"Oh look how the pretty the plane is!" Yes, but that's not a key criteria when flying. I would prefer safe and on time (in that order), but I agree it is a welcoming sight to our new destination, and leaves little doubt that we are again in a tropical paradise - the Seychelles.
Our five hour flight from Johannesburg to Victoria (capital of Seychelles) left about one hour late, which meant our connection to another small island was a bit rushed.
But I felt I had enough time to force everyone to stop on the tarmac for a photo. You can see the huge Etihad plane in the background. That was our ride from S.A. Now it was time to transfer to another familiar sight - a Twin Otter. Good Canadian plane (if you say it in a Don Cherry voice, it's better).
Definitely the smallest plane we've been on during this adventure! And it was really quite windy, so I expected this flight, though only about 20 minutes long, to be quite a ride. I told Shirley she might consider popping her wonder pill (Atavan), but she had no worries.
I've heard the Seychelles is quite a laid back place - they weren't kidding!
It's also very expensive. It took some sleuthing to find any accommodation that fell within our price range. The islands are small, everything is imported, there is limited capacity for tourists, and the beaches are (supposedly) some of the most stunning in the world. Those things, plus the fact that the vast majority of visitors spend Euros and Pounds, would test the limits of yours truly, "Mr. El Cheapo".
But we ended up with a really nice self-service bungalow which a local family has built on a section of their farm on the island of Praslin. The property is lush, the bungalow is large, and we have our own kitchen. And it's a ten minute walk from a beautiful beach. Unfortunately the weather is not cooperating - wet and windy. Looks like it's a homework day.
Chilling on the veranda with a can of the local brew : Sey-Brew. I'm always happy to try the common man's beer, but was a little put out by the cost, about $3 per can. That is the most expensive beer we've had (or at least a close tie with Malaysia). Upon reading the can I realized why - it's not really a 'local' beer after all, but brewed under license by Guiness in Ireland, and then imported. Only in the Seychelles could the local beer be imported!
Waiting for the bus. On our first few days here we remained victim to inclement weather. For days like these you have to look hard to find something to do. The Seychelles are a bit of a one-hit-wonder when it comes to sights. People travel here to lie on the beach, but sometimes just hopping on a local bus can be fun. It gives you a good overview of local sights, sounds and culture.
It is a neat group of islands. As is the case in this part of the world, the Seychelles traded colonial hands several times during its history, back and forth between the French and English, culminating in independence only in 1976. The local population is dark skinned, but not black. From a heritage perspective, they are a mixture of freed African slaves with some Arab and Indian traders. Throw in a bit of white blood and you have the modern Seychelloise.
English and French are the languages taught in school, but the true local language is seselwa, a Creole language which incorporates elements of French, English, Indian, African and even hip-hop expressions.
Our excursion to the Vallee de Mai was a good rainy day adventure. It's a protected reserve in the lush and verdant hills of central Praslin (the island we are on), and it is home to a rare and endangered palm tree with a rather naughty looking nut - the Coco de Mer.
Walking through this tropical valley felt like we were in a "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" movie. Many of the palms were enormous. Plenty of signs around the trails allowed the kids to have a school field trip.
"I got this, Dad"
The nut itself is the heaviest in the world, reaching a weight of up to 18 kg. But the reason for its threatened status is that early explorers and Europeans saw the shape of the various components of the plant and believed it to have aphrodisiac qualities - a belief which persists to this day and justifies the continued vigilance of local authorities when it comes to monitoring and regulating the harvest of the nut.
See what I mean?
With Owen, no time is a bad time for a twerk!
By the end of our visit, it looked like the sun might finally break free. Now as long as we can find our way out of here!
Somewhere through this mass of green is a trail.
Yes, it's most definitely beach time. A peek through the trees to the beach by our bungalows. Like the Maldives, we should be in for some blue blue water.
It's been a while since we had water warm enough to stay in for more than ten minutes. and it's not particularly crowded at this time of year so we have the beach mainly to ourselves....
....and the few sharks which prowl the waters here. I'm feeling on guard a bit (like there's anything I could do to stop a shark) because there were two fatal attacks on this island in 2011, likely tiger sharks. There's been nothing since (and nothing for 20 years prior to that), but I'm still on edge. My daughter's flailing arms do nothing to make me feel better.
But after a few days here I'm sure I'll relax - I mean, how can you not?
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