Rugged landscapes and exotic cuisines await adventurous visitors to La Reunion
- Published: 22/07/2010 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: Horizons
You can forget quaint notions of an isolated backwater where time is measured in tomorrows; La R?union is very much with us in the modern world.
Paragliding allows you to get a bird’s-eye view of La Re´union’s azure waters and the coral reef beneath it. The excitement of paragliding reaches new heights on La Re´union, where sharp drops in altitude offer those game enough to fly spectacular views over the landscapes and coastline. Europeans accustomed to bad weather revel in Re´union’s agreeable microclimates, which offer more than 300 flying days per year. Neophytes can enjoy the comfort of tandem flights with highly experienced instructors; make a running leap, take a seat, and enjoy the show!
A bit of France in the Indian Ocean, La R?union is as much a part of l'Hexagone as Bordeaux or Burgundy; the few bottles of wine produced on the slopes of this French d?partement, though, rarely leave the island _ except perhaps in duty-free bags carried off by lucky visitors travelling home to less endowed parts of the world where verdant forests, coral reefs, and benevolent volcanoes remain exotic items of curiosity.
These and many other appealing sights await visitors to La R?union, easily reached by a simple, nonstop flight from Bangkok.
Just how much a part of France La R?union is will be revealed on arrival, where such Gallic mainstays as Carrefour supermarkets, Mr Bricolage hardware shops, and Paul, the divine breadmaker, exert the same irresistible force over island consumers as over their continental counterparts.
That's where the similarities end, for La R?union is a uniquely attractive destination; in a world of fierce competition for tourism revenue, La R?union's typically French nonchalance toward the marketability of its charms is finally being challenged by a tourism board presented with the enviable task of bringing more visitors to an island bursting with beautiful scenery, diverse activities, and cultural appeal complementing a variety of microclimates from coastal tropical to highland chill.
Visitors are spoiled with choices of entertainment, too. What to do today? Moonwalk across the lunar-like Plaine des Sables (Plain Of Sands), float over the beach in a morning of paragliding, or fly over dramatic landscapes in a helicopter, the most popular activity of all?
Helicopter rides are well worth the outlay to enjoy the splendid experience of seeing La R?union's magnificent scenery from above. After the excitement of the morning settles down, lunch will be a bonanza of flavours, as are all other meals on an island where the local cuisine cr?ole takes your tastebuds out for a night on the town at every encounter with a tasty m?lange of French, Indian, African, Malagasy, and Chinese influences.
When brave enough to pull yourself away from the table, the nightclubs pulsing with s?ga will welcome you to dance the night away.
On the island itself, the best thing to do is sit back, relax, and enjoy the views. Let's do that now, shall we?
Only three million years old, La Re´union is a very young island in geological terms. It hasn’t been around long enough for the evolution of large species of animals, and birdlife is more pelagic than continental. There are no snakes or other nasties on the ground, so kids can explore the landscapes without parental worry when off chasing colourful lizards like this Re´union Island Day Gecko (Phelsuma borbonica borbonica) a diurnal species found only on La Re´union.
La Voile de la Marie´e does indeed resemble a bridal veil. Waterfalls are a common sight on La Re´union, adding an aqueous element to the landscape even when away from the sea. Abundant rainfall keeps the waters flowing, though sunshine is by no means a stranger to this bit of land between Mauritius and Madagascar, just north of the Tropic of Capricorn.
Le Trou de Fer is the location of some of La Re´union’s most scenic waterfalls, which here drop 300 metres to the canyon below. They are best viewed by helicopter; an expert pilot will enliven the trip with acrobatic turns to make sure the experience is not soon forgotten.
Helicopter flightseeing tours are the island’s most appealing activity. A 45-minute tour takes you over the entire island and enjoy the spectacular scenery that ranges from beautiful coastline to ethereal waterfalls to the inside of a volcanic crater. Small villages in remote mountains are normal sights, but that never reduces the impression made when coming across their life at the edge-literally. Such villages, called ‘ıˆlets’, are in fact islets, albeit the landlocked kind.
Salazie, one of the island’s three cirques, is one of the wettest places on the planet and holds many records for most precipitation in a day, week, month, and year (7 metres). The rain also makes Salazie one of the most beautifully luxuriant places on Earth, with flowers and exotic vegetation creating a green world where fresh, clean water is never in shortage.
La Plaine des Sables is La Re´union’s no man’s land between the lunar landscapes surrounding Piton de la Fournaise, the island’s second-highest volcano, and its more terrestrial counterparts, most of which are carpeted with dense, green vegetation. The stark expanse of volcanic basalt leaves a lasting impression.
Piton de la Fournaise (2631m) is La Re´union’s second-highest peak, after Piton des Neiges (3070m), where indeed snow is not unheard of. The most accessible of the island’s high peaks, Piton de la Fournaise is a favourite destination for hikers, geologists, and others curious to explore the unusual volcanic landscape. Impressive, too, is the fast rise in altitude on the island: Piton de la Fournaise is only a short drive from the coast.
Boucan Canot is the best beach on the island. Beaches are only found on Re´union’s western coast, where the coral reefs are also located and most easily accessible; the rest of the island belies its volcanic origins in steep, black cliffs with few openings to the sea. Europeans escaping winter make up the biggest portion of visitors, though the most temperate weather comes in summer.
Cap Me´chant is one of the most scenic spots on the island. Wicked it may be in name, but beautiful it is in reality, even if currents swirling offshore are treacherous. Paths along Cap Me´chant’s cliffs lead through primeval forest and reveal the wild side of La Re´union.
Extreme sports enthusiasts will be in their element on La Re´union. With its steep terrain, this place is a mountaineer’s paradise. For those who prefer the sea. Surfing is one of the most popular water activities on La Re´union, with the town of Saint Leu serving as Surfer Central thanks to the challenge of its lefthanded waves. Surfing is a bigtime sport throughout France, though the continental charms of Biarritz are miles away—literally and figuratively—from the surf of the Indian Ocean. With France home to one of Europe’s most avid surfing cultures, La Re´union provides French surfies with an exotic locale to pursue their sport without leaving the country.
Caves are found all over the island. Volcanic caves are formed horizontally from lava flowing through them, then dissipating, meaning that Re´union’s caves are drier than ordinary caves. They provide ideal roosting spots for swallows, which fly deep into the caves in total darkness, using echolocation to find their nests built attached to the cave ceiling.
Before tourism became itinerant gold, sugarcane was the island’s lifeblood. It’s hard to imagine a time when everyday food items we take for granted were instead highly coveted and expensive ingredients. Europe’s insatiable craving for sugar saw sugarcane production become a staple crop on the island, not only for the sugar itself, but for the rum made from it. Today, the Re´unionnais still enjoy their rum, often mixed with exotic fruit juices to stave off the heat of the day. Re´union produces more than 200,000 tonnes of sugarcane annually; the crushed stalks, called bagasse, are burned after cane extraction and produce 25% of the island’s electricity. The process is greenhouse neutral since the amount of carbon dioxide emitted in the burning is equal to the amount absorbed by the plant during growth.
Sabine, the affable owner of Chez Sabine, welcomes guests to her home for a truly special Cre´ole dining experience. Roots in both France and Asia and a Chinese husband have had Sabine preparing ame´lange of dishes for decades. She hosts lunches and dinners in her lovely home, where herbs and spices are grown in the garden and guests palates are tantalised in the dining room.
Bananas prepared Cre´ole style, saute´ed in butter and sugar in a big iron pan and finished with the flourish of rum flambed at the table. Cre´ole cooking incorporates a whole range of cuisines and ingredients; from classic French be´chamel to Indian curry to Chinese sweet and sour, the sauces of the islands are as well blended as the locals who savour their flavours.
As befits an island with rugged topography, fish and goat are popular dishes, especially when prepared in a Cre´ole massala.
Woven hats of La Re´union are famous for their craftsmanship, especially those made from the precious ‘paille de chouchou’. Particularly supple, the straw from the chouchou plant, originally from Mexico and imported to La Re´union, is used to this day to weave intricate designs both dyed and in its natural colour.
Hell-Bourg is famous for its Cre´ole architecture and the lengths its residents have gone to preserve and maintain it. Many homeowners in town have benefited from government subsidies to help offset the enormous cost of authentic restoration, which requires using the same materials as those of the original construction.
December is the date of Fet’ Caf, which is La Re´union’s biggest holiday. It was on this day in 1848 that 62,000 men, women, and children were simultaneously emancipated from slavery to become free citizens of France. On an island with a full calendar of festivals and parties, Fet’ Caf today is the island’s most joyous celebration.
he unusually named Hell-Bourg is La Re´union’s only member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France. The town honours one Admiral Hell, sent to La Re´union in 1838 to help put an end to slavery on the island; the admiral, born in Alsace, was especially fond of the cirque de Salazie. Today, Maison Folio is the town’s best-preserved historic home; still inhabited by elders of the Folio family, the public is welcome to marvel at both the house and the gardens.
Every major town on the island of La Re´union is named after a Catholic saint. The church of Sainte Anne is one of the most impressive, almost Hindu temple in appearance. Perhaps the construction workers from Tamil Nadu had more in the final say of the building’s appearance than the European architect.
La Maison du Volcan is one of the few volcano museums in the world. Located in La Plaine des Cafres near Piton de la Fournaise, the ‘Volcano House’ presents an interesting display of volcanic information as well as continuous films about the island’s ongoing volcanic activity. No need to worry, though; La Re´union’s volcanoes are not exploding volcanoes, but rather shield volcanoes typical of mid-ocean locations. Instead of building up unmanageable stress and blowing its top, a shield volcano oozes its lava less explosively to ease internal pressure. This being a French island, exceptional is much preferred to ordinary. Even the lava flowing from Re´union’s volcanoes is no ordinary lava. This sample shown in the smaller photo loaded with olivine, better known as the gemstone peridot.
About the author
- Writer: Robert La bua
- Position: Reporter
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