There are a lot of elements to foreign travel and each of the dimensions combine together to give you a feel of the place. Be it the scenery, the food , the people , everything is a dimension on its own. One great way of foreign travel is to understand the lives of people, the economy of the place,means of livelihood, public transport, infrastructure, recreational activities etc.
Having said all this , I would walk you through the various aspects of daily lives of the residents of the inhabited islands of Seychelles
A lot of people in the island are dependent on tourism as their source of livelihood. We hired the person in the picture for a day tour to curieuse islands. I was amazed by the punctuality of this guy. In fact i found this to be the same with our driver who always came on or before our scheduled time. Same was the case with the public transport buses, always on time. I think for an economy so much dependent on tourism , there is nothing like not being on time
Weekly Bazaars are the place to be in your locality , it is one hell of a musical experience with some hip hop playing in cars parked on the road as you walk through smaller shops with take away options for juices, snacks, dinner , alcohol etc to shops to buy hats , skirts , souvenirs etc . Filled with colors , this was a total joyful experience indeed.
The only means of travel from one island to another is through a ferry and during our island hip hopping we found ourselves at the jetty quite a few times. One of these times was when we were at a 6 am for the ferry to La Digue. It was a similar feeling of that of a early airport flight with tourists and business people all at the one go. Really was amazed to see a person carry a radio in the age of mobile.
Next time you travel to a new place, carry a list of bus routes with you, it will not only lead to some savings but also will give you an opportunity to travel far and wide to not so publicized place of the city. I was impressed by the systematic bus service at Seychelles and also by the smart, aesthetically appealing bus stops at Seychelles. Especially no matter where you stay in Mahe , if you can get the bus timing to Victoria, you can always get a connecting bus to your desired location.
If you are Seychelles you can only eat the fruits locally grown for any fruits you carry from outside are taken at the airport. Jackfruit, lemons, papaya, mango, sweet lime,passion fruit etc were the most popular fruits on the island. Found this tasty mixed juice of mango and passion fruit and would highly recommend it to you. The picture above is of a very decorated fruit shop and the owner there was so courteous , some good juice was served at the right place and time.
If you are planning a longer stay in Mahe, you should go for a self catering place as a breakfast per person can go up to 20 euros and other meals up to 30-40 euros per person. In such a situation, you would love to visit the Victoria market , your one stop place for vegetables, eggs, fish, chicken, flowers, sweets etc. If on a shorter stay , you can always locate a smaller super market near your place of stay, a majority of these local super markets are run by Indians.
Come evening and you can see the locals by the beach , some engrossed in their evening football, some contemplating over a beer, some walk on the beach and once in a while you can see a dude blasting his speakers in a car with its engine modified.
Will do a post on street food, restaurant food etc , stay tuned for more.
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