius has a complicated history of colonization. Before 1500, the island was known to Arab traders but in 1505, it was the Portuguese who landed their ships to find a completely uninhabited land. The Portuguese, however, did not set up a colony and it is unknown how often they may have visited the island. The Dutch were the next to come, landing in 1598 but it was not until 1638 that a settlement was established. Leaving in 1710, the French took possession of the island in 1715. The French governed until 1810 when the island as captured by the British. The British ruled Mauritius until 1968 when on the 12 March it became an independent nation.

The Dutch period: The Dutch were mainly interested in the timber found on the island, especially the black ebony. They were also responsible for the introduction of sugarcane, deer and other animals. Slaves were brought from Madagascar to work in the sugarcane fields.

FUN FACT: Mauritius is the only known place of the now extinct Dodo bird. The bird, who lived happily on the island before humans arrived, did not know to be fearful of the new inhabitants. Thus they did not flee the clubs of the Dutch. Deemed the Dodo bird and the easiest prey known to man, the birds were quickly clubbed to extinction by 1688.

Legend has it that the Dutch were driven off the island in 1710 by the rats they had themselves accidentally introduced.

The French period: So as to avoid any misunderstanding, the French renamed the island Isle de France in 1715 but it was not until seven years later that the French East India Company actually occupied the island. A motley crew of company officials, settlers and slaves from Madagascar, Mozambique and west Africa, along with Swiss mercenaries and pirates landed in 1721. Women were rounded up on the waterfronts of St Malo and Bordeaux and shipped over to help expand the population. Betrand-Francois Mahe de Labouronnais was appointed governor in 1735 and quickly developed Port Louis into the most important port in the Mascarenes. The cultivation of sugarcane and other crops was encouraged. In 1767, Pierre Poivre became administrator and introduced pepper, nutmeg, cloves and other spices to the island helping to further develop the colony as an agricultural and trading center.

In 1810, the British attacked Isle de France by landing 11,500 troops the the North of the island. Their intention was to neutralise the island so that it would no longer be used as a base for French attacks on British vessels bound for India. Meeting little resistance, the British troops march on the capital and the French surrendered. The British renamed the island Mauritius.

The British period: The first British Governor, Sir Robert Farquhar, encouraged the cultivation of sugarcane because it was the only money-making crop able to withstand cyclones. The attempts by the British government to abolish slavery in Mauritius were met with resistance from the planters who relied on slave labor to produce the sugar, but slavery was eventually abolished in 1835.

Indian migrants had been in Mauritius since 1736 but in 1835, the planters began to heavily recruit Indian workers to replace the labor lost to them by emancipation. With a significant population, Indian workers began to petition the British Government to improve labor conditions. Political reforms were passes in 1886 but the Indian population remained excluded. In 1901, Mahatma Gandhi had a brief stay in Mauritius which resulted in an Indian lawyer, Manillal Doctor, being sent to Port Louis to help organize the Indian laborers.

Party politics followed the constitutional reforms of 1886. World War I brought suffering to the island with drastic cuts in shipping causing food shortages and price increases, but World War II brought infrastructural development. In 1968, Mauritius became an independent country led by Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam.

CLIMATE: Lying within the tropics in the Indian ocean, Mauritius has a tropical maritime climate.

AGRICULTURE: Sugar cultivation remains the main component of the agricultural sector but faced with competition from other countries, reforms have caused a decrease in land used for sugarcane and fewer workers employed in the industry.

FISHING: Apart from the main islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues, there are a number of coral islands and fishing banks where fishing activities take place.

INDUSTRY: The manufacturing industries are mostly tactile and clothing. The manufacturing industries are important for the diversification of the economy away from sugar. Because of competition abroad, Mauritian manufacturing industries are attempting to cater toward the production of higher quality products.

TOURISM: The importance of tourism to the economy cannot be overstated. Some coastal villages are becoming tourist resorts; the beaches being lined with one high-end resort hotel after another.

TRADE: Mauritius' main trading partners include France, Britain, India, Australia, South Africa, Germany and China. The main imports are manufactured goods, machinery, transport equipment, dairy products, wheat, rice, textile fibers, mineral fuel and food items. The main exports are sugar, apparel and clothing, optical goods, watches and clocks, toys, sporting goods, jewellery, pearls and precious stones.

Arrival

I have arrived safe and sound in Mauritius after almost 2 days of travel (From New York, through Dubai, to Mauritius)

I am living in an apartment in Quatre Bornes which is located in central Mauritius. My apartment is a few streets up from the main road which is lined with small shops and restaurants. There is a wonderful market in the center of the city which changes from a fruit and vegetable market to a clothing and goods market depending on the day.

The bus station is conveniently located and the various bus routes can take you almost anywhere on the island.

The University of Mauritius is located in Reduit (near Moka on the map). Upon arrival, I discovered that the program I had been accepted into, MSc Applied Economics, is not going to run due to lack of enrollment. I've chosen instead to do an MSc Social Development which will also focus on development but with less of an economics approach. After getting my new coursework approved, I had to register, which turned out to be a bit of a hassle. But, after many hours at the bank and the university and a little help from my parents (thank you!), I was able to pay my tuition and complete the registration process. My classes being next week, although I'm still not sure of the professors or the locations - oh well!

By far the best part of my first week here has been my host Rotarian, Jean Yves de Fleuriot and his family - wife, Martine and two sons, Alexandre and Guillaume. They have all been incredibly welcoming and hospitable from the moment I arrived. I spent the weekend with them at their beach house in Post Lafayette, in the north-east of the island. I cannot thank them enough for their generosity.

Also incredibly welcoming, is m host Rotary club, the Rotary club of Curepipe (see map above). Although a bit exhausted and completely jet-lagged, I attended their meeting the night of my arrival. They have many ideas about community service projects we can work on together as well as tons of suggestions for people I should meet and places I should go. I know they will all be endlessly helpful to me while I am here.