Bel Air Mauritius I felt like a prince, a fresh prince
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- čas přidán 12. 09. 2024
- Bel Air is a huge village that makes you feel like a Prince. The welcoming locals, bustling streets, great history, grilled meats, and a train. When Will Smith said "home to Bel Air" I think he was talking about this great village.
We started at the sign that needed some pruning from the wild banana trees around it. Then we hit the main street and got some food from Our Grill. The loud proprietor, well almost as loud as me, served up a tasty feast of chicken wings and rounders. The real taste of Mauritius he claimed, and I believe him. Our hunger satisfied we went exploring the shops and I got a new selfie stick.
The center of the town is dominated by Saint Esprit church, a beautiful double towered building. I was truly impressed by the stonework both on the outside and around the altar. The church is undergoing renovations to return it to its former glory. The sight of it over the huge banyan trees is one I won't quickly forget. A quick drive through a sunny rainstorm and we were at Deep River.
It took me forever to see the chimney, beautiful as it was because someone had placed a train in the way. An old Daimler-Benz narrow gauge diesel locomotive. I was actually at a loss for words and all I could do for a few seconds was point at it. It has rusted a bit, but it was the highlight of my day. I made sure Riki got loads of pictures before I went off to explore. Two tall bridges crossed the deep river, and Riki saw a great tree.
The next stop was a park containing a lower version of the Deep River and we could see the power of the river as it flowed through a channel. No time to relax in the well-placed kiosk we were off to chimney number two, Bell Rose. She was unfortunately under lock and key, but I did find an old bridge made out of railway tracks and a cute puppy.
A short stop at a temple to see actual gold ponies pulling a gold chariot, a must-see location, before we made our way to La Lucy chimney. She has pride of place in a Bel Air park, with a tree growing on her. Riki remarked something about permaculture, while I didn't eat the fruit that was dropping off her. This would have been of best chimney day ever, but there was more to come.
Caroline, or as I called her Constance, um, for those that don't know Riki's middle name is Carolyn. She is situated down a back alley between a host of houses. We are not sure where she got her name, but some, and by some I mean me, have suggested that she is named after Charles Darwin's Sister.
We finished off the day at the river Seche, which means dry river, but as I pointed out, there was tons of water in it. Riki then pretended to know all the words to The Fresh Prince of Bel Air song while a couple of thrones drove by.
Bel Air in Mauritius would put the Hollywood version to shame. The people of this village, all 18 000 of them will make you feel like a prince, maybe even refresh your soul.
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thank you for watching
Bryan your speechless when you saw the sugar cane train all your Christmas had come at once I couldn't stop laughing 🤣🤣🤣
Haha, it was a great day
Thats my village my childhood place ❣
Great place to come from
Yes in your previous video i have also guess you to visit Bel Air
Im still 14 but me and my parents always watch your videos ,there are many things which myself i didnot know. Thanks guys
Thanks, You are welcome. and please thank your family for me
@@BryanDiscoversWorld no problem
Watching this video in mid 2023. Bel Air is quite a common French place name. It is also found in English-speaking countries where real-estate developers gave posh sounding French names to localities. It means 'Bel Aire', 'beautiful area'. In Mauritius we have three places whose names have survived into the modern era. We normally affix a nearby locality name to differentiate between them. This Bel Air in the east is known as Bel Air - Rivière Sèche. There is one in the south known as Bel Air - Saint Félix. There used to be one inland from the south east coast. It was slowly abandoned around independence in the late 1960s. The inhabitants formed two new separate villages now known as Petit Bel Air and Grand Bel Air.
Thank for the Info. I never really though about what the name meant, It was more about the Will Smith joke. I did drive through the Saint Felix one, but I didn't know about the other one
@@BryanDiscoversWorld You would have surely driven through it. Petit Bel Air is about 1 km north of Mahebourg on the coastal Mahebourg-Flacq road. Grand Bel Air is 2 km east of Mahebourg on the Mahebourg- Saint Hubert road moving inland. The original Bel Air village was about 1 km north of Grand Bel Air. The Ferney-Plaisance highway now cuts right through it just before the Rivière des Créoles river. It sits on a small plateau overlooking the south east coast. Remnants are a few orchards and two 'kalimaye' near streams on the western and eastern limits of the original village. The 'kalimaye' is a rudimentary hindu temple consisting of a stone platform with a few rounded stones representing deities. When a village is abandoned, these 'kalimaye' are often the only reminder left standing of that village. The original inhabitants occasionally visit and pray at the kalimaye.
@@soobash I have been through that area, Thanks, we have noticed temples in the middle of nowhere and wondered about then, it does make sense that they are the last of an abandoned village,
thanks for this video… ❤️ Bel Air… ❤️ La Lucie… we used to play n swim in the river behind!!! Great memories!!!
Glad you enjoyed it
Awesome vid guys! I love watching your vids you alway show something or somewhere I have never seen 🙌😊
Thanks Will, It's our goal, haha.
Another mega 'like' from me ! You guys make me feel like a child, being taken by the hand and shown all the hidden treasures of the island I left behind so many years ago --places I know existed but never got round to visiting them. Your genuine love of Mauritius shines through all your videos. So I would like to shake you by the hand and buy you a beer next time I visit the island.
Our pleasure! I am looking forward to that beer, Thanks
These guys are living for there dream🤩
You know it😁
Another like from me again. Thank you to Rikki and Bryan. Very hot here in the U.K.
Our pleasure! Getting cold in Mauritius, well...
AWESOME IM LITTARLY GETTING HUNGRY
😋 it was great food
Hey guys! Great video - the charcoal grill food looked amazing! Could you just add after the montage, where your locations are just for perspective? 😜
Great suggestion! Thanks, we will in future
Wow..never thought Belair would be sooooo interesting Street
Food there way cheaper than north. America
Tks again to B@R
the train n rail at beau champs can u tell me where i can check it too ... thank
bryan i lived there at belair nice video
Take the road at Deep River just before Olivier to the right if coming from Bel Air
5.53 its not monster 😂
We call suran in Creole and in English (Elephant Foot Yam)
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius, the elephant foot yam or whitespot giant arum, is a tropical tuber crop grown primarily in Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia and the tropical Pacific islands. Because of its production potential and popularity as a vegetable in various cuisines, it can be raised as a cash crop
In Mauritius here people often use it to make pickle (archard)
Wow, thank you for the great info. I have never seen one before, it was really big.
@@BryanDiscoversWorld you should try it the curry also is super
this big root is call suran they use it for curry ,it was rare during my time in Mts.And the small train it would be train use to carried sugar canes from to field to the factory.thank you again .climbing plant not edible.
Thanks for the info, I do want to eat the root, not the climbing plant
@@BryanDiscoversWorld i never tried the root it is very rare,that why you see one only there.but no no for the climbing fruit.i hope enjoy her lunch,looks yummy.thank you again.
@@BryanDiscoversWorld It's called elephant foot yam that is named suran in Mauritius.