Day 2 in Paradise

La Digue, Seychelles is equally as gorgeous as Mahe. Smaller in size and population with a more rural feel. It has a population of less than 3,000. The Seychelle Islands are located at least 36 hours by ship from anywhere, in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of northern Africa. Its primary method of transportation seems to be bicycles. Oh there is a smattering of cargo vehicles, but the residents and tourist bike or walk wherever they wish to go. Like Victoria, Mahe it is a hot tourist destination, its chief industries are fishing and agriculture.

I did not schedule a tour for this day, but felt perfectly safe jumping on the open tender to go ashore. Once on the tender, I paired up with my Aggie friends, Jan and Ronnie to explore the island. We had no particular agenda, just see what we could see on this lush, laidback island paradise. Of course at the end of the pier was the seemingly mandatory bar and restaurant on the right and several upscale gift shops across the street. I hit the first one in search of hair clips since I seemed to have misplaced most of those I brought with me. Eureka! I hit the mother load of hair clips, etc. as well as a nice selection of pretty little sand globes with tiny shells inside. They were more than happy to take euros, so purchases made I'm free to explore. The street was paved with I believe pavestones, neat, clean, in good repair, sidewalks alongside, but narrow. A real squeeze should two vehicles meet thereon. Plenty wide for the bikers, however. We noticed a small crowd gathered in front of an obviously new structure with many uniformed men standing at attention. Upon inquiry we learned it was the dedication of the newly completed police station. Good thing crime is practically non-existent here as it appeared that all the island's officers were at the ceremony. Having satisfied our curiosity, we turned and strolled down the shady side of the street. There we encountered the local bike rental stand, fresh fish "market", an upscale restaurant, a small stretch of public beach, an open-air produce market under a thatched roof and across the street, a library. Ronnie went to investigate the library and quickly returned announcing that they had free internet and air-conditioning! Remember these are tropical islands, temperature never too hot but somewhat humid. The initial attraction to Ronnie was the WIFI, for me the air-conditioning. Jan preferred to continue her stroll in search of the perfect picture to capture the essence of the island.

As it happened the WIFI was only available while using their computers, not cell phones. Undeterred, Ronnie made use of one of the computers while I struck up a conversation with the head librarian and her two assistants. They were well aware of a cruise ship being in port (not a common occurrence it seems) and had many questions of us. Where had we been most recently? Where was home for us? How long would we be traveling aboard the ship? Was it expensive? Where were we going next? All three obviously curious about the people who would undertake such a trip. It was a complete role reversal. We were the monkeys in the cage being studied. While their adult books were sparse, I noticed they had two children's sections - one English, the other French. I was offered a couple of their local daily newspapers to peruse and found them very interesting. Each had four or five pages of help wanted ads , as well as requests for scholarship applications sponsored by a local engineering firm. The scholarships seemed to be a full ride to a specific university in India, if the recipient agreed to return to La Digue upon graduation. Noting all the help wanted ads for everything from menial labor to professional positions, I asked one of my new friends if unemployment was very low? She turned up her nose, shook her head and raised her hand toward the ceiling and said, "They don't want to work" with more than a little disgust in her voice. I might be hard pressed to want to work in this heaven on earth myself. Hoping not to overstay our welcome, when Jan joined us we thanked them and said our goodbyes and made our way back to the tender station then ship. Another wonderful experience in a long line of wonderful experiences.

The new police station dedication ceremony.

Need a bike, anyone?

A resident with his dinner purchase from the local fresh air market.

Main Street La Digue, Seychelles

Wall decorations over the French section of Children's books. Some things are indeed universal.

Beauty everywhere one looks.

The Insignia awaiting our return to take us on through the Indian Ocean into the Arabian Sea and Salalah, Oman. Three glorious sea days away, crossing the equator for the fourth time in the process.

Today Is Someday! Make It Count!