Do you ever just have the urge to spend the day on a tropical island riding around in a speedboat blaring music with a ton of people?
Yeah me neither.
Just kidding, I got to spend the day off the island of Mauritius (if you haven’t heard of it, it’s the closest thing to the East of Madagascar) while our ship refueled and it was like a movie.
We started the day on a bus to the Southeast edge of the island, where we split up into 3 or 4 different boats. Riding around in the tropics would be amazing anyway, but it was just the most quintessential island experience I can think of. Our driver had the best music and we kept passing the other groups and seeing parasailers and sailboats out. It was a perfect clear day, which kind of screwed me over in the end (if nobody’s noticed I’m pale as helllll) but we had this amazing view of the island and I was just so content with my life.
Stopping at a lighthouse on a separate little landmass, I jumped off the boat and misjudged how deep the water was, so I got my denim shorts soaked to start the day, but is anyone surprised really?
Later I was swimming around in this crystal-clear water and people were pointing out starfish they saw in the sand beneath us while other kids were doing flips off the boats and it was the best time. I didn’t think it could get any better, until we started snorkeling, that is.
I’ve snorkeled one other time and it was off the coast of Key West in Florida. This was not even comparable to that. I could see every vibrant fish in front of me and the coral reefs below me without any murkiness from sand or anything else.
When people talk about paradise, Mauritius is pretty much it. Someone said it is one of the main honeymoon destinations for people from India and I’m not at all surprised that everyone chooses to spend their time there.
After everyone was done snorkeling, they took us to another tiny island where we had the best barbeque ever. Eating fresh, perfectly seasoned fish with my feet in the sand was exactly what I wanted to be doing after a day of being out in the sun exploring. My communications professor was with us and took a video of everyone dancing while one of the restaurant owners sang and played guitar. I was so glad I was behind other people across from him when he decided to show our class the next day, but it was the best time.
Before heading back to the buses, we rode by a waterfall that was surrounded by monkeys. One jumped onto the boat next to us and I’m only a little (aka very) jealous of them.
We only had a day, but that night we had another huge barbeque on the ship with ice cream sundaes and so much good food that ended it perfectly. I didn’t know how much I needed mac n cheese until that moment, but I was quickly reminded that it’s an absolute essential.
If I ever get another chance, I’d go back to Mauritius in a heartbeat. It was one of the most relaxing days I’ve had on the voyage and it was greatly needed.
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