It's true; Mauritius is not usually thought to be a destination for hikers and mountaineers. Consider the tourist brochures depicting luxury hotels, fine white sands and blue lagoons. Think of the boredom of hearing that yet another couple is planning to take their honeymoon on a little bit of paradise in the Indian Ocean. Go on, you could even confuse Mauritius with the Maldives, and assume there are no mountains at all and that the country will soon be the first casualty of rising sea levels. More...

The first thing that comes to mind when we speak of Mauritius is a postcard picture of a sandy beach and a palm tree; but Mauritius also has other great things to offer. Here is a snapshot of my one-week stay in this little paradise.

An interesting fact about Mauritius is that most of the population speak at least three languages. Although the official language is English, this is mainly used for administration; Mauritian Creole is spoken at home with friends and family, and French is used in most of the media and at work.

Since it’s in the southern hemisphere, the Mauritius’ seasons are the opposite of ours. But in general the weather is nice all year long. The heat is always pleasant, never unbearable. Staying at the north of the island was a good choice as this is the driest and warmest place in Mauritius. More...

Flying into Mauritius, after a 12-hour flight crossing the Mediterranean, the Sahara and the western Indian Ocean, our pilot lost his place in the queue for the runway. So began an impromptu aerial tour of the island. This gave me a perspective of things to come: oddly shaped volcanic peaks jutting out of lush green fields of sugar cane; streams and rivers criss-crossing a landscape dotted with lakes and reservoirs; and a fine coastline, remarkable for its white sands and blue lagoons.

The plane landed, and I came back down to earth.

I spent the next four weeks trying to understand the complexity of the island. Being relatively small – slightly smaller than Britain's Lake District – it is possible to cover the whole of Mauritius in a single trip, gaining a global understanding of its history, geography and people. More...