Travel ideas, vacation planning

There are over one hundred islands in the Seychelles, but only a few of them are inhabited by people. The main island is Mahe, which is where the capitol city of Victoria is located, as well as most tourist accommodations and services.

On whatever island you find yourself booking a hotel, you will definitely want to explore some of the other islands that make up the Seychelles archipelago. Almost every island has some sort of endemic species living on it, most likely a bird. There are giant tortoises here, a well as other exotic animals such as the flying fox (really a fruit bat). The insects are something that will amaze you as well, including whip scorpions, giant millipedes, rhinoceros beetles, giant tenebrionid beetles, and palm spiders. But don’t get scared off from visiting the various islands: none are life threatening!

There are also dozens of endemic plants in the Seychelles, although Virgin forests exist only on Mahe and Silhouette Island, and on Praslin. One rare and fantastic plant to watch for is the pitcher plant, which feeds on insects!

National park on the Island & Main Attractions

Curieuse Marine National Park gaint torotises

Aldabra Marine Reserve tidal lagoon

Morne Seychellois National Park glacis habitats

Aride Island Marine Nature Reserve marine turtle

Praslin National Park coco de mer

Cousin Island Secial Reserve hawksbill turtles

Ste Anne Marine National Park coral reef

Things to do in Seychelles

The Seychelles Islands are for Nature Lovers

The Seychelles is the perfect vacation destination for lots of activities, but travelers who are interested in nature and the environment will be especially excited with all that this nation has to offer. The variety and splendor of the wild birds alone is spectacular, and you could spend weeks here, just observing the wild birds who come to roost on the various islands in the Seychelles archipelago. The tropical fish are of course wonderful as well, and snorkelers and divers alike consider the Seychelle a top destination for both activities. They Seychelles were not “discovered” by humans until relatively recently, which means there were no ships bringing foreign seeds and species to the islands, and development was delayed. This means that many of the species on the islands of the Seychelles are endemic. That means they evolved here, according to the specific local conditions, and are found nowhere else on earth! Many of the species are rare, and some are even extinct these days. Fortunately, the Seychellois government places a high priority on preservation of natural resources. However, with tourism growing and producing much-needed revenue for the citizens of the Seychelles islands, the interests of resources and tourism are bound to clash. This does happen occassionally, for example in the marine world around the Seychelles Islands. Harvesting of coral for souvenirs is a problem that now plagues these islands. This is not a unique problem to the Seychelles, since many island tourist destinations have experienced the same troubles. Take Key West, Florida for example, where the coral beds were damaged for decades in the middle of the twentieth century by unscrupulous tourist shops selling a piece of the ocean to the growing influx of tourists. No matter how much government may try and protect the coral reef with rules, fines, and regulations, there will always be some greedy people out there trying to make a fast buck off unsuspecting tourists.

The Arts

The arts are alive and well in the Seychelles Islands, and you can find plenty of evidence that the arts are important to the local residents, and to the Seychelloise government. There are plenty of funded arts groups, as well as artists who specialize in creating Seycehlles-inspired fiction, poetry, art, and music. Since the dominant traditional culture here is heavily African-influenced, you’ll find an African flavor in almost every artistic creation on these islands. For literature, there’s the Kreol Institute, which supports the Creole language and artists who develop the art form in the way of fiction and other forms of literature. The Kreol Institute publishes books by local Creole writers, and translates foreign books into Creole as well. Some local writers of note are Christian Sevina, Jean-Joseph Madeleine, Glynn Burridge, and Maria-Theress Choppy.

The beautiful tropical locale and easy pace of life in the Seychelles attracts artists to the islands, and many come, set up shop, and sell beautiful arts, crafts, and all sorts of souvenirs. There is lots of great talent here, and you can take home a unique and lovely souvenir quite easily by perusing gift shops and boutiques. Look for paintings, sculpture, collages if you’re into serious art. Around the capitol, Victoria, you can see lovely statues creatd by local artisans, too.

Music and Dance in the Seychelles Islands bring together a wonderful blend of African, Chinese, Arabic, and European instruments and traditions. You’ll find diverse instruments used in Seychelloise music: banjo, accordian, African drums,violins, and unusual instruments like the makalapo, the zez, and the bom. There are itinerant bands that go around the islands playing traditional music, often accompanied by traditional dancers. They sometimes visit the larger hotels on the main islands. One traditional dance incorporates African tradition. It’s the moutia, with strong rhythms and danced around a fire, chanting prayers. Look for sega dances, too.

A Sampling of Things to Do in The Seychelles

• Visit Cousin Island for an Aviarian Experience
• Go Diving on Shark Bank
• Relax in La Digue
• Escape to the Botanical Gardens on Mahe
• Rent a Yacht out of Victoria
• Dig into the Sand at Beau Vallon
• Go Trekking in the Morne Seychellois National Park
• Hike to Kopolia Peak
• See local industry at the Tea Factory
• Dine on fresh fruit at Le Jardin du Roi

My Seychelles

Life in Seychelles

Tolerant and Easygoing Society

The Seychellois are generally very tolerant people, and their society is glued together based on Creole as a common language, Catholicism as the major religion, and attention to traditional society, largely influenced by English culture. Racism is rare, although large numbers of Indian immigrant workers in the Seychelles may be causing rifts here and there, as people and cultures clash, causing tension. This is hardly a unique or unusual phenomenon, however, in today’s global marketplace. Standard of living is pretty low all over the Seychelles, which causes some petty crime.

The People of The Seychelles

The inhabitants of the Seychelles Islands are a mixture of French and African, mostly, with Chinese, Arab, and Indian mixed in. 90% of Seychellois live on Mahe, the main island. The age of consent is 14, so there are lots of teenage mothers. Pregnant girls aren’t allowed to attend school, and once they have their children, they rarely go back to school. There is no big deal here about having children out of wedlock, either. Marriage isn’t very popular, even though is is predominantly a Catholic country. Marriage is seen as having ties to the days of slavery, so Seychelles have no need for it these days.

Tradition

Seychelles is a former colony of Britain, but visitors to the Seychelles will hardly notice any form whatsoever of anti-colonialism or resentment. In fact, you can see plenty remnants of British culture just about everywhere you go, fondly kept alive by Seychellians across the islands. They hold afternoon tea (well, this is the Seychelles, famous for their tea, after all!). The citizens of modern day Seychelles are proud of their culture, and national pride has soared after winning independence from Britain. This really is a traditional society, which like everything in life, has its ups and its downs.

The Economy in The Seychelles

Tourism

Today, tourism accounts for 18% of the Seychelles’ gross domestic product. Spice and coconut plantations are no longer the huge employers they once were. Luxury hotels employ tons of people, and tourism as a whole employs at least 20% of the inhabitants of the Seychelles. Even after 9/11, hwen tourism took a nosedive around the world, the Seychelles managed to keep the tourists flowing in, over 100,000 per year. The Seychelles Tourism Marketing Authority does its job well.

Commercial Fishing

Commerical Fishing actually brings in more money than tourism, as of just a few years ago. Victoria’s Indian Ocean Tuna Plantprocesses over four tons of tuna per day!

(Author: raja)

About the Author:

hey im raja as you already know ,i love travelling and eating differnt type of cultural food(regional food)…..love to read …..i love making friends all around the world ……

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