Pointe Des Galets (Port Reunion), Reunion Island; April 7, 2010Apr 7, 2010
|
|
Our escort into Port Reunion clearly shows the French influence of this...
Populated apartments & homes at Pointe Des Galets of Reunion Island &...
Homes, businesses & apartments scattered thoughout the sloping hills of Pointe Des...
| Welcome to Pointe Des Galets (Port Reunion), Reunion Island. Since it is one of the most familiar islands on the top of tourists destinations,............OK, just kidding our port of call is a relatively new port development, even though it has been a city for centuries and Reunion Island is a popular French & European vacation destination. Reunion island developed in the past as a French outpost from Mauritius Island before in the Spice trade to Europe. When the Suez Canal opened in the late 1800's, the frequency of stopovers & provisioning almost came to a standstill. It is close to Mauritius Island (about 120 miles) and almost 1350 miles away from Richard's Bay, South Africa, with Madagascar between. Today, Reunion Island is a populated, modern island (approx 800,000) that is the outermost "department" (sovereign territorial possession) that has the Euro as its currency. Ellie is still not feeling the best she should feel, so I stayed in with her & declined to take the long tours or even go into the town of St. Denis (about 10 miles away). We will have to visit these 2 modern, good tourists destination islands, that offer a lot of history, sightseeing, beach and water sports activities in our later "explorations". Therefore, I only have entry & exit photos of the immediate port area & the sprawling development of Pointe Des Gatlets around the port. This Island has lots of history (mostly Portuguese & French from the early 1600's-from the house of Bourbon & Napoleon) of seafaring & trade but was developed by prisoners from France and influx of Chinese, Indian & Malay immigrants from the 17th to 19th Centuries & lastly controlled by the Germans in WW2, until liberation in 1942 by the French. One of tours were was just about the most active volcano (most recent activity was Jan. 2nd, 2010!) & development on the eastern part of the island & the spice & sugar mills along the 10 hr. trip. We would liked to have visited both Mauritius & Reunion Islands but will have to put them on our "to do" list for the future. "Our World, Our Way, No Regrets!" |
Advertisement 
|
