Countries are products

I was surviving happily in Paris recently and talking about holidays.

I have been pretty annoyed, shoked by the attitude people had toward travelling.

Basically, they view the country they travel to like a product. They buy their holidays the same way they buy cheese…

Did you know that to sell Mauritius in Paris, the travel agencies give a warranty that their will be 10 days of  sun out of their 15 days of holidays.

The happy customer will buy a whole package: plane ticket, hotel and… SUN!!!

From this experience he will get nothing but a beach which he should consider a paradise. His idea of a paradise is a long white beach with sun.

They want a long white beach? We will give it to them! The hotel location has no white beaches, the sea shore is indeed beautiful but they don’t care. They want the beach. So, boats load up tons of sand, destroy the sea in the lagoon.

It’s the same guy who will explain that it’s so terrible to cut trees in the amazonian forest but they don’t realize that its their commercial attitude toward things that drives the business.

Talking about Mauritius, one of my friend is on holiday there now and he had to face a cyclone as soon as he arrived.
I mentioned it and they were all laughing like how much he planed it and now there’s no sun.

I tried to explain that having the experience of a cyclone is not necessarily a bad experience.
In Mauritius we face it with fascination for such a powerful demonstration from mother nature and we are scared too because it will destroy things. (nobody dies we have years of rehearsal).

My friend instead of laying on the beach has been completely taken cared of by my family.

Going to a country is to go there with the right attitude. It’s not just about laying on the beach and benefit from the much required sun. I can tell that in most mauritian heart their will be a warm welcome to you foreigner.

Enjoying Mauritius is about opening to the locals, not laying in the sun.

I already know the answer to that point. When I go to some places, I paid that much. I don’t necessarily want to talk to people. I just want to enjoy my sun peacefully, I paid for it.

Well, that’s my point and the circle is closed.

A cool movie showing Mauritius

France in English but also Mauritius in English.

I had this idea of showing something really nice about mauritius.

I’ve found a really nice movie on Mauritian Sega, our traditional dancing with porn of colorful dresses and shaking bellies.
I’ve also found this movie. I like it because it shows the bright and shiny part of Mauritius. It’s easy to guess that the average mauritian doesn’t spend his lifetime riding huge turtles and going at sea on sail boats. Yet it is accessible to us mauritians.

When I will return to Mauritius, I will do my own documentary of my island.

Enjoy!