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The 60-acre garden known to naturalists throughout
the world dates back to 1735 boasts 500 different species of
indigenous and exotic
plants, including the giant Victoria regia water lilies and
many species of palm trees. The talipot palm is of particular
interest which is said to flower once every sixty years and
thereafter dies. In the 18th century, the famous French botanist,
Pierre Poivre spent 5 years of his life to create the Pamplemousses
Garden at the request of Governor Mahé de Labourdonnais. Mahé
de Labourdonnais at one time even resided in the Chateau Mont
Plaisir which still exists at the heart of these magnificent
gardens.
There is no entrance fee to enter the gardens. You can also
take a tour guide for the garden for a small fee. The tour guide
will give you lots of information about the plants.
The Sugar Adventure
This excellent museum in the former Beau Plan
sugar factory not only tells the story of sugar in fascinating
detail, but along the way covers the history of Mauritius, slavery,
the rum trade and more. End your visit with a sugar-tasting
session and something sticky in the stylish café-restaurant.
The island's Sugar Museum - otherwise known
as 'The Sugar Adventure' - is surely one of the most original,
entertaining and informative museums anywhere in the world...
The island, you could say, is built on sugar. When the Dutch
discovered Mauritius in 1598, they found a paradise populated
by dodos, and not a human in sight. They settled in 1638 and,
the following year, introduced sugar cane, servicing the plantations
with slaves imported from Africa. The dodo died, but sugar plantations
flourished under the aegis of the French, who took possession
of the island in 1715, till they were in turn ousted by the
British in 1810. With the abolition of slavery came a semantic
nicety. .The term 'slave' was replaced by the notion of 'indentured
labourer': coolies press-ganged from India, to similar effect.
Yet it is the mixed origins of these colonisers and slaves that
we have to thank for the rich Creole culture of Mauritius today
– from its
cuisine to the trilingualism of its inhabitants and its extraordinary
racial tolerance.
Of the 400 sugar factories that abounded in the 19th century,
just a dozen or so still function. Their ruins - most notably
the remains of stone factory chimneys – are a familiar sight
in the Mauritian landscape. The Sugar Museum itself is housed
within the former sugar mill of Beau Plan – a cavernous hangar-type
structure of 5,000 square metres, containing original machinery,
photographs, film and video, illuminated niches, working models,
recreations and heaps of informative texts in easily digestible,
bite-size chunks.
The museum covers everything from background history and social
culture, through the production process, to agronomy, trade
routes through the ages, and a dissection of the economic realities
involved. If this sounds dry, the presentation makes it riveting:
and the setting, spacious and exciting, lends the whole the
added fillip of authenticity.
Each sugar has its own character and flavour, and its distinct
place in the culinary artsIn the Middle Ages, sugar was considered
to have quasi-magical properties: the mysterious preserve of
apothecaries. Wandering through this industrial cathedral, one
begins to understand that the extraction of 2kg of sugar from
a single cane plant was no easy matter. In an animated film,
Raj the Indian Mynah bird and Florise the mongoose guide children
through the complex process of sugar production, from cane to
crystal. Thus briefed, they will love negotiating the shiny
gantries and huge coloured pipes between gleaming pieces of
machinery, tenderly restored. Starting from where the sugar
cane was crushed to produce juice, to the final stage of the
centrifuge in which 15 different grades of crystal gold were
formed, children will be entertained with quizzes and interactive
displays, whilst adults can concentrate on the small print.
The last exhibit is the recreation of a port and depot, where
a huge sugar pyramid waits to be piped onto a tanker to find
its way, eventually, into Tesco. In this way, Mauritius exports
540,000 tons of sugar annually, which remains vital to the country's
economy.
And if you had never thought of sugar as an epicurean subject,
the final surprise comes in the boutique. Here you can sample
and buy 12 varieties of specialist unrefined sugars, ranging
from pale, powdery talc-like textures, through translucent amber
crystals, to the sticky, almost black grains of molasses. Each
has its own character and flavour, and its distinct place in
the culinary arts. But if you want something really special,
plump for 'Soft Pale Brown', unique to Mauritius and the sugar
of connoisseurs. Sweet!
Port Louis
Port Louis is the capital and main port of Mauritius,
it was founded by the French governor, Mahe de Labourdonnais
in 1735. The harbour
lies sheltered in a semi-circle of mountains. The town has plenty
of character, and shows in certain quarters signs of its past
elegance.
Off the main square, palm-lined Place d'Armes, there are some
particularly fine French colonial buildings; especially we have
the Government house and the Municipal Theatre, which were built
during the 18th century. There are also two eye catching Cathedrals,
Anglican and Catholic and also a mosque. The Supreme Court and
natural history museum are also based in Port Louis.
Moreover there is the Worldwide Masks museum, which is a private
Museum at the heart of the unique and historic site of the 'Parcours
Culturel', situated at the Old Council Road, Port Louis. It
displays a wonderful collection of various tribal masks from
Africa, America, Asia and Oceania.
The Citadelle
It is about an old fortress which overhangs
the city and the port. At the colonial ages it was used to prevent
fires which appeared inside the city. You will appreciate there
a splendid sight of the town of Port-Louis.
Central Market of Port Louis
The Central Market of Port-Louis, also called
by the Mauritians “the Large Bazaar” is one of the places impossible
to circumvent for all those which visit the Mauritius island.
This souk is generally the appointment of the Mauritians in
the search of odors and colors. You are welcome there. One finds
everything overthere : craft industries, vegetables, merchants
of herb teas and spices, butchers, fishmongers, small babioles,
memories… You will be able to find your happiness thus there.
Caudan Waterfront
Overlooking the busy harbour, the Caudan Waterfront
is prized for its unparalleled location. It is the island’s
unavoidable shopping arcade with prestigious duty-free shops.
There is a handicraft market which is a joy to browse through
with its large selection of locally made crafts, where you can
watch basket weavers at work.
Back to the residence
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