Our flight to the Seychelles was a comfortable three hour flight to Mahe, the main island of the 1,215 islands that form the Seychelles and we seemed to be landing on water as the runway lies along the side of the bay. Many of us were caught out at the Health Check Desk as we had not been told that the Yellow Fever injection was mandatory, luckily we had to have it when we went to Ecuador some years ago, we were greeted in the arrival hall by smiling faces and transferred to the dock where the Royal Star was berthed for three nights. The captain, his officers and the cabin stewards were on Dock to greet us. The vessel only carries 200 passengers and has a crew of 170. The officers are Greek, the Cruise Team European and the service staff are from Indonesia or the Philippines. The ship was built in 1953, It is fully stabilised and air conditioned and is a delightful ship with teak decks, polished wood and gleaming brass interiors.

My travel alarm clock had refused to work since I dropped it in Mombassa so we booked a 07.00 call for the next morning as we had a full day tour of the island with Karen our guide. Our first stop was the Botanical gardens where she showed us the female Coco,de,Mer palm nut for which the islands are famous. These trees are only indigenous to the Seychelles , the female tree growing to twenty four metres and the male to thirty metres. Pollination is done by the wind, the nuts from both the male and female trees look like human sex organs. Karen told us that many of the plants in this garden come from around the world but they are building another garden in which only plants from the Seychelles will be planted. She pointed out the Seychelles lily and the frangipani, which is their national flower, we also saw the white tailed tropic bird and huge fruit bats, which the locals eat. Karen said the colony must have been disturbed, as they do not usually fly during the day. The Giant Aldabran tortoises that are land livers and only eat grass fascinated me, from here we headed to Victoria, the smallest Capital in the world. It was renamed for the Queen in 1903 two years after her death and at the same time as the British presented the islands with a small replica of Big Ben. Here we visited St Paul's Cathedral , 80 percent of the Seychelles people go to church , and saw the only island before visiting the fascinating fish and vegetable market which was alive with life and colour. It was great fun to watch the white egrets taking bits of fish from the end of each stall and to see a huge Heron perched on the roof above. Karen told us that some fruit and vegetables had to be imported to feed the 60,000 people on Mahe. ( 80,000 ) people in all live on the Seychelles ) Leaving the Capital we drove up the Sans Soucis road, the steepest and highest road on the island. As we travelled upward, Karen pointed out the highest peak at 905 metres, The entrance to the president's house and the five islands of St Annes, Long Island , once a prison , Cerf Island, Moyenne, and Round Island - once a leper colony , clustering in the bay, she also pointed out land that was being reclaimed and told us that Mahe is twenty- seven Kilometres long and 7-8 wide. It was discovered by Vaso Da Mama but unhinhabited until 1770 when it was settled by one French woman and twenty seven men. Our ultimate destination was Mission Lodge or Venn's Town, which was lived in from 1876 to 1903. In 1860, after slavery was abolished, some 26,750 freed slaves were brought here to work on the land. In 1876, a group of missionaries rented this unwanted land at the top of the mountain for 50 cents a year to provide a school for the freed slave's children. The only way into town was on horse back down a narrow track thus making it a lonely life for the children. From here we had a wonderful view of the South West coast. We also saw the few remaining of a once impressive avenue of Blood trees. We saw many tree plantations on the way down as well as one growing Lemon grass - the scent was delightful. Our morning stop was at the Berjaya Mahe hotel from where we had superb views of turquoise seas, Palm crowned islets, and Therese or Turtle Island. From here, we drove down the West coast to the Southern tip of the Island, where we had a wonderful Creole lunch at the Chez Batista restaurant right on Takamaka Beach. After lunch, we relaxed in cain chairs but many people swam or sun bathed on the beach. On the way back to the ship, we drove up the East coast and stopped at a craft village with twelve units selling local hand made things, Ken bought me a pair of earings made from a coconut. We also had a drink in one of the oldest colonial houses still in existence. As we passed the University Karen told us the children go to school from three and a half years old to sixteen years old - it is free , and compulsory , and learn French and English , Creole is usually spoken at home. Medical students do much of their training in South Africa where they have a lot of practise with trauma wounds. It was my birthday and that evening, the tablecloth was decorated with celebration confetti and the pillar with a "Happy Birthday" banner and balloons, I got a kiss from Mark our Filipino waiter, Alain, the Maitre d'hotel and Rick the head waiter. At the end of the meal I was presented with a birthday cake and a group of waiters playing maracas, drums and tambourines sang to me and I got yet more kisses, it was a truly memorable birthday.

We were not on deck at 05.00 on Friday morning, when the ship set sail to LaDigue and Praslin - two more islands off the Seychelles some 24 nautical miles away - but we were there when it anchored at 7.15. Praslin is most famous for the indescribably beautiful Valli de Mai where the unique double nutted Coc-de-Mer palm grows. We decided to explore La Digue. It is thought to be the most beautiful Island of the Seychelles with giant naturally sculptured granite boulders, stately green palms and brilliant white sands lapped by turquoise waters, six of us hired a bullock cart ten dollars each from Charlie he was seven years old, and made a visit to the Union Estate now an open air museum but once a vanilla plantation. Here we saw the old grave yard - now grazed by horses, the palm oil press turned by a cow, the Copra works, vanilla plants, and the president's summer residence once the plantation owners house, and several land tortoises aged from 30yrs to 90yrs before our slow journey back to Anse source d ' Argent beach with its most unusual rock formations, From here, there were wonderful views of the Royal Star and the island of Praslin behind it some four kilometres away. The last tender returned to the ship at 17.30 and at 18.00 we set sail for Nosy Be on Madagascar some 743 nautical miles away. That evening the theme of the dinner was Italian, The ship started to roll just after we started the meal. The cruise director informed us that it was always rough around this leg of the journey from May to September because it is then that the South Easterly Trade Winds are blowing. He said that both the dining room staff and cabin stewards had pills for sea sickness. After he left the Maitre d' came round with tablets but by the time we were half way through the meal people were turning white and rushing out of the dining room and only about half of us finished our meal, Ken felt a bit off but I was amazed to find I was ok, I do not consider myself a good sailor, people were being very sick, and we went to bed at 22.30.

On Sunday the sea was so rough; I would have slid out of bed if it had not been tucked in tight. We struggled up to breakfast then Ken went to visit the bridge, while there he was told that the winds in this area were usually force 4 at this time of year but on this trip they were over 8 and even some of the crew were suffering, people were asked not to go outside because the decks were wet and dangerous and the doors on the port side were locked. Dinner was the only meal that day when dishes and their contents did not crash on the floor.

On Monday morning we were tendered across to Nosy Be, which means big island in Malagasy, It is the third largest island in the world after Greenland and Borneo ( not counting Australia which is a continent) and the poorest with an average income of under 20dollars a month. Life expectancy for men is 37yrs and 40yrs for women. They are a happy people whose poverty does not seem to bother them and bartering is still their way of life. Our first stop was at the Russian monument. In 1904 to 1905 during the Russian Sino War, three ships and their crews were left here to make charcoal for the Russian fleet. For years they were forgotten about and many married local women so now there are black children with blue eyes and blonde hair. Our guide told us that schooling here is not compulsory and as it has to be paid for, many children especially the boys who are needed to work on the land never go to school. Indians own 80 percent of the shops but we saw many African stall holders in the local market in the capital Hellville where most of the 65.000 inhabitants live. Having once been a French Colony French and Malagasy are taught in schools. We saw many old Renault Reliant cars on the unpaved roads of the town. From here, we headed into the countryside to visit a Ylang - Ylang distillery where we learned how essential oil is produced from flowers and water. The flowers are picked in the early morning from trees that are crippled so they remain low enough to pick from. We were told that most of the oil goes to Grasse in France where it is the basic ingredient of many perfumes including Chanel No5 and Shalimar. We saw many barren rice paddies around the plantation- it grows in the rainy season that starts in November and Manioc another food staple, on our way to see the "sacred tree". According to belief a Banyan tree holds the souls of the people who pass away. We saw many offerings especially bottles of rum around its base. We also saw a prayer tree a short distance away. The people of the village where the tree is found make a living from coffee, they also distil rum from vanilla and ginger. We were given a sip. It was delicious but deadly and the after taste of ginger took my breath away. From here we headed to Djamandjay, the second largest town on the islands. Sugar plantations were all along the road. We stopped by one of the twelve lakes on the island but there was no swimming there, as crocodiles inhabit all of them. Our last stop before lunch was at a village belonging to one of the eighteen ethnic tribes of Madagascar. They have moved here from the South of the island of Madagascar to earn money by working in the hotels of sugar plantations. When they have done so they will return home. They build stilt houses from the travelling palm so water and snakes cannot get into them and the animals, geese a nd hens live under them. They always marry within their tribe. When a girl wants to wed, her lover gives a Zebu cow to her and one to her mother - a mans wealth is shown by the number of cattle he owns, they are killed and eaten when he dies then the skulls are put on poles around his grave. On Tuesday, a speed boat took us to Aampangorinana, the largest village on the island of Nosy Komba- Lemur Island - where we made a wet landing, on the way three dolphins swam very close to the boat. First we left our heavy bags in the hotel on the beach then Celeste our guide walked us slowly through the village. As we climbed the steep path she told us that the island covered 40 square kilometres and had a population of 3,500. She pointed out the local school that can only hold sixty children at a time so one group goes in the morning and another in the afternoon. One teacher teaches all ages. She also showed us the hospital where treatment is free and is run by one doctor. I was interested to learn that the people still use herbal medicines before they turn to modern ones. She told us that women used to have large families of ten to twelve children now family planning is encouraged and 3 or 4 are becoming the norm. The people looked prosperous. The women make money from their embroidery, and the men from wood carving, farming and fishing - most of which is sold at Nosy B. Faces are painted white with sandalwood to denote a single girl while faces painted yellow with tourmaline are for decoration and protection from the sun. The village was very clean. Celleste pointed out the stilt houses and told us that the thatched roofs had to be replaced every five years or so, she showed us Jackfruit, Banana, Breadfruit, mango and coffee trees-coffee brings in the biggest part of the familys income. They also grow rice in the rainy season- November to March and Manioc. We found the Lemurs at the edge of the village outside the park. The males are black and females brown. We were told that most of them get pregnant in May and give birth in November, they perch on peoples shoulders to be fed banana. I would not have one on mine. Retracing our steps we entered the Lemur Park but did not see any there as they had all been enticed to the village. However we saw turtles, and chameleons in enclosures and I was pleased to learn that the baby pythons had grown big enough to escape from their pen. Celeste pointed out the Roman Catholic Mission. She said that she as well as many villagers believed in the Transmutation of souls. She showed us the island on which they are buried and told us that after a year the bodies are dug up, put in small coffins and brought back to the village houses. She also believes that certain tees can grant wishes and when this happens they leave a litre of rum for the tree. We walked back to the village down a steep street lined with small shops I bought some necklaces made of seeds by the villagers then returned to the speed boat and ship. At 1700 we waved "Au revoir" to the Madagascan Islands and set sail for Mayotte some 194 nautical miles away.

The next day we had booked a trip to Mayotte- the Lagoon Island. The earliest traces of habitation here date from the 18th century when Bantu from East Africa settled it. The Arabs came later and finally the Sultan Andriantsouly sold it to France in 1841 after the British declined to buy it. In 1976, the other three Comoros Islands voted for their independence- a situation they now regret- while Mayotte voted to stay with the French republic. In 2010, it hopes to become French Overseas Department. Karen our guide told us that Mayotte has a land surface of 376 square kilometres and consists of two principle Islands Grande Terre and Petite Terre and some thirty islets. It is a volcanic island over nine million years old. It has a dry temperate season from May to October and a hot rainy season from November to April. She told us that the island is inhabited by 160,000 people, 98 percent who are Muslims. Women play an important role in the life of Mayotte. They own the land and houses and are influential in polotics. On our way to the first stop at the Vanilla and Ylang- Ylang Museum. Our Muslim and Malagasy driver told us it was now the wedding season, he stopped to show us women making food in large pots in courtyards, and men making wedding garlands, and a butcher cutting up a Zebu caw on the edge of the village,- not a pretty sight. At the museum we learned that Mr Guerlaine owned the surrounding Ylang- Ylang plantations but less money is being made from them as it and Vanilla can be bought elsewhere so much cheaper as things on Mayotte cost French prices plus 25 percent. The roads were dreadful narrow and winding as we drove up Chirongui Pass. Karen told us that every inhabitant is given a small piece of land on which they may grow seven types, Banana, Breadfruit, Mangoes, Manioc, Coconuts and Jackfruit. Some of them also grow Cotton Silk trees that produce Kapok. She said that 53 percent of the population was under twenty one. At the top of the pass we had a wonderful view of Mount Choungui that is 594 metre high, the Bay of Boueni and the Lagoon of Mayotte that is encircled by a 150 kms long coral reef. Many fish, several varieties of dolphin and two types of turtle including the green ones are found there, and from July to October whales come into the Lagoon- which has a surface of 1,000 square kilometres- with their new born calves. ( The people who went whale watching in the Lagoon saw two whales and about 250 dolphins ). On the return journey we stopped at the musical plage to see the biggest Baobab tree on the island- some 800 years old- and a mangrove swamp where Herons and Kingfishers are often seen. On our last stop I saw two Soulimonga sipping nectar from the flowers. They are a type of humming bird and endemic here, nearby the trees were full of sleeping fruit bats. We had a good view of a small off shore island that is a reserve for the little Maki a species of Lemur only found on Mayotte. At 16.00 we watched the ship leave Mayotte for Zanzibar.

We arrived at Zanzibar at 07.00 and an hour later the tender took us to the Old Dhow Harbour- a most interesting area, we boarded our bus and met our guide before driving to a spice plantation some miles away. On our way out of the city, He showed us Livingstone's house- now a government building- where the famous explorer prepared for his last expedition, as we drove through Ngambo- the new town- he told us that the island measures 50 by 20 kilometres and was settled by Somali settlers many centuries ago. He also told us that most people are Muslims and that schooling was free. At the plantation we saw how the Swahili people live in houses built of wood, mud and coconut palm leaves. He told us that a small farmer owns about four acres of land on which he grows annatto, which is used as a red colouring in food and to paint the faces and hands,- ginger, cinnamon,-camphor which comes from its roots- cacao, tumeric, vanilla, coconuts, chilli leaves, lycees, pepper, and the chief crop cloves. Three boys joined us on the tour. They made palm leaf baskets and then put spices in them for us. One showed us how to climb coconut trees, and another pointed out a Red Columbus Monkey, it's tail must have been about two feet long. We drove along the water front where we saw the Oman Portuguese Fortress and the House of Wonders before visiting the Sultan's Palace that is now a pharmacy, a beautiful 19th century building restored then given to the Aga Khan. From here we went to see the Anglican Church that is built on the previous site of the slave market. Slaves were lucky if they arrived on a Thursday as the sales were on Friday. If they arrived late up to seventy of them were squashed together on a concrete block in an underground slave chamber for about a week. There was one small window and the sea came in and washed all their excrement away twice a day. Our guide told us it was Africans who made slaves of Africans. The slaves carried skins and ivory from the interior of Africa to the coast then were transferred to Zanzibar and sold first by the Portuguese for 200 years and then by the Arabs for another 200 years. In the Church we saw a memorial window to Livingston and the high altar that stands on the site of the slave whipping post. From here we took a short walk into Old Stone Town the capital of Zanzibar and now a world heritage site. I loved the old town where tall stone houses squeezed in narrow alleyways that date back to the second half of the C19th. The carved wooden doors and embellished balconies are delightful and some of the doors still have elephant spikes attached. Our last visit was the food market. The stench of fish and meat was not good for European stomachs. The spice market was delightful. The Spice Island of Zanzibar is delightful blessed with glorious beaches, coral reefs and fragrant clove plantations- for me it was the best day of our tour. The ship set sail for Mombassa 138 nautical miles away at 18.00. We arrived in Mombassa at 05.00 and collected our passports after the customs official had been aboard. Too soon we returned home after our wonderful travel experience with so many unforgettable memories.

By Ruth Malton



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