• 

• 

• 

“Mauritius was made first, and then heaven; and that heaven was copied after Mauritius.” – Mark Twain

Having moved to Brisbane over 5 years ago now, I haven’t had a chance to go back since then. It is ridiculously expensive to get to considering it isn’t *that* far – from AUD$2,200. I definitely feel an increased level of appreciation for my island home. So here’s below a bit of an appreciation post – a run down of the what *is* Mauritius, who we are and what to explore.

Whenever I meet new people, I often get asked; “what are you”? **inserts very confused facial expressions**. To be completely honest, this question has never offended me; in fact it’s always made me grin. Truth be told, I do look Asian so it is *very* easy for people to mistakenly assume that I am Malaysian instead of Mauritian (especially because both sound quite similar). To be fair, you won’t often hear someone say they are from Mauritius either; there aren’t that many of us to start with – 1.25 million inhabitants.

So, what does a Mauritian look like? We are the rainbow 🙂 Mauritius is a multi cultural, multi racial island! While the great majority of the population is made up of Hindus, about a quarter of us are Creoles of African descent. Interestingly, there is also a small number of Sino-Mauritians **this is what I am** of Chinese descents as well as Franco – Mauritians. You might recognise the last ethnic group as having a very close spelling resemblance to France/French – you’re not incorrect! In fact, Mauritius was colonised by the French (and the British) – which brings me to the next topic;

How do you say that in Mauritian?

Mauritians speak a myriad of languages – English, French, Mauritian Creole, a range of Indian languages like Bhojpuri, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil as well as some Chinese dialects. Most citizens are considered bilingual while a significant number also speak more than two languages. For instance, I am fluent in English, French and Mauritian Creole (I also took Spanish Classes in high school, which wasn’t too hard and Mandarin at Uni, which unfortunately I was rather terrible at)

• 

• 

More than just beaches

I think it’s of upmost importance to point out that Mauritius is so much more than miles of white sandy beaches. While it is one of our most widely known attractions, Mauritius is the good (great) different in other ways.

• Striking natural beauty

Get mesmerised by the endless fields of swaying sugar canes, refreshing gorges and thundering waterfalls that you’ll encounter on long hikes, lush rainforest and deep valleys where macaques dangle and tropical flowers flourish. Let’s also not forget Chamarel – la terre sept couleurs (seven coloured earth geopark) & its waterfalls. The rest of our natural landscape doesn’t fall behind the stretches of wide sand along the coast.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• Made in Maurice – Local booze, teas and traditional biscuit

We produce our own – Phoenix beer & Chamarel Rum (yes there’s even crafty alcohol here!). The production of local tea and biscuit come with a rich heritage – Both have been family run for many decades. The factories have kept a very high focus on manual labour and all products are traditionally ‘home-made’. NOTHING compares to the scent of freshly baked manioc biscuit! All manioc biscuits are preservative, additives and colouring free – they are made from manioc, sugar, milk powder; that’s it! If you get a chance to visit Mauritius, Bois Cheri tea estate and Biscuiterie Rault (Manioc biscuit factory) should definitely be on the top of your bucket list.

• 

• 

• 

What do we do for a living?

Mauritius is doing pretty well for a tiny island with a developing economy! Our unemployment rate is below 7.5 with forecasts projecting decreasing rates over the next 10 years. Mauritius is actually the most competitive economy in the African region 💪

The tourism industry is definitely one of the main pillars of our economy. I personally believe that it is in our culture to be warm. Mauritians are by nature very welcoming and have perfected the art and essence of being hospitable. From the moment you set foot on this paradise island, you will feel like royalty.

• 

• 

• 

• 

We’re major Foodies – Fusion food

Craving hot garlic naan? – we got it; drooling at the idea of some fragrant sweet sour pork over jasmine rice – got that too; wood fired margherita pizza – check ✔️; rich saucy meaty shawarma – check and check ✔️✔️

We’re very lucky to have such a wide variety of cuisines in Mauritius. While we have foods from literally all continents, there’s a few dishes you cannot miss;

** We like it Spicy! So here’s a useful expression to get you by

Creole: Eski ou kapav pa fer manze-la tro for, siouple ?
English: Can you please not make it too spicy?

• 

• 

• 

• Mine Frite (aka fried noods)

This has got to be every Mauritian’s favourite asian twist dish. You can get it on the streets, you can get it at your small local joint, you can get it at your upmarket restaurant. It is everywhere and everyone wants it! Essentially its fried noodles with a bunch of vegetables and meat.

* Fun Fact #1: for the Sino Mauritians, it is a birthday essential ( at least it has always been part a part of my family parties 🎉 ). My grandma still homemakes her mine frite for every special occasion ❤

** Fun Fact #2: mine is also slang for girlfriend ❤

• Gateau de l’huile such as di pain frire, gateau bringelle and gateau piment (fried bread, eggplant ‘cake’, chilli ‘cake’).

I cannot stress how good those are!! Deliciously hot and available at the local bazaar (fresh produce market) and on the streets for cheeaaap! This is our comfort food

* Fun Fact: My grandpa would religiously get some (plenty) of those every Saturday morning. I am pretty sure this is still a thing!

• Dholl puri ek so achard (Mauritian ‘flatbreads’ made of yellow split peas with pickled vegetables)

Probably one of the dishes I miss the most from my home island! Again super affordable and available almost every 2nd street around the capital.

*Fun Fact: Definitely recommend Joy’s stall at the local bazaar in Port Louis (don’t you guys think his name is super fitting?!) My parents are loyal customers there. The stall vendor’s wife freshly prepares all the condiments and the curries daily – with deliveries multiple times a day due to popularity!

• 

• 

While Mark Twain’s famous quote ideally describes my island home; this isn’t quite what the famous writer said. In fact, Mark Twain actually wrote “From one citizen you gather idea that Mauritius was made first, and then heaven; and that heaven was copied after Mauritius”. How big of a difference can a few words make?! Regardless, my ‘unbiased’ opinion tells me Mauritius is quite a heavenly place.