Tuesday, March 15, 2022 – Photo of the Day – La Digue, Seychelles

TUESDAY, 15 MARCH 2022 LA DIGUE, SEYCHELLES Arrival: 7:00AM | Last Tender: 11:30AM Departure: 12:00NOON
PRASLIN, SEYCHELLES Arrival: 1:30 PM | Last Tender: 10:30 PM Departure: 3:30AM on Wednesday 16 March
TODAY’S WEATHER Partly Cloudy High: 83°F 28°C Low: 77°F 25°C DRESS CODE: CASUAL
For Ladies: DRESSES OR BLOUSES AND PANTS
For Gentlemen: SPORT SHIRTS AND SLACKS
No shorts or flip flop type footwear after 6:00 PM in indoor venues

LA DIGUE, SEYCHELLES – ONE OF THE SEYCHELLES’ PRETTIEST ISLANDS
Urbanites look away. You’ll find no bright lights or big cities here. The attraction of La Digue is that there are no none. Instead, it’s just long ribbons of perfect beach, lush inland forests, and enough kaleidoscopic coral reef to make any diver weak at the knees.

Because of La Digue’s proximity to both Praslin and Mahe, it is considered part of the holy trinity of Seychelles. But that is not to say that it’s a hot spot. On the contrary, life is taken at a slow pace here – transport is by bicycle or golf cart. Entertainment is a slow walk on paths shaded by tropical flowers, and life hums to the rhythm of bygone days. That is the true attraction of La Digue the very other wordiness of the island; the feeling that nothing has changed since the 18th century. In fact, some of the residents (called Digueois) still carry the names of their forefathers, who arrived as slaves with the French colonialists in 1789.

The island’s beaches are, of course, legendary. The jewel in La Digue’s crown (and there are so many) would have to be La Anse Source d’Argent, frequently considered one of the most beautiful beaches on the planet. This is truly the Holy Grail – a long string of powdery, white sand, bordered by the crystal clear waters of the Indian Ocean. Scattered around the beach and shore are smooth granite boulders that form coves and caves and provide a home for some of the most colorful underwater life you’re ever likely to see.

COCO ISLAND
The island is merely a small granitic outcrop with a few palm trees, but its real treasure lies in the depths around. Often compared to a living aquarium, the site attracts numerous fish species floating to the surface to feed – a unique underwater paradise.

SIGHTS
• La Anse Source d’Argent Beach
• Coco Island
• La Passe Village
• Côte d’Or Beach in Praslin
• Vallée De Mai
• Praslin National Park

Morning Excursion – Journey Back In Time

We were captivated by La Digue one of the Seychelles’ prettiest islands.

We traveled via the ship’s tenders to La Digue jetty and arrival at La Passe Harbour on La Digue. Our tour began with a short ride to l’Union Estate for a glimpse of bygone days of plantation life en route ride through the picturesque village of La Passe. It was a relaxed scene with people meandering around its quiet interlocking paver street on bicycles with a backdrop of lush green hills and turquoise seas. 

L’Union Estate
Visinting the plantation was a journey back in time. We visit a traditional coconut oil mill, a copra kiln and the plantation house. Then walked to a preserve for giant tortoises and enjoy seeing these magnificent creatures amble along. It was fun feeding them with nearby green shoots and seeing their powerful jaws work. We learned males have humped pod shells while female have smooth pod shells. There legs end with giant claws. These somewhat tamed tortoise liked to be petted on their head and necks. The texture of the skin was soft like an old wrinkled leather chair.

Anse Source d’Argent

The Anse Source d’Argent is a magnificent palm lined beach with soft white sand and dramatic granite boulders. It reminded us of The Rock on Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands. The large granite boulders reach down to the sand and sea water with shallow coral reefs just a few feet away. We had refreshments on the beach and ventured into the water to our knees.

Our Afternoon Excursion – Praslin, Seychelles – Valle De Mai excursion

In the afternoon our ship called in at the slightly more developed island of Praslin famous for being one of only two islands where the extremely rare coco de mer grows. It features a suggestively shaped anotomical nuts, use your imagination or see examples below, that has all kinds of legends attached to it most of them relate to sex.
The excursion was to the unspoilt Vallee de Mai a forest that’s home to thousands of swaying coco de mer trees and other prehistoric-looking flora with huge leaves and weird shapes. In this quiet forest, where the only sounds were creaking branches, rustling leaves and cooing birds, a true Garden of Eden.

The Silver Whisperer hosted a “Dinner Under The Stars” outdoor on the Pool Deck. It featured large buffet selection of salads, appetizers, vegetables, main courses, and desserts. The Voices of Silverseas provided the entertainment then followed by dancing.