Seychelles - General Thoughts

Bottom line? The Seychelles is not quite the mythical paradise we thought it was. It has great physical beauty in its combination of mountains and water and beaches, and a great variety of interesting rock formations. The climate is warm and the people are friendly. But for those focused on snorkeling, as we were, it did not match many other easier-to-reach places we have been. The corals have not recovered from the 2004 devastation by El Nino. The food was not particularly memorable and the prices were outrageous.

The rock formations of the Seychelles are fascinating. And the beaches can be beautiful if the tides are right. Unfortunately, the legendary snorkeling in the adjacent waters turns out to be disappointing after trying 12 different places.

The flowers are not disappointing.

The Cannonball Tree is unbelievable. Fantastic aromatic flowers and melon-sized fruit that stink when they fall and split.

As a general rule it is not a good idea for snorkelers to go out on a boat with a majority of divers. They get priority and the tendency is to go to areas that are not ideal for snorkeling.

A horizontal horizon line makes a photo more enjoyable. Note snorkeler in the middle.

Hotel greetings written with leaves can be tolerated but an excess of useless pillows is a pain in the ass.

Bird Island. Tropical beaches generally look good in photos. But the photos tell you nothing about many important factors ---

Such as the tides - which were so low at the world-famous Anse Source d'Argent on the island of La Digue that we couldn't even swim, let alone snorkel.

The Valle de Mai on Praslin is the only place in the world where the sensuous coco-de-mer grows, a shapely coconut which some people think resembles part of a female body.

The coco-de-mer is grossly overused in souvenirs and decoration but it's hard not to love this oversized example

Landing strip, Bird Island. The De Haviland Twin Otter 300 and its later model the 400 are great small planes for short dirt and grass landing strips. The two engines get you up in the air in an unbelievably short distance.In the Seychelles it took us from Mahe to Bird Island to Praslin and back to Mahe.

The giant Aldabra Tortoises of Bird Island were unforgettable.

Raffle Hotel, Praslin. If there is a more wasteful thing than a private infinity plunge pool in a hotel I don't know what it is.

Tiny ants manage to penetrate even the most luxurious hotels. more power to them!

The villas at Raffles are mostly unwalkable. You must call an electric buggy to go anywhere.

Electric buggy transportation

Internal roads at Raffles

But still much confusing walking

And walking. Life in this hotel is much too isolated from the natural location.

A Lucky Day

Yesterday, Feb. 24, 2015, was the first Lucky Day Holiday in the history of Luckism™, the new philosophical way of life, also known as Neoligion™. It is a day to recognize the enormous role played in our lives by chance, randomness and unpredictability. And to acknowledge the importance of harmonizing with natural uncontrollable forces, rather than trying to control them completely. This can involve playing games of chance, observing the unknowable in personal and world affairs or, in this case, setting out to snorkel in three small islands of the Seychelles, Coco, the Sisters and Felicite.

Starting conditions were not auspicious. NW winds were blowing at about 25 knots, it was cloudy and swells were high. However, we managed to snorkel well at Coco and the Sisters by letting the boat drop us at one point and pick us up after we drifted with the rather strong current. Swimming against the current would have been futile. Conditions at Felicite were impossible so we substituted the small island of St. Pierre successfully. We saw turtles, squid, schools of many varieties of fish, needlefish, batfish, squirrelfish, parrotfish and lots of fish we will have to try to identify from books.

Then, we returned to the super-lux, over-the-top, corporate architectural, technological paradise of Raffles, where, on one evening I needed help from the staff to shut off the night light next to the bed and where I cannot move about without calling for an electric buggy. [Needless to say, it was chosen as the best resort in the world in 2014 by an organization whose discernment I cannot vouch for.]

The day ended with a meditation on the unbalanced "progress" of humanity and the need for more beautiful and harmonious lifestyles.

Leaving the 86 villas of Raffles, powered by 180 horsepower

Coco Island, uninhabited

Currents required prudence but were not dangerous. Much to see underneath, but not in the class of the Maldives.

St. Pierre. We snorkeled where the boats are.

With 21-year-old Captain Hakeem, a good pilot

Granitic islands, the coral was destroyed by El Nino in 2004 and is just beginning to come back. Fish are present. Water was crystal clear for the most part.

Part of the Sisters

A satisfied snorkeler faces the challenge of managing his villa.

The bedside control panel which I could not master. Nor could I set the clock in it.

A mystery easel in one corner. I am thinking of leaving the message. "True luxury is simple harmony with nature."

The switch on the right baffled me. I had to call and get help to shut off the night light.

Self-portrait after trying to figure out light switches

Absurd place to meditate on the state of the world and the future of humanity.

Bird Island, Seychelles

This most remote of the northern Seychelle Islands is a hotbed of sexuality - for birds and giant tortoises. For humans it is an ecological thrill.

The sound of bird calls from thousands of birds can be heard day and night. They have no fear of humans and nest and mate in close proximity to the cottages, some in bushes and tree trunks. The giant Aldabra tortoises are always around. On the beaches crabs abound, living in holes beside which are piles of sand from their digging the holes.

In the water there are abundant turtles and some decent snorkeling, depending on time and tide. We saw sting rays, sharks of the harmless nurse variety, needlefish, many schools of silvery fish, squirrel fish and many other varieties. Not in the same league as Palau, the Maldives or St. John but still interesting.

The head man of the island is Robbie. He knows everything about the flora and fauna. Almost daily he goes to one or more of the many marked turtle nests and digs up the hatched babies to release them into the sea.

Cottages are good with decent showers and toilets and a variable speed fan set inside the ceiling of the mosquito-netted bed. Birds enter the room freely if you leave the windows open for maximum ventilation as we did. Lizards take care of insects inside. Buffet meals are satisfactory with some unusual touches like germinating coconut desert and fresh heart of palm salad.

Now, on to Praslin Island and some luxury.

The fist-sized germinating coconut seed yields soft chunks of "meat" after the shell has been broken and the contents cooked and sweetened.

Frigate Birds fill the sky

Crabs fill the beaches

Birds fill the trees

Giant Aldabra Tortoises roam freely

Mother feeding chick at corner of dining room

Crab holes and excavated sand

Baby turtles after hatching

Closeup

Size comparison

Foreplay consists of dancing on the female's back

Climax

Release of baby turtles, supervised by Robbie, conservationist and de facto ruler of the island.

Another crab

Cottage interio

Cottage interior

Caught in the act.

Two more were attracted, one tried a sideways position.

The third gave chase

But the female found shelter under a low-hanging branch