Mauritius is located
in the Indian Ocean, north of the Tropic of
Capricorn. Mauritius is around eight hundred and
fifty five kilometres away from the east coast of
Madagascar. The latitude of Mauritius is 20°17′S and
longitude 57°33′E. Mauritius Island has been formed
approximately ten million years ago by a volcanic
eruption under the sea. Mauritius, Rodrigues and
Reunion are island that have been formed by the
eruption. But there is no active volcano in
Mauritius. On Reunion Island there is one active
volcano known as Piton de La Fournaise. Mauritius,
Rodrigues and Reunion form part of the Mascarene
Islands. Mauritius Island is surrounded with about
three hundred and thirty kilometres of coast which
is protected almost everywhere by coral reefs.
Mauritius is a quite mountainous island but not with
very high mountains.
The highest mount in Mauritius is Piton de la Petite Rivière Noire which has a height of eight hundred
and twenty eight metres, then there is Pieter Both
with a height of eight hundred and twenty three
metres and Le Pouce which is eight hundred and
twelve metres high.
The total land
surface of Mauritius is around two thousand and
forty square kilometres which includes Rodrigues,
Agalega Islands and Cargados Carajos Shoals.
But
Mauritius is also surrounded by very islands
which some of them are used as natural
reserves for the protection of endangered
species. Before the discovery of Mauritius,
it was an island covered with a dense
forest. The dodo a native flightless bird
was also to be found on the island, the dodo
is now an extinct species.
The dodo was an
easy prey for hunters as it was fat and
could not run very fast. Most of the dodos
have been hunted by the Dutch sailors who
settled in Mauritius for a while. The rest
of dodos were the prey of pigs, rats and
monkeys introduced in Mauritius by the
sailors. Mauritius has a tropical climate
which makes it a perfect destination for
holidays.
The summer months
in Mauritius is from November to April and winter
months is from May to October. The natural resources
of Mauritius are fish and arable land. Mauritius
lives mainly from sugar production, tourism and
textile industries.
Mauritius Island has first been discovered by the
Arabs sailors as Mauritius was situated was on trade
way. The first people to settle on Mauritius Island
were the Portuguese, and then came the Dutch. The
name of the island was given by the Dutch after
Prince Maurice Nassau. The French settled on the
island as from 1710 and they were those who
developed Mauritius. Mahé de Labourdonnais is known
as the founder of Port Louis. At this time Mauritius
was called Ile de France. And the last colony having
possessed Mauritius were the British.
The people living in
Mauritius are known as Mauritian. Mauritius got
independence in 1968 and became a republic in 1992.
The official name of the island is Republic of
Mauritius. The capital city is Port Louis which is
also the largest city of Mauritius. Some of the main
towns of Mauritius are Curepipe, Quatre Bornes, Beau
Bassin, and Rose Hill.
Mauritius is a
country with different ethnic; Mauritius is a real
melting pot of culture and religion. The main
population of Mauritius is composed of Hindus, the
rest are Creoles, Muslim and Chinese.
Sega is the well
known music from Mauritius which comes probably from
the African slaves who were brought on the island to
work During the year 1835 slavery has been
abolished.
Mauritius attracts a
large number of tourists every year from all over
the world. Mauritius is a relaxing place with white
sand beaches all around the island and blue lagoon.
Mauritius has large
number of places to visit, if you like eco-tourism
you will be served.
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