27 December 2023 – Day 5 – In Port Louis, Mauritius

Though the Portuguese rediscovered the Mascarene Islands of Mauritius, Reunion and Rodrigues between 1507 and 1513, they had no lasting interest in the islands. They were focussed on Mozambique in Africa, Goa and Malabar Coast in India, Malaysian coast and Sri Lanka. The Dutch tried their hand at colonising Mauritius between 1598 and 1710 – a series of misfortunes, calamities and bad administration finally led to their abandonment of the Island. It is the Dutch who gave the island its name in 1598. Their other legacies involved importing slave labour from Malagasy, denuding large swathes of ebony forests, feasting to extinction the flightless Dodo - they almost did the same to the giant tortoises too. They are to be credited for introduction of sugarcane plantation from Java.

The French rule lasted from 1715 to 1810, when the island was called Isle de France. Effective French occupation started in 1721 and under Governor Mahe de La Bourdonnais from 1735 the rule saw its golden period. He was a progressive leader with far reaching vision – examples of his developmental agenda can still be seen in the Island such as part of Government House, the Château de Mon Plaisir at Pamplemousses, Jardin Pamplemousses and the Line Barracks.

During the Napoleonic wars, in 1810 the island was captured from the French by the British, who administered it till 1968. By the Treaty of Paris in 1814, the Isle de France was renamed "Mauritius" and was ceded to Great Britain, together with Rodrigues and the Seychelles. The British, however, guaranteed that they would respect the languages, customs, laws and the traditions of the inhabitants. That is how the French legacy has come to be preserved and continues to this day.

This was the last day of my stay in Port Louis and the first pit stop was Motagne Zako, supposedly the best place to take a dive into the Indian Ocean. While Mauritius is mostly about white sandy beaches the island surprises with the diversity of its landscapes. The Jacquot Mountain shows a dangerous face. Last month, four young people were surprised by the power of the waves and two of them were never found, having disappeared into the abyss. It's difficult not to be seduced by the fierce beauty of the place, far from the bustle of the capital. The Jacquot Mountain faces the onslaught of the ocean proudly as it has been for centuries.

The Martello towers were built by the British to act as a deterrent against invasions by Napoleon and his French Armies as well as being used as general lookout posts. One such exists in Pointe aux Sables and, just like the one in Le Preneuse, this one is closed to public a well. But it does indicate the importance of Port Louis as a trading post at the time.

The Pointe aux Sables public beach looked abandoned, possibly because of the time of day and that it does not actually have much of a beach. The Martello Commercial Centre has a few retail outlets and was not busy at the time of visit. The Siva Shakti Arthanareeshwarar Temple is a strikingly beautiful place of worship beside a busy road. Thanks to the parking lot I could spend some time in the temple where prayers were going on with mesmerising music in the background.

Jardins de la Compagnie is considered to be Port Louis' most attractive garden, with its huge banyan trees, a number of statues commemorating the contribution of significant people to the development of Mauritius and fight against slavery and freedom of indentured labour, quiet benches and non-functional fountains. A lesser known fact about the garden is that it was used as a cemetery in the 18th century when the island had an outbreak of smallpox. There is a memorial to the visit of Mahatma Gandhi I n 1911. While the Garden is a good place to relax during the day, at night it is a favoured hangout for sex workers and drug addicts. 

The Municipal Theatre, built in 1822, in classical London theatre style, could seat over 600 in three tiers. The Theatre was at the heart of the artistic, social and cultural life of the colony. Artists performed in the theatre illuminated by coconut oil till 1891, when electricity was introduced. 

When I got back to the accommodation there was no parking in the street and the apartment complex security guard did not permit me to park inside either. That put me in a dilemma. As I was reversing out of the building parking area into the street, miraculously, a vehicle pulled out and I parked there - certainly a miracle in action!

On the way back to the accommodation I had spied the clinic of a chiropractor. I fixed up an appointment to treat my sore neck and numb legs. The practitioner gave me a thorough examination and did some treatment for the sore neck. He gave up on the numbness in the leg. When I returned from the chiropractor the security guard of the apartment complex apologised for not permitting me to park inside saying that residents objected to visitors’ vehicles being parked in allotted slots. He told me that his grandfather hailed from Bihar and that he has been many times to Mumbai and Kerala.