We left Cocos two very long weeks ago and will hopefully arrive in Mauritius in 36 hours. This has been a tough trip with every type of wind and swell condition thrown our way. The food situation has become so boring that Matt just decided not to eat. The last of the eggs were past edible yesterday and there is only canned kale left for vegetables (no wonder Matt has stopped eating). Our fuel is low as we’ve had to motor for the last 48hours but we are pretty darn happy to be where we are.

The first half only took 6 days 15 hours

We are almost at Port Louis, Mauritius . Mauritius is an island country located off the eastern coast of  Africa only 500 miles from Madagascar. Mauritius was long uninhabited until the Dutch took possession in the late 1500s through to 1710. Pirates occupied it for many years until the French East India Company took over in 1721 and then the French Crown. In 1810 the British took over however in an unusual agreement the laws and language remained French. The French authorities brought African slaves to the colony, a practice which was discontinued in 1835. Mauritius became an independent state within the British Commonwealth in 1968. Mauritius is volcanic in origin and almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs.

Second half with no wind is more like 9 days

Mauritius today is tourist paradise with turquoise warm Indian Ocean water, white sand beaches, shopping bazaars, resorts, golf and some famous beach called “Flic en Flac” which has to be visited. It is unwise to get ahead of ourselves as we still have a lot to negotiate getting into Port Louis, however, we are hoping for some lovely chilled French rose’ and some decent food to be waiting for us.

No wind in our sails