I was up by 7, ready for the day ahead. I was excited for the hike to the waterfall, but first I needed some breakfast to energize myself. At breakfast, I saw a number of our group members, but they did not look so hot or excited. They were not up to go hiking since they felt too tired from yesterday. This made no sense to me because all we did yesterday was go to the beach and .... drink (at least they did). I really hate alcohol sometimes, because it gets in the way of so many things, especially in a port like Mauritius where we only have two days and that is a place where we may never come to again. I despise when your trip plans are dependent on other's "feelings." I went to check on Dino, hoping that at least he would be ready to hike, but he was also too tired from last night. The group decided to just wander around the city. I couldn't go hiking by myself since it was the last day and it was not very close, and I didn't want to go to the beach again, so I did not really have a choice but to stick with them. So Michaella, Dino, Johnny, Nathalie, Nick, Krystal and I headed out to the waterfront, where we split between people who wanted to get internet, and others who wanted to go elsewhere. I stuck with the internet guys (Jacob, Nick, and Nathalie), but while they got internet, I wandered around the building and checked out the soveigner stores there. I got postcards and other such craft items, and saw a very tight store that had large models of ships. Nathalie and I went to the nearby post-office to get stamps, which was on the side of the city's old post-office which was now a museum. Around 11, we went to a restaurant right next to the Grillhouse from yesterday to get lunch. We ran into Ben, Megan, and Howard who were doing their own thing (smart, because groups of 3 or 4 are always best), and Kathleen and Chris who joined us. I got a pizza which tasted really good since it was my first pizza since leaving Halifax. Many of the others did the same, or got sandwiches or paninis. We then went to a nearby mall, and while looking at the various cart craft-vendors we immediately got separated again. Not willing to look for the others or wait around for them, Nathalie, Nick, Dino, and I went to the city's market, and wandered the streets for the next hour or so. The market was not very big and sold a lot of knick knacks (like plastic containers, shoes, toys), but it gave us a better feeling for life on the island. One thing that really tripped me out was the vast number of Indian people in this country. Not only that, but these Indians were speaking in French or Creole with each other, and not in Hindi, Gujarati, Tamil, or any other Indian language. I've never seen or heard of anything like this anywhere else. I also noticed here, and in other countries, that the most common street vendor product is shoes/slippers. These things were everywhere. Fortunately we found a few complexes/sections of the market that had touristy-products. Bargaining, however, was relatively difficult here I felt. Since the area was so touristy, it was more difficult to bargain because there were so many tourist who were probably so dumb that they would pay the full-first price or just barely bargain at all. When we reached the end of the street, we turned back and headed to the entrance of the market. There, Dino and Nick said they just wanted to go to the waterfront to get some stuff from the soveigner shops there. When we got there, Nathalie and I got separated from the two of them, but they had made of number of suggestions that they were tired and were just going to head back to the ship after that. So after considering our choices in front of us, Nathalie and I decided to just wander around the rest of the city and down random streets. We started by just walking around the port and all the complexes in that area. The day seemed more humid and warmer than yesterday, and all the boats we saw along the side of the port looked great in the bright sun. We also went back into the market area, and walked along the side streets towards the mountains. The city was very nice and pleasant as it had a very relaxed and peaceful environment. We got some more pineapple which was as delicious as yesterdays. We walked past stores, parks, factories, and even a Hindu temple. After wandering through another market like area, we found ourselves back at the waterfront. There, we spent our last remaining Rupees until it was time to head back to the ship. After taking a watertaxi, we got back to the ship with 45 minutes to spare, and there was already a long line. We were a little worried about not getting back on in time, however we easily made it with 25 minutes still to spare. It was pathetic to see a number of students coming back drunk, and even one who was a leg injury. After turning in my postcards, I went to dinner which was barbeque, so not great for me. But I say ice cream, and it was Pistachio ..... but with eggs....... GOD DAMMIT!!! At least the chili and fruit were good. I found myself having dinner with Mariah and her friends Ace (who I sat with on the bus ride from the Halifax airport to our hostels/hotels) and Devon (who was feeling much better but embarrassed from yesterday. We talked about our love for How I Met Your Mother and made plans to watch a movie later that day. Some good news we got was that they canceled Post-port meetings, which only made since practically everyone did about the same thing: beach, drink, relax, chill out, etc. I went to Ben's room to watch a few episodes of HIMYM before I headed back to the aft to watch us leave. I got to the back of the ship with 15 minutes to spare before undock time (8pm as usual), but I found us already moving. The one time I don't come to watch us undock 30 minutes before time, and they decide to leave early. I was kind of angry, but after all the frustrations of today, I thought maybe this was a sign: You won't get things you want a lot of times, so you have to be adaptable. I went to Mariah's room and chilled out with her and her friends (Andy, Luke, Devon, Ace, Suzah, and El) for some time. I had met Andy before, at duty-free in Ghana with Amy, and Luke last night at the sports bar with Dino. We then watched Lion King in Devon and Ace's room (with Luke and another friend, Gabe). It was pretty unreal to think that I met most of these people just in the last day or two, and I was already hanging out with them and watching a movie with them. Afterwards, I took my leave and went back to my room to catch up on journaling. I had received three emails earlier today from three different people on why I was not posting anymore blog entries for a long time. The simple answer: I don't have that much time right now (I'm caught with school, trips, and meeting more people). I also have a lot of work ahead of me: a history midterm, preparing for preport, and journaling, Mauritius, however, provided me with a much needed break, and I would love to come back sometime, but to be real, it is highly likely that I may never be able to come back. This place has caused me to realize many things. One thing I did realize/learn here in Mauritius: I need to meet more people so that I am not tied down by others and have more options in front of me. Plus, it's just nicer to know more people. Mauritius could have been a lot more fun if I hadn't been tied down by the actions of my group and had known more people doing things more pertaining to my interests. It wasn't like I didn't have a good time, I just know that it could have been better. But as Yash told me, you will have a "negative" experience eventually, but it will teach you a lot. So that's two for me now: Ronda trip and Mauritius. But he did not lie when he said that they would teach you a lot, because these two experience really have taught me a number of important things. So here's to meeting more people!
-Nimish
October 15, 2010
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