Mont Choisy Beach, situated on the island’s north coast, 5 km from Grand Baie and 20 km from Port Louis, is the longest and one of the most popular beaches in Mauritius. It is relatively undeveloped compared to other popular Mauritian beaches. Resorts are found only to its north and south, while the entire beachfront is bordered by broad untouched woodland. Besides its natural charm, it holds historical significance as the site of the country’s first horse race and airplane landing. Capping off our full-day tour of northern Mauritius, we visited Mont Choisy on a mellow Sunday afternoon.
Coming from Grand Baie, which felt deserted, the crowd at Mont Choisy took me by surprise. I supposed it must have been some special public holiday except for a casual Sunday. Trippers still arrived in busloads, even though it’d get dark soon. The wide casuarina grove that flanked the beach teemed with parked cars, queue-lined food canteens, and weekenders’ encampments. Music, laughter, appetizing smells, and merriment imbued the atmosphere.
Beyond the grove, facing an orange sun above the oceanic horizon, the strand bustled with people. Large groups of locals and a few tourists were scattered along the entire length of the beach. Kids were busy with balls and toy shovels. Bathers were packed in the narrow swimming zone, demarcated by buoy lines just steps from the shore. We tossed our stuff on a free patch of sand and plunged into the sea, where we spent a long while splashing about and marveling at the descending sun.
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When the crowd thinned out, we went on a barefoot stroll along the plashing waves. Then a rollicking rhythm drew us back into the grove, where we witnessed a live band performing buoyant African tunes. It had attracted a reveling crowd of Afro-descendant Mauritians, beers in hand, dancing sensually to the infectious beat. For the first time in this country, I felt like I was truly in Africa.
After joining in the fun for a while, we looked for dinner and ended up at the Master Kebab canteen. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t recommend it. It started out well: the lad acted polite and promptly set up a plastic table on the beach for us to watch the sunset. But the evening took a disappointing turn when he charged triple the menu price for a mediocre meal and insisted on removing the table before we had even finished eating.
It was thoroughly dark when we rode off on the long return trip back home to Mahebourg.
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