Monday, February 24, 2025 - Mahe, Seychelles

Day 1

We spent another day in the beautiful paradise known as the Seychelles. Last night our ship made the quick transfer to the nearby island of Mahe, where we will be docked for two days.  Today is the end of one segment and the beginning of a new segment, so approximately 200 people disembarked and 200 new passengers embarked.  These days are always a bit chaotic for both crew and passengers as rooms are quickly readied for new occupants, supplies are loaded, ship is refueled, and preparations are made for crew to welcome newly arriving passengers. For those of us doing the entire world cruise it means saying goodbye to some friends and starting to make new friends. 

When we left Praslin last might I had forgotten about the beauty with which we would be greeted when we arrived in Mahe.  I was just focused on the incredible landscapes we witnessed on Praslin.  I didn't remember what magnificent beauty awaited us on Mahe.  

We were outside on the pier on time but there was some sort of problem/confusion with the buses so we were all standing around, waiting for the signal, giving us the ok to board our tour buses.  Once we found the correct one and everyone was boarded, we were off to enjoy a few enjoyable hours together. 

Mahe is the largest island in this group that we have visited.  It is also the most developed, touristy, and hectic island, although the idea of "busy" here is  quite different than to which we are accustomed.  There are actually cars on the roads instead of golf carts and ox carts.  Still, the unspoiled beauty of this spectacular island is on display in every direction.  Our tour today took us to the south coast of Mahe and included more breathtaking scenery.  The "major" highway around the island is one lane in each direction, and in some places there are very steep drops into the dense forest and/or water (many without guard rails).  Thankfully, our driver seemed to be quite skilled.  Yet, there were moments which were a bit tense as we rounded very sharp curves.  The surrounding landscape was dotted with magnificent homes overlooking the water and boutique style hotels so as not to disturb the stunning landscape.  Along the road we passed locals selling various goods including fruits, juices, and homemade crafts.  We stopped at various location to snap photos of the magnificent coastline.

As we made our way along the narrow highway, the memories of how spectacular the landscapes are on this island came flooding back.  The rise and fall of the road as we wound our way through the forests kept us, as well as our driver, alert.  The twisted, winding road led us to anticipate what we would find as we rounded each curve.  The road around the island is narrow so before each curve our driver honked the horn to alert drivers we were there. Sightseeing on the magnificent Seychelles is such a pleasure.  I feel very blessed to be here enjoying God's beautiful creation.  Now, I'd like to share my thoughts and observations of our tour today.  

We made a quick photo stop to view a truly breathtaking overlook of the island and coastline below.  These islands are so magnificent and give me such a sense of peace just by taking in their natural beauty. Life is so much more relaxed here, even though the pace on Mahe is still faster than on Praslin or La Digue.  

 Our first visit was to a working plantation, the Le Jardin Du Roi.  Once again, we had the opportunity to get an up close look at how some of the famous spices are grown.  Although we were familiar with most of the spices, there was one that was new to us.  It was called the 4-spice leaf.  It is grown on a medium sized tree and has notes of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and pepper.  It was quite fragrant and I was anxious to purchase a package to try at home.  As we walked, we learned that nutmeg is enclosed in an outer shell which is similar in appearance to a small apricot and has a single seed.  When fully mature it splits in two, exposing an extra seed covering, the mace, surrounding a single brown seed, the nutmeg. It continues going through processing until it is either sold either in strips or ground into the appearance with which we are most familiar.  

Another interesting spice was saffron, which is quite expensive at home but was quite reasonably priced here.  In fact, it is known as the world's costliest spice.  It has a vivid crimson color, and is collected in threads, then dried for use as a spice or coloring in food.  In food saffron gives dishes a rich golden-yellow color hue.  Another one of my favorite spices was lemongrass, which had a very lemony scent.  It smelled so fresh and clean.  When it is dried it has more of a woody flavor.  It is delicious when used fresh and finely-chopping into dishes but an also be used when dried, particularly in soups and other long-simmered dishes where it has time to re-hydrate.  As our tour concluded we were served a delicious tea made with lemongrass and given an opportunity to browse the small gift shop.  There are so many intriguing spices grown in the Seychelles and it motivates me to use more of them in my cooking.  Finally, it was time to return to our bus and continue our drive along the southern coast.  

Our last stop on this rather brief tour was to spend some time on Anse Royale Beach, considered one of the finest beaches in the Seychelles.  We had time to soak up the warm, tropical sun and take a dip in the inviting crystal-clear water of the Indian Ocean as they kiss the shores of the Seychelles. The thick, white sand leading down to the shore line was lined with beautiful, lush green trees which provided ample shade.  The path to the water rambled down a narrow alley which bordered a restaurant with indoor/outdoor seating and a lovely patio.  

Along the path our guide pointed out a HUGE spider.  After we all jumped back in fear, he assured us that it was non venomous.  In fact, he said that we could even allow it to crawl on us.  A few of our group took him up on the offer and let the spider crawl on their clothes and/or arms.  However, when our guide took the spider back again, HE PUT THE SPIDER ON HIS FACE!!! No one else was that brave.  It was quite an incredible sight.  

Once we reached the shore line, some of us opted to relax in the sun, while others, like Bob, chose to enjoy a couple of minutes in the crystal clear water. It was quite a refreshing break since the weather was very warm.

Once we were back on the bus we headed back to the ship to cool off in the air conditioning and enjoy a nice evening on the ship.  We will remain here overnight so we will have another opportunity tomorrow to enjoy the remainder of the island.

Mahe - Day 2

 Today we had a much more organized start to our day.  When we went downstairs to the pier, the buses were lined up and waiting for us to board.  We found our bus, boarded and waited for our other passengers.  Our group today was small with only about twelve of us, which made touring very pleasant. Once we left the pier we made our way to the Botanical Garden, which was only a few minutes away. 

The botanical garden has nearly 300 plant species, but its most popular attraction are the giant tortoises, which the public is welcome to feed.  Our butler told us that when she visited later in the day, while she was holding some leaves to encourage one of the tortoises to eat them, another tortoise climbed up her lower leg!  Thankfully, one of her co-workers snapped a photo of the moment!  She also said that she saw a parent put a baby on top of one of the tortoises for a photo!!! 

The gardens started as an agricultural station in 1901, but by the middle of the 20th century it had become a public park.  The first plant collections were timber trees, palms, spices. fruit trees, aromatic plants and anything that the director felt was beneficial to the island. It has now become one of the most visited conservation sites on the island. There are so many attractions, including the coco de mer plant, as well as a huge variety of ornamental and native plants.  We walked through the gardens, enjoying the spectacular collection of plants and the vibrant colors of flowers. 

Once we left the botanical garden, we enjoyed a short walking tour of Victoria town center.  We made a quick stop at the clock tower.  The clock tower is one of the most iconic historical features of Seychelles.  It dates back to the colonial era, and was erected in memory of Queen Victoria, who died in 1901.  The clock was installed in 1903, so it is over 120 years old!  The clock sets majestically in the center of the main street in town, as if presiding over the town center. 

After a somewhat quick tour of the small downtown and learning about some of the other historic buildings, we made our way to the large, two-story outdoor market.  Downstairs is mainly a fish market, with many sellers offering their very fresh catches.  Aisles and narrow and crowded with locals who are buying fish and tourists who are "lookie-loos" (like us)!  Care needed to be taken since the floors were quite wet with blood spilled from the fish being brought into the market.  In the back there was a small selection of flowers.  Although some of them were fresh flowers, many of the beautiful arrangements were artificial, and our guide explained that locals very often use artificial flowers because of the warm weather and fresh flowers wouldn't last very long.

Toward the end of the drive we stopped at the beachfront resort, Berjaya Beau Vallon Bay. We had enough time to enjoy the beautiful pool and have a drink. I thoroughly enjoyed relaxing and enjoying the warm water and sunshine.  It was a refreshing end to the hot day.  While I enjoyed the pool, Bob ventured over to the path down to the beach but it was very steep, and even if he proceeded, it was extremely crowded and there was nowhere to leave his belongings while he went in the water. So, we just enjoyed the lovely pool. 

After a relaxing and enjoyable time at the resort, it was time to board our bus and return to the ship.  It has been another day of enjoying the beautiful nature that has surrounded us. Now, we have a couple of sea days and then we will arrive at another beautiful island, Mauritius.