Would you be interested to have a non interested view of a fellow traveler on his latest appreciation or dissatisfaction on the services provided by the hotel you are about to book?

Vinivi a newly established internet service in Mauritius is now providing this service on line for 36 countries and covering over 19000 hotels or lodgings!

I encourage you to visit the site and to discover for yourself the benefits you could derive from its services. Furthermore why not encourage a Mauritian based enterprise to prosper?

I spoke today with the initiator of the project, Gilles Granger to inquire about his business model and his success factors.I leave you to guess his answers.

You will recalled that I told you earlier that my bed time reading was Anthony de Mello‘s book.

His short stories are well worth reading. I would advise you to get this book. To wet your appetite, I have copied yet another extract to you.

Just imagine all the wars going on because of religions. Even worse, ponder on the conflicts which arise between brothers of the same faith! Shiites or Sunnites.

The display at Walt Dinsey World, designed in close collaboration with Bat Conservation International Founder Merlin Tuttle, features two remarkable species: the Malayan flying fox (Pteropus vampyrus) and the Rodrigues fruit bat (Pteropus rodricensis). The Malayan flying fox, also known as the large fruit bat, is easily the largest of the world’s bats. Its wingspan can exceed six feet (1.8 meters). Never before has a bat so large been on public display in North America, and the effect on visitors is dramatic.

The Rodrigues fruit bat, though much smaller, plays a key role in the educational aspect of the exhibit. It is among the rarest of mammals. Native to the single Indian Ocean island of Rodrigues in Mauritius, the species seemed destined for extinction just a quarter century ago, when only 70 Rodrigues fruit bats survived. Intense conservation efforts and a captive-breeding program have increased the population to around several thousand. The legacy of this species’ return from the brink of extinction gives us a perfect conservation message for our guests.

The Disney’s Animal Kingdom has 20 Malayan flying foxes and 7 Rodrigues fruit bats. The bats, all of them males, came from the Lubee Foundation, Inc., of Gainesville, Florida, in 1998. The nonprofit organization, dedicated to conserving Old World fruit bats, was founded by the late Luis F. Bacardi of the Bacardi Rum family, an early and stalwart supporter of BCI.

The Disney Animal Kingdom is visited by millions of pet lovers per year. Has any Mauritian Entrepreneur thought of making use of this unique opportunity to reap in some economic value from our Rodrigues fruit bat?

Because of my wife’s place of birth in La Ferme Rodrigues ,I have a foible for the Island.

Simon Pierre, a été secoué par cette pêche miraculeuse. Et oui, lui-même était au départ, sans conviction et c’était pour plaire à Jésus, qu il jeta les filets. Devant l’ampleur de cette prise, la puissance du Dieu Seigneur se manifesta…et Simon Pierre allait encore une fois de plus se persuader que c’est bien le messie venu sauver Israël. Dieu est présent devant lui. Il tomba aux pieds de Jésus en prosternation.

La première leçon :

Comme Simon Pierre devant la manifestation de la puissance du Seigneur, je dois reconnaître ma modeste condition de pécheur. « Seigneur, éloigne-toi de moi, car je suis un homme pécheur. »
Pratiquer cette crainte de Dieu serait il être en émerveillement devant la toute puissance de Dieu ? Sans toi je ne suis qu’un rien ! Et pourtant, par amour Tu m’a considéré comme frère dans l’humanité, par ton incarnation et ta vie modèle Tu nous as ouvert la voie. Je n’ai pas le droit de refuser Ton amour gratuit. Main tendue, et dans Ta miséricorde infinie Tu nous sauveras.

La seconde leçon :

Simon et ses frères, une fois les barques au rivage, ils laissent tout pour suivirent Jésus. Ils ont trouvé l’essentiel. Tout le reste devient superflu…les barques et filets … les tonnes de poissons pris… Comme Simon et ses frères faire du Seigneur mon essentiel, mon unique raison de vivre…laissant tout pour Le suivre..Je m’abandonne à Toi en toute confiance….

Today in Paris,The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said temperatures were probably going to increase by 1.8-4C (3.2-7.2F) by the end of the century.

Dr Rajendra Pachauri, the IPCC chairman, said: “It is extremely encouraging in that the science has moved on from what was possible in the Third Assessment Report.

“If you see the extent to which human activities are influencing the climate system, the options for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions appear in a different light, because you can see what the costs of inaction are,” he told delegates in Paris.

Writing in the journal Science, an international group of scientists concluded that temperatures and sea levels had been rising at or above the maximum rates proposed in the last report, which was published in 2001.

The paper compared the 2001 projections on temperature and sea level change report with what has actually happened.

The models had forecasted a temperature rise between about 0.15C-0.35C (0.27-0.63F) over this period. The actual rise of 0.33C (0.59F) was very close to the top of the IPCC’s range.

A more dramatic picture emerged from the sea level comparison. The actual average level, measured by tide gauges and satellites, had risen faster than the intergovernmental panel of scientists predicted it would.

In my earlier blog in July last year, I mentioned the mitigating effect of global dimming.Now, the 130 scientists have statued: the net effect of global warming is greater than forecasted earlier.
Island country like Mauritius, where a large part of our economy is based on sea related Tourism,has to readjust its economic strategy. Soon,there would  be a Carbon tax for airline travelers which will change the economics of traveling long distances and also an environment tax to be levied from those causing deteriorations of the global  environment.
I wonder if the authorities issuing building permits  on the coast will integrate these  climatic changes to come :the rising sea level, warmer atmosphere, more violent winds  etc…..”Gouverner c’est prevoir” I had been taught by my 6th grade primary school teacher Mr. Aime Laval to whom I am forever so grateful.

The entrepreneur in me sees opportunities to exploit, in the light of such future certainties.

I am happy to come back home after my 10 weeks long escapade to Mysore. My mobility has unfortunately not improved and yet I had a good time and wonderful Karnataka experience.

My India immersion does not end with the trip, as the 1st February,the day following my arrival  is the festival of Cavadee. Another occasion to search & deepen my knowledge of the Indian culture or shall I say the Mauritian Indian customs!
I quote below  an interesting extract of what I found on a website:

The ‘kavadee’ most commonly seen in Mauritius are the ‘pushpa kavadee’ (flower kavadee) and ‘paal kavadee’ (milk kavadee). But there are other types of kavadee as well. In earlier days some devotees used to carry fish as offering instead of milk. On the eve of the festival the penitent who had vowed to carry the ‘Matchak Kavadee’ (fish kavadee) would be shown in a dream the exact place where he would find two fishes. The next morning he would go to the place and would easily catch the fish in a piece of linen used as a net. He would cut each into two halves and put them separately in two earthen pots containing water which he would then tie to his kavadee.

After the ceremony at the temple, the devotee would go back to the river and open the pots. The two fishes would have come back to life in the meantime and the separated halves would have joined together and the fish would leap out of the pots into the river. It was on the occasion of the

‘Sittireye Parouvam’ in 1967 that the ‘fish kavadee’was last performed by an old man named Manmootoo Chellambrum at St Hubert. This miracle was witnessed by hundreds of people among whom were several journalists who published the feat in their papers”.

Tamils worship Muruga with great love and devotion. Many Tamils are called after one of the several names of Muruga: Vel, Velan, Moorghen or Murugan, Soopaya short for Subramanian or Soopramanien, Kadirvelan, Kumaran or Kumara, Thandayudapaani, Palani, Palanisami, Palamiyandee, Swamynaden, Ku marasawmy, Kandasami, Kandan, Sooben, Muth uvel, Mootoosamy, Armoogum or Arumugam.

The Muruga cult is more widespread in Tamil Nadu than anywhere else in India, although worship is offered in many parts of North India as well. People vow to carry a kavadee for various reasons: because of serious health problems or

other failures, or as penance for wrongs done to someone else. There is a ‘janma kavadee’ i.e lifelong kavadee which parents vow when their children suffer from an incurable disease.

In the opinion of some learned people ‘kavadee’ may represent man’s unconscious desire to lay at the feet of God all his burdens and go away with His blessings. It is also a form of purificatory sacrifice — by self-inflicted suffering the penitent washes away his sins and becomes ‘pure’.

Kavadee also symbolises the triumph of good over evil. According to the Hindus our era is the ‘Kali Yug’ (the black era) dominated by irreligion, injustice, violence and evil. The ‘vel’ of Muruga symbolises the spear of victory that will eventually restore peace and harmony in the world. It will destroy arrogance and hypocrisy, violence and injustice — and man will emerge from the ashes of sin and evil like ldumban redeemed.

The Tamils here seem to have evolved their cultural heritage or was it possible for their forefathers were a different breed from their own village unique tradition?

To bid farewell or to say goodbye may sometimes prove a more difficult task than you can imagine. Having spent over more than nine weeks at the center, I admit that I have taken some habits and mode of living which now I will have to part with. The material comfort and amenities are not the most important things to leave behind: the atmosphere and hospitality climate held by the people are what I shall have to forego. The smiles of the garden hands, the namaste greetings of the therapists met in the yard and the cordial welcoming of the staff which I have begun to know by their first names, the care and attention given by the medical team and last but not least, the friendliness of fellow co- residents will soon vanish for ever, as if it would be the end of a film in which I was one of the actors.

A new page has to be turned. A new page will soon open with, in the background, the memories, experiences of this Mysore hideaway. Life could never ever be the same again! My vision of life is now tinted with the learnings gained through the interactions with persons of such variety and from so many origins. Young,middle aged ,retired, be it from Europe Britain,France,Italy , Spain, Germany ,Austria,Australia , America, Canada,India,Japan, Singapore almost the world has been present. The time frame is lost forever, it cannot be reconstructed again in the same place, same setting with the same persons.

The wonderful moments are in the realm of memories now, too bad if one did not catch them to the fullest of their intensity and made the most of it.

I found that I whisked through the ten weeks. I did not have time to get bored. As opposed to my earlier fear, eating vegetarian for the period was a song! The massage treatments were a bliss and the health care was excellent and the hospitality wonderful. There were quite a number of minor improvements that could have been made to bring to perfection my stay. Perfection they say is not of this world!

I came to buy more mobility in my limbs, I came out without the mobility improvements sought for but depart now with a luggage filled up with love from the staff and co- residents and contented with a nice break from my routine life and hopefully a better body , mind & soul condition.

Thank you all for making my stay an enjoyable and enriching experience. Hopefully the mobility will come at a later stage. Golden cell 208 is now free!

Dear Doctor
Not every single day of your life is the same.
Each day brings its lot of happiness and challenges
because isn’t it life a continuous quest
for equilibrium between the opposing forces?
Today is so special for you.
Blessed was the day when many of moon ago
Out of the love of two persons so dear to
you came the emerging fruit of their union.
Propulsed by the initial impetus given by your parents
you have contrived with your own will and efforts
to forge yourself into the talented person you are today.
Teacher, as you have been trained, you will always be
a knowledge source to your entourage
Your delicate ways and keen attention to the needs of others
are the living proof of your Hippocratic oath
Even your Carnatic talents and singing
gift direct to the healing of mankind.
Man of so much talent I had the privilege to meet.
I am so thankful to the Almighty for this grace
I pray the Lord to bless you and your family to be accompanied by Him forever.
The departure of your daughter this week end from the family nest: like a small bird reaching maturity,
she will be flying on her own wings to catch the wind of success! True, a pinch of the heart may well be felt, but this will quickly be inundated by a feeling of hope at the prospect of the world opening to her
Isn’t it our aim: to nurture new spirits to cultivate our world?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR DOCTOR!

26th January 1950 is one of the most important days in Indian history as it was on this day the constitution of India came into force and India became a truly sovereign state. On this day India became a totally republican unit. The other celebration is the 15th August  which is called the Independence Day. The country finally realized the dream of Mahatma Gandhi and the numerous freedom fighters who fought for and sacrificed their lives for the independence of their country.  So, ever since, the 26th of January was decreed a national holiday and has been recognized and celebrated as the Republic Day of India.

26^th January 2007 is also a day of great rejoicing at IVAC. At 9 am all the staff and guests were assembled to have a rising of the flag in presence of the senior management. The short ceremony  was enhanced by the singing of the national anthem.

I was delighted to take cognizance of the President Abul Kalam message for the occasion. His speech he titled: ‘What can I give to the nation?” is well worth reading as he enumerates India’s achievements in a number of fields and gives the vision of the over a billion heads strong country in 2020.

It was also “fete” for me today. Marie Anne & Stephane arrived in the early morning from Montreal. They brought in with them a large box of chocolate & candies to be distributed to the therapists and hands of the center. It was our way to celebrate with them the India Republic day and be thankful for their services.

En 1806, était il possible de s’en procurer aux marché une volaille pour se nourrir et d’en faire une fête ? Peut-être bien que la volaille était de la ferme de l’éleveur ou alors la volaille été le produit de la chasse !

En 2006, est il possible de s’en procurer du poisson pêcher ou du poisson de ferme? Dans peu de temps, les produits pêchés de la mer ne suffiront pas. L’exploitation grandissante de la pêche conjuguée avec une baisse drastique de la reproduction marine résultera dans un déficit irréversible. O la ! Déjà les quotas sont imposés par les pays sensés et conscients de la situation critique de la pêche non contrôlée. La solution : l’aquaculture ou cultiver l’océan.

Je vous recommande la lecture d’un mini dossier qui parait sur l’express du jour le 24 janvier. Je me réjouis de voir l’évolution de la deuxième phase de la societe FMM. Red Drum semble avoir pris des ailes….Outre de se trouver à la table des convives de Maurice, Red Drum et Guele Pavee de FMM donnent saveur aux repas gastronomique maintenant en Suisse, Afrique du sud, les pays du Golfe, les états unis d’Amérique et le Canada. FMM a ouvert la voie me disait mon ami Jean Pierre H…, maintenant les gros captaines arrivent ! La bataille et le jeu d’influence seront pour les meilleurs sites ! Voila que l’industrie de la mer prend son envol. Petit Ile Maurice avec un champ d’action océanique très étendue ! Ile Maurice Ferme océanique d’envergure c’est mon rêve !

Cultivons l’Océan…notre Ferme Marine Bio et Ecolo!