Mauritius

We're still in Africa for our 138th country (can you tell I'm trying to knock some of those out?), but at least this time we get an island nation. Island nation = seafood which makes me happy, as long as it isn't fish (shellfish I love though!) 

 If you're wondering how to pronounce this one, the -tius at the end is more like the ending to delicious. So, it's like  Moore- icious (I don't do the whole sounding out thing accurately, I know that, but I try. Anyway, Thanks for the assist, google. 

The island country of Mauritius is off the coast of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. It's one of those island paradise countries. Mark Twain once said 'you gather the idea that Mauritius was made first, then heaven, and that heaven was copied off of Mauritius.' 

Mauritius is a blend of African, Asian and European elements. Since the 1600's it's been ruled by African, Indian, Chinese, Dutch, and French settlers. It also makes for some interesting architecture on the island (you'll find a lot of colonial style buildings from the French in the 18th century). 

It also has the distinction of being the only African country with a Hindu majority (52%). Every year half a million Hindu pilgrims travel to the Holy Lake of Grand Bassin to honor Shiva. The celebration is three days long, and one of the most important Hindu celebrations. 

Some tensions exist between the Christians, the Hindus and the Creoles, but for the most part people are respectful and tolerant of each other. 

Every time I teach a country I think about the one thing the boys will remember about the country, and this one was easy, enter the Dodo bird. 

The Dodo is as symbolic to Mauritius as the panda is to China (shout out to my Aunt Patti who is IN China seeing Pandas!)  or the kangaroo is to Australia. Of course, the Dodos have been extinct for hundreds of years (the last sighting of  was recorded in 1688). The birds stood a little over 3 feet tall, weighed about 40 pounds, and lived in just one place in the world world: Mauritius. 

Dodos were bulk and slow with short wings that prevented it from flying. Their little short stubby legs had just four toes. They were easy prey, and said to taste delicious. 

So, it's not exactly hard to see how these guys became extinct. But in Mauritius, the kids are taught to blame the Dutch. It's said when they colonized the island, they ate all the Dodos until they were extinct. Dutch research blames foreign animals sailors brought to the island. 

Our landmark had to be a nod to the Dodo bird, so we went with the Dodo Gallery at the Mauritius Natural History Museum. The gallery showcases old sketches and skeletons of the bird. 

In other Mauritius news, we talked Sugar Cane. It was once as sought after as gold in Mauritius. Today it is used to power a significant portion of the country. Visitors to the island often enjoy tours of the sugar cane fields and mills, where you'll see condensing extraction steam turbines.  At the end of the tour there's rum and sugar tastings. Sounds like a good time to me. 

Of course, an island country means prime diving spots. In Mauritius instead of diving, tourists go for an underwater walk. Special breathing helmets and walk along the sea floor and around the coral reefs (As we know, you don't want to walk ON reefs!) 

The boys made their Mauritius postcards. 

Calib's featured the underwater walk. 

Peyton included how many days it had been since Mauritius last changed power (since so many places occupied it). 

And Hayden included Shiva, the Dodo and Sugar Cane. 

For our Mauritius meal we had two dishes at the Coastal Eats booth at the Food and Wine Festival. We went with the Lump Crab Cake and the Baked Shrimp Scampi Dip. 

The Lump Crab Cake with Napa Cabbage Slaw and Avocado Lemongrass Cream was loved by everyone but Peyton (even after I let him try it without the cream on it.) But, it wasn't terribly unique. 

But oh my goodness. The Baked Shrimp Scampi Dip with Sourdough Bread is my new favorite festival item. They should probably give you more bread with it. But we had no shame eating some of it with a fork. It was creamy with lots of shrimp and buttery and delicious. 

Again, everyone but Peyton loved it. He made such a fan with the scampi dip, it was a bit of an overreaction, but I let it go. (See that face he's making? It was SO much worse when he had the TINIEST of bites). The rest of us though, big fans. 

Mauritius got one blue dot out there in the Indian Ocean past Madagascar. 

That's 138 down, 58 to go! 

Next Up: Sierra Leone