Greetings from the Southern hemisphere!!
The past week has been a week of fun for Semester at Sea, with the exception of midterms in some of our classes!
March 20th was Neptune Day, or the day that the ship celebrates crossing the equator. We woke up to whistles blowing and drumming on pots and pans through the halls. The day was a way to commemorate crossing the equator and also designed to initiate the “pollywogs” of the ship: those who have never crossed the equator nautically! I put on a swimsuit and headed to the top deck to get initiated. This required a green gooey mixture of blended fish guts and other ingredients poured onto my head!! My friend Caitlin and I got initiated together. We then went into the pool to wash off, and then when we got out, we had to kiss a fish, kiss two rings, and were knighted!! Along with the fish initiation, many individuals on the ship (including professors and females) had their heads shaved! Many people donated their hair to Locks of Love, which was really fantastic. No need to worry-- I did not get my head shaved! Considering I’ll be applying for different opportunities next fall, I thought keeping my hair would be a good decision.
A few days after Neptune day, March 23rd, we arrived at Mauritius. Mauritius is a tiny country (about the size of Rhode Island) off the coast of Madagascar. It has only been independent for 42 years and was subject to colonization by the Arabs, Dutch, French, English, and Indians, though it was never completely left by the French. Most of Mauritians speak Mauritian Creole and French, though English is the official language. 40% of the individuals are Hindu, followed by 27% who are Catholic. Clearly, Mauritius is a nation of multiple ethnic and religious identities. Along with being culturally diverse, Mauritius is absolutely beautiful, to say the least! Mark Twain famously quoted: “Mauritius was made first, and then Heaven, and Heaven was copied after Mauritius.”
My friends and I were incredibly lucky to get an amazing deal on a resort. We stayed in Balaclava, which is known for its beaches. The first afternoon was spent snorkeling, enjoying the sun and white sand, and relaxing in the pool! Snorkeling was incredible-- we were able to see an incredible number of fish, in all different colors and sizes! What was amazing to me was how clear the ocean water is in Mauritius. Because it heavily relies on tourism to support its economy, it realizes that environmental depletion could be a serious threat in the future. There is actually an environmental police in Mauritius, which is something that I think wouldn’t be a bad idea in the United States! While we were at the resort, we realized we were the only Americans. Every other group there was French! It was interesting to be in the minority group in terms of tourism and have individuals automatically speak to me in French instead of English.
The second day, a group of my friends and I wanted to hike Le Pouce, the tallest mountain in Mauritius. We got to the base of the mountain and started climbing, but we realized that the trail was incredibly difficult. Because it had just rained the day before, the normally dry trail of rocks had become a steep, slippery, and muddy trail of rocks! We decided not to risk it, because the conditions were just too dangerous. But we did have a great time together despite getting quite muddy!
Mauritius is an anomaly within the nations of Africa. Its GDP per capita is roughly $12,000, which puts it way above other African nations. What will be interesting to me, however, is to see how the increase of tourism will affect the island. There is already a 50:50 ratio of tourists to native Mauritians, and it is predicted that the numbers will show more tourists than natives very soon. It will be important to Mauritius to increase eco-tourism and focus on sustaining the beauty of the island, rather than abusing and depleting it.
I feel incredibly blessed to have been able to go to an island that I must admit, I did not know existed before this trip! If any of you are interested in visiting, take caution: airfare from the United States is around $3,000!!
I hope all of you are doing well; I will write you after my stay in Cape Town, South Africa.
The past week has been a week of fun for Semester at Sea, with the exception of midterms in some of our classes!
March 20th was Neptune Day, or the day that the ship celebrates crossing the equator. We woke up to whistles blowing and drumming on pots and pans through the halls. The day was a way to commemorate crossing the equator and also designed to initiate the “pollywogs” of the ship: those who have never crossed the equator nautically! I put on a swimsuit and headed to the top deck to get initiated. This required a green gooey mixture of blended fish guts and other ingredients poured onto my head!! My friend Caitlin and I got initiated together. We then went into the pool to wash off, and then when we got out, we had to kiss a fish, kiss two rings, and were knighted!! Along with the fish initiation, many individuals on the ship (including professors and females) had their heads shaved! Many people donated their hair to Locks of Love, which was really fantastic. No need to worry-- I did not get my head shaved! Considering I’ll be applying for different opportunities next fall, I thought keeping my hair would be a good decision.
A few days after Neptune day, March 23rd, we arrived at Mauritius. Mauritius is a tiny country (about the size of Rhode Island) off the coast of Madagascar. It has only been independent for 42 years and was subject to colonization by the Arabs, Dutch, French, English, and Indians, though it was never completely left by the French. Most of Mauritians speak Mauritian Creole and French, though English is the official language. 40% of the individuals are Hindu, followed by 27% who are Catholic. Clearly, Mauritius is a nation of multiple ethnic and religious identities. Along with being culturally diverse, Mauritius is absolutely beautiful, to say the least! Mark Twain famously quoted: “Mauritius was made first, and then Heaven, and Heaven was copied after Mauritius.”
My friends and I were incredibly lucky to get an amazing deal on a resort. We stayed in Balaclava, which is known for its beaches. The first afternoon was spent snorkeling, enjoying the sun and white sand, and relaxing in the pool! Snorkeling was incredible-- we were able to see an incredible number of fish, in all different colors and sizes! What was amazing to me was how clear the ocean water is in Mauritius. Because it heavily relies on tourism to support its economy, it realizes that environmental depletion could be a serious threat in the future. There is actually an environmental police in Mauritius, which is something that I think wouldn’t be a bad idea in the United States! While we were at the resort, we realized we were the only Americans. Every other group there was French! It was interesting to be in the minority group in terms of tourism and have individuals automatically speak to me in French instead of English.
The second day, a group of my friends and I wanted to hike Le Pouce, the tallest mountain in Mauritius. We got to the base of the mountain and started climbing, but we realized that the trail was incredibly difficult. Because it had just rained the day before, the normally dry trail of rocks had become a steep, slippery, and muddy trail of rocks! We decided not to risk it, because the conditions were just too dangerous. But we did have a great time together despite getting quite muddy!
Mauritius is an anomaly within the nations of Africa. Its GDP per capita is roughly $12,000, which puts it way above other African nations. What will be interesting to me, however, is to see how the increase of tourism will affect the island. There is already a 50:50 ratio of tourists to native Mauritians, and it is predicted that the numbers will show more tourists than natives very soon. It will be important to Mauritius to increase eco-tourism and focus on sustaining the beauty of the island, rather than abusing and depleting it.
I feel incredibly blessed to have been able to go to an island that I must admit, I did not know existed before this trip! If any of you are interested in visiting, take caution: airfare from the United States is around $3,000!!
I hope all of you are doing well; I will write you after my stay in Cape Town, South Africa.
wow!you really had a great time there..i just can't forget our funny experience at Maritim Hotel Mauritius..we had a lot of enjoyment..
ReplyDeletebanne foto la top :)
ReplyDeleteFab from Mauritius :p