Although I had heard of the Seychelles, I had no idea what or where they were prior to Holli booking our trip. Holli had dreamed of going there since her childhood because of some photographs in a calendar - the most beautiful beaches in the world...
As I learned, the Seychelles is an independent (~115) island nation in the Indian Ocean. Locals are taught English and French at school from first grade, and the locals speak various forms of Creole. The islands appear to be equidistant from the northern tip of Madagascar and the east coast of Somalia. One way or another, they are well over 500 miles from the nearest major land-mass, and 7 degrees (a couple of hundred miles) south of the equator.
The blue dot is a LOT bigger than the islands that it covers!
That is a long way from Amsterdam - farther than a trip home in fact. We flew Emirates (more on that shortly) out of Schiphol on Friday afternoon at 3:30, laid over from midnight to 02:00 in Dubai (two time zones east), and arrived in the Seychelles at 6:30. The total flight time was over 11 hours, largely in the same direction - as opposed to our trips home that often route through Atlanta. The girls were troopers, making it through the travel day pretty well ready to go once we arrived at the resort.
Eliza kicking it at the fabulous Dubai airport. Around 01:00...
This was not an easy trip for any of us, but I must take a few sentences to give it to Emirates: they have the nicest airplanes that I have ever flown (and we were nowhere near the front of the plane if you know what I mean). The seats were new, there was legroom, the TV screens were probably 15" - and they had a great selection of free movies and TV shows. The food was pretty good, the attendants were as nice as they could be (Eliza got a stuffed-animal blanket on at least two of the legs and a couple of Polaroids).
On the down-side, they didn't really have much of a beer selection, but then again neither does any airline. Oh - and the pilot-fatigue issue that was big in the news a few months ago. And the fact that the ownership is intertwined with the questionable government...
I don't have a feel for their pricing, but a quick search of prices from here to Dubai showed fares maybe 10% higher than KLM so they appear to be reasonably competitive. I will probably not fly with them again because a) I don't feel like I know who or what I am supporting, and b) because it is pretty doubtful I will fly anywhere they service (mostly south and east of the Middle-East).
On to more interesting topics!
We landed on the island of Mahé, the largest and most inhabited of the archipelago (77,000 of the 92,000 Seychellois live here). It is about twice the size of Amsterdam and less than half the size of Metro Louisville, but FAR less densely populated. The drive from the airport on the east coast to the west-coast cape where we stayed (Constance Ephelia) was 15 miles of switchbacks, jungle, struggling engines, and incredible sights.
Including this one, our first real view of the water after emerging from the jungle.
The resort was for the most part fantastic. Our villa included a jacuzzi, steam shower, sauna, and a lap pool - all of these were within the walls of our personal area... This was a new concept for me - I liked it! The one problem that I had with the place was that since it was so secluded we were all but forced to eat every meal there. Not that the food was bad (far from it) or boring (different themes nightly), or even expensive (marginally...) - my problem was with the dress code of all things!
Of the 10 restaurant options on the premises, all 10 include the following statement: Gentlemen, you are required to wear trousers. Now I was not planning to go "au natural", or to wear my Jams, but I WAS hoping to be comfortable during dinner. If even one of these 10 options included an indoor dining area (e.g. air conditioned - remember where this island is??), I would gladly have worn the single pair of "trousers" that I brought with me every night. Since tables with ambient temperature below 82°F was not an option, I complained a lot (but only to Holli).
The rest of the stay was great - the beaches were beautiful, we got out of the resort to see some other things a couple of times, and we got to do a lot of swimming in perfect water.
Another picture of her catching some z's... It is only at times like these that we realize that she is still very young!
It is really incredible how well she keeps up with the rest of us.
We came home to find this one night!
And this on another night!
This may be the only group picture we got during the week, taken while on one of the surrounding islands.
Lucy is getting into gymnastics. When she's on land she's doing cartwheels.
Our one "big" outing was to the island named La Digue, which I believe is supposed to be the home of the most beautiful beaches in the world (according to Holli's calendar from the 80's). Despite the less-than-ideal weather, I would have trouble contradicting that claim.
It was a long, crowded, and sometimes wet boat ride from Mahe to La Digue.
But the boat was going much faster than the Canal Tours in the 'Dam so the girls were happy!
After getting drenched by rain water running off of the roof the second time, I decided to stand for the rest of the trip.
Lucy likes me, so she joined (Eliza too - hiding on the other side).
The first stop on La Digue was an old coconut plantation where there was not a great deal of automation in evidence. The picked coconuts were piled up next to a man who would jam each one down onto a metal spike and peel the outer husk off. The spike was used to lever the husk away from the nut a little at a time, often requiring the worker to jam it sequentially several times before it finally gave way. This was hard work - no way around it as the fibrous husks are very tough!
I don't remember what they did with the "milk", but the shell and meat was tossed into a small mill where it was ground down until the oil could drain out the bottom. The final product smelled wonderful and was really nice!
The mill in operation.
The mill's motor
I loved this old tree that used to provide some shade for the plantation's cemetery. Reminded me of New Orleans.
We did finally make it to the beaches and they were unlike anything I've seen before. Reminded me a little of King Kong.
There was broken coral everywhere, but it is illegal to take it with you.
It's also a bad idea to rub stinky sea-stuff on your wife, thus my awkward pose.
This is the piece I was holding, after I gave it back to the beach. :(
As it grows, the coral is multicolored, but when it breaks off it slowly bleaches out as it dies.
We made one other stop of interest during the day at the Vallee du Mai Nature Reserve. There, we learned all about the cocoa de mer, which has to be the most fascinating nut there is, despite the current presidential race. The lifespan (among other things) mimics that of humans: There are separate (and very distinct) male and female plants; the plants reach maturity between 15 and 20 years, at which point they can reproduce; Geckos transfer pollen (which they eat) from the male "parts" to the female tree to complete the pollination cycle. Once the nut falls from the tree, it site on top of the forest floor as it germinates, which takes a few months. Then a new tree shoots up - it looked like you could just grab the tree and throw it in the back seat and take it with you for the first couple of years! I don't know when the roots get established, but they were not obvious for the many juvenile plants we saw!
Holli displaying some of the parts on display at the entry booth. Guess which is which!
The only other non-beach/ swim/ water thing we did was ziplining - lots of fun was had by all!
Holli's first time doing this - she loved it.
The view was worth the climb (especially since we took a golf cart up).
Back in the water, we took advantage of the waterproof case that Clayton gave me for my phone a few years ago to get some cool pics.
Lucy spent more time under the water than above it on this trip.
She's gotten quite good at snorkeling!
Couldn't quite believe this was really a clam at first - looks like a jack-o-lantern!
Black Parrot fish?
Green/ blue parrot fish?
Lots of land-based wildlife as well:
That's a real turtle, despite its looking like a clay sculpture.
They get much bigger! There were packs of these guys just about everywhere we went.
There were also a tremendous amount of fruit bats - they seemed huge!
This guy was had a body the size of a softball, but he would not come out to play.
This one was much more friendly!
Lots of geckos as well - not a single one tried to sell me car insurance.
Here are a few final shots of the fairer members of the family
And back "home" the day after we get back, I'm biking through this:
The girls had a 5-day Easter weekend for which we had not made hard and fast plans, so we took the opportunity to drive south into France to see some fancy houses. I will stop short of using the literal translation of chateau, since to me a castle is more of a military installation than a grand house with some towers. That being said, they were incredible!
When I began looking at the route, I saw that we would be passing some other areas of interest (to me at least), so the "trip" began well before we reached the Belgian border with a stop at Slot Loevestein, "The Most Famous Castle in the Netherlands." As it turned out, the castle itself was closed that day but we were able to walk around the grounds and the kids got to try out some of the activities (firing a cannon, making gunpowder, etc... All simulated of course).
We also passed close by the American Cemetery in the Somme, so we made a brief stop there before continuing on to Reims for the night. For those that aren't familiar with the Battle of the Somme, it took place during World War I (1916, before the U.S. got involved). It was one of the worst battles of the war (in all of history as a matter of fact), resulting in over a million (French, English, and German) casualties over more than 4 months of fighting.
One thousand, eight hundred forty-four American soldiers are buried in the cemetery, including 138 unknown markers and excluding 333 names of those MIA that are inscribed on the chapel walls. The vast majority of these soldiers died during the last 6 months of the war (May 28 to November 11, 1918).
The flag was at half-mast as a result of the terrorist attack in Brussels
Taittinger & Reims
We spent our first night in the city of Reims, which is about half-way between Paris and the Luxembourg border. More importantly, it is considered the capital of the Champagne region! We toured the grounds and under-grounds of the Taittinger, which was quite fascinating. The caves beneath the buildings date to the 4th century Roman era, when they were chalk mines. The soft rock was carved out block by block and used to build the local Roman cities. Many centuries later, they served as the cellars for the Abbey of Saint Nicaise, which was stunning. At least based on the scale model located in the Taittinger lobby. The abbey itself was destroyed by the French during the Revolution. Vive la France!
The staircase leading from the reception area to the caverns.
An old stairway leading to the Abbey. Well, to a wall where the abbey used to be.
The caves/ caverns served as a shelter during the first World War.
With hundreds of residents living in the caves (possibly thousands - it seems like the guide said thousands or more but it's just hard to believe), there were bound to be a few artists (or vandals depending on your viewpoint).
The walls are soft enough to easily scratch with your fingernail, so it is quite a tantalizing canvas.
They actually DO use the caves to store champagne, and a lot of it. There were multiple cubbies like this, and we saw only a small percentage of the cave network.
Some of the bottles are stored in these racks, where they are easily accessible for turning. This is done many times over the course of months to encourage the sediment to settle to the cork-end of the bottle. They eventually pop the cork to allow the sediment to blow out, top it off with some fresh wine, and put a new cork in!
Eliza chatting up the staff, hoping for something shiny to be given away.
The outside of the Notre Dame Cathedral of Reims. Not as grand as Paris', but quite beautiful.
French kings were coronated here for many centuries.
We immediately recognized the work of Chagall, installed in 1974. Taken on Good Friday!
Chambord
We passed by Chambord later that day but did not make it in time to see the inside.
This view was enough to make us forget about the Dutch castle and look forward to the next morning!
This place was so over the top that I won't even begin to describe the history, or how I feel about monarchic waste. Suffice to say I was in awe and I would never want to live there - especially if I had to pay any of the bills! As it turns out, the king that ordered it built (Francis I) agreed with me (despite having the peasants to pay the bills). After nearly 3 decades of construction, he spent a total of about 40 days there - all short hunting trips!
From the other side, in a little worse weather. Eliza didn't mind as much as her mother.
The double-helix staircase - pretty cool.
The center of the stairway, looking up. (Photo by Holli, as are some of the others)
Same stairwell, looking down from the top.
Some sort of strange light effect in play caused all of the pictures to be striped - maybe an LED?
A ceiling detail, which was duplicated throughout the ceiling.
The exterior was more impressive to me.
The girls really enjoyed this one!
Need the super-zoom to see them!
Cheverny
was our next stop. This one - like all of the chateaux other than Chambord - I had never previously heard of. It was relatively unimpressive compared to the first stop (perhaps we should have saved that one for last?), but as Holli pointed out the inside WAS beautiful. The interesting things to me, however, were mostly outside.
The Chateau itself, along with three beautiful ornaments.
That rack on the wall was HUGE! And the spot where it is mounted represents the height of the monster's head - well above the 5'6" suit of armor that's on a 1' tall pedestal.
As big as that beast was, it doesn't compare to this young Giant Sequoia! I initially mistook it for a redwood, but a sign corrected me and let me know it was planted in 1870. Jon Mansfield and I had a nice discussion about it after I immediately sent him a pic - we first encountered these during the AIChE National Convention in San Francisco back in 1994.
The hounds here are apparently famous. I was impressed by their size - and friendliness.
We worked up an appetite and had a bite at the local Pinocchio's Pizza.
Chenonceau
This place was amazing, and probably the only one of the places that we visited that I would love to own. It has a great history, spans a river, and is a rainbow-magnet.
Yes. It's real. And it's mine (the photo). ;)
From the entry walk
From the same side as the rainbow picture - how cool is this?
And yes I'm going to bore you with yet another exterior shot from the other side.
Groceries can be delivered directly to the kitchen by boat via the channel directly beneath the main structure.
Last one.
This was taken from the window above our heads in the previous picture (we were standing where the people are).
The ceiling of one of the hallways.
A fireplace at one end of the bridge-section of the chateau. They like big fireplaces. And big logs.
Villandry
This one was very cool as well. Incredible gardens and good history.
That contraption on the wall to the left of the stove - can you guess what it is?
I loved this old church just outside of the property walls.
Etc...
A couple of other pics of interest from places we didn't actually visit (just walked/ drove by).
Chateau d'Amboise (Holli got this from a moving car!)
The Mairie de Tours (City Hall of Tours, France), lit in the colors of the Belgian flag
Although strictly speaking this is cheating (since it is a screenshot from Google Maps), I feel compelled to include it since we passed by there and I grabbed a screenshot of the map on my phone. Taking an actual picture of this would have required a U-turn on the highway and the family was NOT in the mood. A little bit of high-tech detective work and I was able to locate and identify it!
It looks the same on the other side of the road - as if it was continuous (something like a pipe-rack), but they had to cut it away to put the highway through. Guesses?
This is part of the rather extensive leftovers of a French experiment from the 60's through the 70's called the Aérotrain. It was supposed to be a high-speed, low friction (since it rode on a cushion of air) means of public transport among larger cities.
This was way off the main blog topic, so I'll leave the details to the linked website (in French, use Chrome to open it and it will translate for you). It was just one of those mysteries that I see on the road from time to time that I was glad to have tracked down!
