Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
around, but originals are extremely rare. The Galerie du Moulin Cassé (
Click here
)
in
Pereybère features some of his work.
Contemporary Mauritian art tends to be driven by the tourist market. One artist you'll
find reproduced everywhere is Vaco Baissac, instantly recognisable from the blocks of
colour outlined in black, like a stained-glass window. His Galerie Vaco (
Click here
)
is in
Grand Baie.
Other commercially successful artists include Danielle Hitié, who produces minutely
detailed renderings of markets as well as rural scenes, and Françoise Vrot, known for her
very expressive portraits of women fieldworkers. Both artists are exhibited in galleries in
Grand Baie, where Vrot also has her studio (
Click here
)
.
Keep an eye out for exhibitions by more innovative contemporary artists, such as Hervé
Masson, Serge Constantin, Henri Koombes and Khalid Nazroo. All have had some suc-
cess on the international scene, though are less visible locally.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Food & Drink
Mauritian cuisine is very similar across the island - a rich and delicious mix of Indian
spices and fresh local seafood and fish prepared with strong influences from Chinese,
French and African cuisine. The cuisine of Rodrigues is quite different - less spicy but
with more fresh fruit and beans used as ingredients.
Staples & Specialities
In Mauritius, rice, noodles, fish and seafood are the staples of everyday life, although to a
great extent what people eat depends on their ethnic background. A Sino-Mauritian may
well start the day with tea and noodles, a Franco-Mauritian with a
café au lait
and crois-
sant, and an Indo-Mauritian with a chapati. However, come lunchtime nearly everyone en-
joys a hot meal - whether it be a spicy seafood
carri
(curry) or
mines
(noodles) and a
cooling beer. Dinner is the main meal of the day and is usually eaten
en famille
(with fam-
ily). The Mauritians love their cocktail hour, and so you'll nearly always have an
apéro
(aperitif) or a
ti punch
(small punch) - usually a rum-based fruit cocktail. While meat is
widely eaten (especially in Chinese and French cuisine) - venison and wild boar are main-
