Rodrigues
15 August 2016 | Port Mathurin, Rodrigues
Kim
We spent a month enjoying the lovely island of Rodrigues. Rodrigues is an island approximately the same size in area as St. John. About 35,000 people call it home so a few more people but a lot less tourism. It was reminiscent of St John twenty years ago, but with a French twist. Lots of tiny restaurants and of course a bakery. The bakery was small but they put out an impressive amount of product, none of it great but mostly good and the service was always friendly and welcoming. There were of course baguettes, for 5.60 rupees each, the equivalent of US 15¢. We ate lots of baguettes: breakfast, lunch, hors d'oeuvres and dinner some nights. The eclairs were good and we tried several cakes, tarts, and even Napoleon's. Zack made it a mission to try something every day. I don't think there was a single product that cost more than fifty cents. The place was busy all day and I guess they made their profit in the volume. The people of Rodrigues were very friendly and most spoke some English. English is the official language but you would not know it, everyone speaks French. It was fun to practice my extremely limited French and everyone was very kind as I tried. Rodrigues is small and safe and Zack was able to hang out with his friends from Convivia and Comanante roaming the streets on their own. They played in the field and had a tour of stores they visited daily to get small treats. Most days they settled at the great public library and played with the games there. It was great that the kids could be independent and we didn't need to worry. There is a great fresh market in town and you can get most vegetables there. The quality is good and the prices are good as well. Saturdays are the biggest day and it seems most of Rodrigues shows up for the Saturday market. The selection is best and there are lots of local crafts for sale as well. Mostly woven baskets and jams, jellies and tarts. The local Rodrigues tart is a combination of pineapple, papaya and coconut. Our friends Mim and Eric were raving about it so we got one. It was horrible! They were surprised by our reaction and showed us where to get the best tarts. They were delicious! So I guess you need to know where to go. Saturday his also the day for the meat market. There are separate stalls for chicken, beef, pork and mutton or goat. Running water is not a thing and I was pretty horrified when the chicken lady used her hands to package some chicken and then packed my eggs without washing her hands. I'm thinking a pair of tongs would be beneficial. The market starts a five am and as we usually arrived around nine we were mostly left with the random cuts. I think they use an ax for a good part of the butchering. It's all pretty nasty for a vegetarian! David went in at 5:30 one Saturday morning and was able to get some tenderloin. The boys liked that, as most of the meat here is a bit tough. The hiking on Rodrigues is beautiful, with well laid out trails and scenic views everywhere. The bus system is also great and it costs about a dollar each to get to the other side of the island where lots of the best hiking is. We packed our backpacks with baguettes, cheese and sausage and headed out with the crews of Chantey and Whistler one day. We hiked the South coast and it was spectacular. We came to Bottle Neck Bay and as we taking photos a couple of young local guys came along and jumped off the cliff into the water. So, of course Zack wanted a go. I said sure go ahead, I knew there was not a chance he would jump so I played the cool mom card! He climbed up the cliff with David, Will and Eric. They got to the top and I almost felt bad for him, it would be a walk of shame down. Eric jumped and Zack was right behind him, no hesitation what so ever. The boys did a few rounds and then moved over to the really high side. Eric jumped and touched the bottom. Zack was next and they told him to wait for the wave so the water would be higher. Eric yelled jump and Zack flew off the cliff. He was stoked! Eric's sister came to visit and we spent a next day at Bottle Neck Bay jumping off the cliffs. Mary Jo has 2 kids age 12 and 14 so Zack has been having a great time hanging with them. They both jumped off the cliff as did everyone else in the group. Only I was left. Zack and Melodie helped me get up the courage to jump. I finally did it! Twice! We played a big game of monkey in the middle frisbee to warm up and headed home. A fun day for all. The big attraction on Rodrigues is the kite surfing. On the south of the island is a bay that is shallow and has a fringing reef. It's the perfect kite surfing beach, although it is a bit chilly. We took Zack over for a lesson. He spent 2 hours on the water with Youle, who owns a kite shop. He did really well but it was a long 2 hours. We scheduled a lesson for the next day so that he could learn to get up on the board. At dinner he told us he didn't want to go back. David went the next day by himself and took the lesson. He was able to get up and get a ride. He was pretty excited when he got home and Zack was sorry he hadn't gone. We all went back over and David showed Zack some basics and Zack spent a few hours in the water for a couple of days and he was able to stand on the board and get even longer rides than David. He's stoked and can't wait to go again. It looks like Madagascar will have some good beaches and warm water so he will get some good time on the water. I gave it my best and drank lots of salt water! There is a tortoise sanctuary on Rodrigues that we heard was even better than the Galapagos. We took the bus over with the Whistler crew. The sanctuary is located in a natural canyon and is marvellous. The tortoises are all free to roam around as they can't get out on their own. The tour groups are quite large and done in French and English but are a bit difficult to follow. We just hung back and did our own thing. The tortoises are very used to people and come right up to you. You are allowed to pet them which is cool. There are also lime trees in the area and Zack was picking them and feeding the tortoises. We then hiked through a cave which was nice. Another great day! Rodrigues was definitely a highlight on our world tour and anyone coming this way should make the stop. We are now on Mauritius after a very pleasant 3 day, 2 night sail. But that will be the next blog.