One of our favorite photographers here on the Island is PAUL CHOY.
PHOTO AND STORY TELLING CREDIT : All photos AND stories are copyright by PAUL CHOY – we copy paste from the website: https://www.walkmauritius.com
He is walking Mauritius and we walk with him – COME AND FOLLOW US …
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Pointe aux Piments to Baie du Tombeau
After the excitement of finally getting started on my long walk around the island of Mauritius, resuming my journey proved very much a reality check of the challenges ahead. In an ideal world I’d have done lots of training walks to prepare for the kind of daily distances my legs will be tackling, but of course that hasn’t been an option in Mauritius in recent months.
Already aching from the 12.1km of the day before, the 21km planned for day two suddenly seemed far more daunting than I had anticipated. Even my shoulder was screaming out, a reaction to the weight of my camera bag. Nonetheless, my spirits were high as I made my way to the start point, picking up where I left off the night before.
Port Louis to Albion
After leaving the city behind, I continued my walk ever westward, following the path along the ocean’s edge. The response from the people of Mauritius over the past few days has been incredible. With all the press and media coverage, word of my walk seems to have spread far and wide, and throughout the day people came over to say hello and wish me well for my journey.
The urban landscape of Port Louis quickly gave way to the countryside of the west coast. I soon found myself following the dirt tracks that weave a path through the sugar cane, heading towards the lighthouse in Albion.
Today was the first day since I began my walk that I felt a sense of rhythm to my journey. My legs are not as sore as they were after the first couple of days, and I have even found a way to carry my camera bag without the straps rubbing and bruising my shoulders. These are the realities of walking a half a marathon every day, which didn’t even occur to me when I first came up with the idea.
One of the most common questions people have asked since I first announced my journey around Mauritius is “Why walk? Why not drive or cycle around the island?” The reason is straightforward: walking allows me to meet the people I would never encounter if I wasn’t travelling slow enough to stop and say hello to the people I pass. People like Nani Doharoo, who I came across living on a quiet rural backstreet in Albion.
Sitting peacefully in her garden, watching the world go by, she gave me a look of bemusement as I emerged from the sugar cane near her house. She told me that she grew up in Grand Baie, but had spent the last 60 of her 89 years living in Albion. With so many stories to share, she was an incredible lady who I would never have met if I wasn’t exploring Mauritius on foot.
