A last word or two on Seychelles

I don't usually write any blogs when I am home but most of this one was already written while I was still in the Seychelles. I had anticipated having an internet connection over the weekend but that didn't work out so here is what I wrote and a little more.

On Friday we finished all the work before lunch and, on looking at what we had spent over the week, decided that we could afford to go out for lunch. Originally we had talked of going to the Pirates Arms but since it was the first day of the Seychelles school holidays, everyone decided that it would be better to find a quieter place. We ended up at a restaurant called Moloko in New Port Docklands. They serve a mixture of Chinese, Italian and Creole food. Most of the group had pizza but I settled on a delicious lasagne. It was a fun lunch with easy conversation and lots of laughter.

Happy lunchers!

After lunch we returned to the office for a while. I should have been driven home almost immediately but due to a number of factors only ended up going back to the guest house at the normal end of day time. I was a little miffed but what could I do! Eventually I did get back though and decided that I would treat myself to a sundowner at a restaurant on the beach called, very fittingly, La Plage.

When I arrived at the restaurant I was asked if I was only coming for a drink or if I would be eating too. I told the waitron that I had not decided because I suspected that the place was a little on the expensive side. She gave me the drinks menu and the food menu and left me to decide. Well the prices of everything were outrageous! But since I had decided to have a drink I thought "what the hell" and would just suck it up. I ordered a Pina Colada - my favourite cocktail - but they didn't have it. I was disappointed because for me the Pina Colada is the drink I always imagine myself drinking at the beach. I ended up ordering a strawberry daiquiri instead and sat watching the waves washing up on the beach and the sun going down.

 The water lapping against the restaurant

A beautiful sunset

While I was contemplating life, the universe and the wonderful sunset, the man sitting on his own at the next table asked if I would take a photo of him with the sunset in the background. Of course I agreed and took the photo and we just sort of started chatting (see Jo I don't need to lurk in passages). His name was Gerry and he was a lawyer from Canada. He had made the decision earlier in the year to make the long trip from Canada to see the Indian Ocean. Originally he had planned to go to the Maldives but then he had heard about Prince William and Kate's honeymoon in the Seychelles and thought the Seychelles would be better.

After straining to hear each other over the noise of the sea for a while he invited me to join him at his table. He wanted to know if I was going to eat and I was too embarrassed to say that I didn't have enough cash on me for drinks and food so just told him that I was just there for a drink or two. By then my daiquiri was done and I figured I could order another drink so long as it wasn't a cocktail. I went with my old favourite of gin and tonic. Gerry kept on asking if I was sure about dinner and I just laughed him off. He ended up ordering what is called a Creole vase. I really wish I had taken a photo of it! When it was brought to the table it looked a bit like a white ceramic urn but was quickly separated into a range of smaller dishes each containing a different part of the meal. In the largest dish was turmeric rice, and in the smaller ones, a grilled fish, some fish curry, a creole sauce and some chutney. Gerry declared that it was too much for him and got the waitron to bring a plate for me. So in the end I ate dinner! Thankfully I didn't have to pay for it though. The cost of the drinks was staggering enough. For my daiquiri and gin & tonic I paid 300 rupees (R165 or $21). This is definitely the most I have ever paid for so few drinks!

After a couple of hours Gerry and I parted ways and we went back to our respective guest houses. It had turned into a very pleasant evening and a good end to the work week.

On Saturday morning I had breakfast at the guest house. This was my first breakfast since the previous Sunday because the guest house does not serve breakfast before 8am and I was collected at 7:45 every morning to go to work. After breakfast I walked up the hill in the sweltering heat to catch a bus into Victoria. By the time I got to the bus stop I was drenched in sweat and did not feel good at all. The heat and humidity of the Seychelles is sometimes just too much. My mission for the day was to visit the Natural History Museum and the National History Museum.

The dugong and crocodile outside the Natural History Museum

The Natural History Museum has always tweaked my curiosity as it has a stuffed crocodile out front and I didn't think that the Seychelles had any crocodiles. It cost me 15 rupees (R8.25 or $1.05) to go in and that is maybe about what it is worth. It is a really small museum with not many displays. The displays also don't really provide much information besides the visual kind. On the ground floor there was no information about the crocodile and I thought it might just end up being a mystery. I went up to the second floor feeling rather disappointed in the experience but was pleasantly surprised to find a display of photographs showing the tsunami of 2004 and the effects that were felt in the Seychelles. This was the saving grace of the museum for me. The photographs were fascinating. I especially like one of a fishing vessel perched on top of the quay where the catch is usually unloaded.

 The heaviest seed in the world - the palm nut from the coco de mer

Water from the ocean washing up Independence Avenue in Victoria

Upstairs I also found the answer to my crocodile question. It turns out that when the first people arrived on the Seychelles there were crocodiles around. The crocs were seen as a threat to an otherwise idyllic environment and were killed to extinction. Rather a sad but familiar tale!

From the Natural History Museum I walked to the National History Museum which wasn't too far away. For this museum I did not have to pay a cent to get in. Apparently it was Heritage Week in the Seychelles and the museum was foregoing all entrance fees. I think the woman on reception thought I was a little strange because she told me where to start but I wasn't looking where she pointed so I worked my way backwards through the displays. I only realised this after a while but by then it was too late and I didn't really care anyway.

The National History Museum

The museum was very interesting. It had some great displays about the culture of the Seychelles including the types of houses that they built, the musical instruments they played and the types of dances practiced. It also gave the development of the Seychelles into the nation it is today. Of course I was working my way backwards so I learnt about the declaration of Independence, then the British era and then the French era. One very interesting aspect about the museum was that the English era had annotations only in English and the French era's annotations were only in French. I wonder if they think that visitors from these countries are only interested in their own country's participation in the Seychelles' history.

From the museum I wandered back towards the centre of town. I had a look at the souvenirs on sale at the little stalls and then made my way to the market. The market was definitely not as smelly as others I have been to but still not all that appetizing either except to some birds.

 The souvenir stalls

 An egret at the market

 The fruit section of the market

The fish section of the market

After the market I had had enough and walked back to the bus station to get a bus back to Beau Vallon. My Accuweather App on my phone was telling me that the temperature in Victoria was 33°C but the real feel temperature was 44°C. It really was uncomfortable.

The buses at the station

I spent the afternoon reading and waited for the sun to drop towards the horizon before heading for one last swim in the ocean. I finished the evening off with a cheese and salad burger from the Sun Coco take-away - definitely the best burgers in the world!. All that was left was to pack my suitcase and wait for the flight home.