Rodriguez where you are most welcome

I am at sea again after 5 wonderful days in Port Mathurin the capital of Rodriguez. I am currently sailing to Mauritius some 3 days away. Tonight their will be little sleep as I am approaching a number of little islands and fishing boats are appearing on the radar. On the positive side the moon is out and the sea is silver under a carpet of stars.

This update is about my time on the island including:

• The arrival
• The island’s celebration
• Off to church
• Meting the locals

The arrival at Rodriguez
I arrived at the port early on Saturday after a very rough night at sea and a hairy approach to the port through 3 miles of reefs. Just to raise the level of excitement by a few heart beats there was a strong wind trying to blow me onto a reef and gallons of spray flying across the boat.  My approach to the port was in the hands of the electronic chart plotter as the visual leads could not be seen with the rough sea and the spray. By the time I reached the protection of the port I was exhausted but delighted to see the coast guard police waiting for me at the wharf to tie up the boat.  From that moment on it was first class service all the way.

I was brought alongside a tug boat as the wharf was a little rough. The police had organized all the officials.  Firstly the police had a couple of forms to complete followed by the Department of Health, the anti drug police squad, immigration and customs.  All were very friendly people and all with a handful of forms.

Within the hour I had cleared all the formalities, handled out my little stuffed koalas and allowed to go onshore. First stop was the fruit and vegetable market. A kilo of little tasty roma shaped tomatoes cost $1, fresh cucumbers, beetroot, apples, grapes, fresh eggs and pears filled my bag for just a few dollars. It was also my first exposure to the local currency known as rupees and to the local language a mixture of Creole and French. English came a distant third but their was always someone close by who could help, often with much laughter.

Later in the afternoon Jeanne, the solo sailor on her yacht Nereida arrived and she rafted her boat up next to the lady. This is where we stayed for the entire time. The police and the port authority were kind enough to let us stay at the wharf instead of anchoring in the port and having to inflate the dingy, mount the outboard and motor into the wharf. Add to that we had 24 hour police guard just for us. The police manned the guard box at all times and in the end I think I had met the entire coast guard force. It was a pleasure to greet the overnight guard early in the morning with a fresh cup of coffee. The majority also visited the boat and spent time telling me about their lives and it did not take time before photos of their children were being proudly shown off.

We had to move our boats at 5 am one morning as the large ship from Mauritius was coming in. The port is very small and is surrounded by reefs. The water depth goes from 8 metres to nothing in a blink of an eye. Jeanne’s yacht was blown back onto the reef and in an instant the coast guard and a tug boat was there to pull her off. Once the ship had arrived and manoeuvred one of the tug boat captains got ready for us to come alongside again. The crew knew what they were doing and had us tied up along side without any drama even in a strong breeze. When I left on early Thursday morning a tug boat with me still tired up alongside took me out into the middle of the port so it was easy for me to get ready to sail off. We timed our departure so we could follow the big ship out to sea through the reefs. Following a captain who does it every week takes a lot of worry out of finding your way back into the open sea.

The island celebrates their identity
On Sunday at the local stadium the island celebrated their fifth anniversary of being a regional assembly. It was a two hour ceremony attended by half the island’s population and dignitaries dressed in their finest including Sir Anerood Jugnauth the President of the Republic of Mauritius. In many ways a very formal ceremony with a fine honour guard from the police, army and coast guard.

The entertainment was provided by children from across the island dancing and reciting poems. My highlight was traditional dancing with girls dressed in grass shirts and tops and the boys in loose long white pants and bare chests. The music was fast and so was the dancing. The girl’s hipped swayed vigorously, their pelvis’s gyrated, heads thrust back and forth and graceful hand movement all added to extremely sensual and erotic dancing. On the other hand the boys were macho, swinging their bodies doing mock fighting.  When the boys and girls came together to dance it was if the girls were teasing the boys with their suggestive movements and the boys chasing after them but with no luck. I can only imagine how exciting it would be to go to a traditional dance evening.

Being seated in the semi VIP area we were given afternoon tea with each person receiving a fruit juice and plate of 5 different cakes. At the end of the ceremony there was a football game between the two leading island teams. The crowd then relaxed and the cheering commenced. A man ran onto the pitch and attacked the linesman. The crowd when quite and swarms of police took to the field. The game was stopped and by now several offenders were dragged off. When discussing the event with one of the locals after the game she said the reason the crowd went quite was that they were embarrassed by the incident in front of the dignitaries and on such a special day.  This response very much reflects the type of people that make up this island.  They are friendly, gentle and honest people.

Off to church
The majority of the 38,000 islanders are Catholics. Shrines to the Virgin Mary are found on the side of the road across the island. On Saturday afternoon while roaming around the town I found a large Catholic Church and checked on the times for mass on Sunday. As I was standing on the road outside the church a very attractive long legged young negro lady came walking towards me. I was looking at her and her at me. She then blessed herself as she passed me. I thought what does she know about me that I don’t or was she feeling sorry for me “the poor old bugger”. No not all.  This is what people do when they walk past a church. It brought back memories when we were kids and the mass was said in Latin and you fasted three hours before mass so you could receiver communion.

At the mass on Sunday I did not understand a word although the actions and the timing on kneeling and standing and the rest of it was the same. Those at mass are just like us putting their heart and soul into the final hymn knowing that the service was all over.

Meeting the locals
The locals are decedents of Negros who were first brought to Mauritius to work the sugar cane fields. Today they lead a very peaceful and humble life. You can easily travel around the island that is only some 14 kms long and 4 kms wide. It is made up of a mountain range that runs down the middle of the island. Admittedly the bus is a little rough but it is a wonderful way to see the island and meet the people. You climb steeply up the hills passing lots of vegetable gardens growing corn, bananas, paw paws and other fresh fruit and vegetables. The land is tilled by hand. When you want to get off the bus you pull a string that rings a pushbike bell. The bus stops and then the people stand up and fight their way to the front door. Could you image doing that on a Sydney bus. It seemed unusual at first waiting to see who was going to get off. They do not rush; it is just part of what they are.

People start work early in the morning but also finish early. By 3.30 in the afternoon most of the shops have pulled down their shutters and the workers have headed home. On a walk along a beach road one afternoon I was delighted to see men playing checkers, others playing cards. Crowds gather around them and there is much chatter and laughter. Games of soccer were taking place on the sport ovals, others were playing ball, you know throwing the metal balls. A group of women had gathered to play netball and their was no holding back by the players. As one of the local businessman said to me “We like to work hard but we also want time to socialize and enjoy each other.” You have to wonder who has got it right.

On one afternoon’s bus trip school children were heading home. All very polite, shy and neatly dressed. Little peanuts, 5 year olds climbed on the bus with 3 of 4 fitting on to a seat. They sat quietly chatting away wearing back packs almost their size. At their stops they would jump off and head into the bush to their village, happy as you could be. One little girl climbed onto the bus, saw a relative and leapt onto her lap and did not stop talking or laughing. All the girls had their hair very neatly tired back or paltered with colourful beads and ribbons bouncing around.

Having been at sea for a couple of weeks I was looking forward to eating out. The most expensive restaurant with exceptional service served meals where the main course was $10 and a bottle of wine from Mauritius another $8. I found a lunch time café where the local office workers went. There were 6 items on the menu and a rice curry with a curry soup and salad cost $2.50. The waitress and all working in the café wore hair nets as did the street venders. The food was good quality and tasty. Every table has a bowl of green chilly paste and a container with sweet garlic water.  The street venders sell a bowl of soup with meat, chicken and vegetable balls topped with a garlic source. For 50 cents you could have a bowl of noodles with thin strips of chicken and vegetables again with the garlic water. It must have been good quality food as their were no delayed reactions.

I had many people visit the boat. A group of young people cleaning the wharf reception area were standing on the wharf looking at the boats. I invited them to come and have a look and a dozen of them quickly removed their shoes and quickly climbed onto the boat. The girl that spoke good English translated for me and they loved the television mounted at the end of the bunk. The crews from the tug boats and those that I met along the way would come and have a look over the boat and spend a little time talking about my adventures. These were special moments.

Next stop
I hope to be Mauritius for about a week with time to catch up with fellow yachties, have a look around and meet the locals.

A huge thank you to all of you that have rung over the past couple of weeks, left comments on the blog or sent emails. It is an absolute pleasure to know lovely people..

I am still having the time of my life and always grateful to many for the opportunity.

Love to you all
Peter

Thank you to my supporters:

Medical Industries Australia for an extensive offshore medical kit
JSE Marine Electrical for extensive spare parts and tools
Endeavour Marine for spare parts for the Volvo Penta engine