I quickly realized that Mauritius is mostly an island for romantic couples, vacationing families and single women looking for local Mauritius men. In addition, the ratio of men to women is probably close to 4.27:1, but that’s just a number I completely made up just now.

Nevertheless, and despite the crappy, cloudy, rainy and humid weather, I made the most of my time here. The first day was an excursion to the east side of the island, and a boat tour to a nearby island and some waterfalls. It was quite relaxing, with lovely sand, and eat lobster on the beach. I also saw a live starfish for the first time (outside of the bedroom, lol).

Scuba diving was the next event, and I ended up partnering with a retired detective from the UK, whom I met on the plane from Johannesburg. Lemme tell you, he had some really cool stories to share, especially about a huge international drug bust. An octopus was the highlight of the dive, but I was unable to capture him properly on film.

Restaurants were significantly more expensive than in South Africa, so I took the opportunity to cook most meals at home. Eating fresh fruits and veggies made me feel balanced again, even though I had no idea how to properly cook beans (yes, I didn’t soak them first, so shoot me).

To keep the healthy attitude going strong, I significantly reduced my alcohol intake and started running again. It’s been 3 months since my last run, and I really missed it. Jogging next to beach, dodging the crazy drivers, sweating like I just stepped out of a shower and then cooling off in the Indian Ocean was more than therapeutic.

One oddity I noticed is there are cemeteries right next to the ocean. My apartment was 100 meters from the beach, with a cemetery in between. Guess the dead want a view, but I cannot help but imagine that eventually real estate demands could change the island’s outlook.

Unfortunately the rain was so bad I had to cancel a scenic hike up a mountain, and swimming with the dolphins was cancelled too. A shame really, I was really looking forward to the fishies (yes, I know they are not a fishy, but I call everything a fishy. I even caught myself saying, “Here fishy, fishy” to the great white sharks in South Africa.)

Mauritius is a place I would consider returning to, but only with a significant other, and if the weather was more agreeable.

BTW, today I agreed to volunteer at a dairy and adventure ranch in Sri Lanka in a month. I’ll stay 2 weeks with a family, helping 5 hours a day, improving their website and doing general handyman activities in return for room/board and meals. Pretty cool, eh?