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Mauritius: Nostalgic expatriates miss their relatives
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L'Express (Port Louis)
26 December 2007
Posted to the web 26 December 2007
Pauline Etienne
Port Louis
Thousands of foreigners have chosen to live in Mauritius. While some have the chance of going home to celebrate in this period, others remain here far from their families and feel quite lonely
Many expatriates regret that streets and shops are not really decorated - except for a few who make a real effort.
There may be nothing worse than spending end-of-year festivities far from one's relatives. However, this is what happens to thousands of expatriates who have chosen to live in Mauritius - and who turn out to be quite lonely during this period of the year.
Titane Laurent, cartoonist, spent her first Christmas in Pointe d'Esny. Although she and her husband, Jonathon, tried to create a familiar atmosphere for themselves and their two children, there was obviously something missing. "Of course, we miss our family a lot during that period," she said.
So, the small family spent Christmas quietly in their new home in the south - they settled in Mauritius in October last year. "As the children were born in Australia, they did not miss the fireplace or the snow - although they still dream of a White Christmas. In fact, it was not very different from previous years for them; they woke up very early and ran to get their presents The only snag was that instead of finding them under the Christmas tree, they took them under a little plant roughly decorated," she remembers.
If the children did not find it really different, it was not the case of Titane. She, who originates from Belgium, still misses "snow, the smell of the Christmas tree and of pine wood I would like to be cold and eat nourishing dishes! Here it is more about salad and pineapple during that period," she regrets.
This year, the menu might well still be light but the family have planned their festivities this year. They flew for Rodrigues during the weekend and are celebrating Christmas there - while lending their home in Mauritius. "So, we will celebrate Christmas in a hotel there. We don't know what it will be like but it will definitely be quite different from what we have known so far," she said before catching the plane.
As for the presents, it will also not be the same as every year, "We explained to the kids that Christmas was about sharing and generosity towards the poor ones so instead of spending a lot of money on presents, we bought presents for children living close to us in the south."
The story of a small group of African students of the University of Mauritius also shows the difficulty of celebrating Christmas far from relatives. "We are six Africans who did not know where to go for Christmas last year and we were quite disconcerted about it," one of them remembers. "We bought a few bottles and decided to have a little party together but we were not allowed to put music because we did not have any previous authorisation In Africa, when you want to have a great time, you just go for it," he said. Their evening was rather quiet at the end of the day
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"The main problem is not really about partying or not," he said. "The real issue is to realise that no one cares for you in the country you've settled in. This only increases the feeling of nostalgia you already have, living away from your family."
This feeling of nostalgia, André Ah-Pew has experienced it again this year Although he has Mauritian roots, André spent most of his life in France and recently decided to come back to Mauritius alone - without any other member of his family. "I was quite anxious as the festivities were coming closer because I still hadn't planned anything. I finally invited some friends at home and prepared some good food to share with them It was really fun although I missed my family a lot," he said.
But Christmas day is not the main source of nostalgia for André. "What I miss the most is the whole atmosphere around end-of-year celebrations in Europe: streets are illuminated, shops are full of decorations, shop windows are so attractive " This atmosphere definitely puts people in a special state of mind André, who hates winter above all, "would like being cold at the moment to better appreciate the dishes of this period". Just as Titane, it seems
i feel the same way as this couple yet i have been living in london for almost 20 years i think what we really miss is the sun at this time of the year and also our freinds and familly back home ,bring the sun to uk or any part of the world its no differance weather you are abroad or home cheer up its not as bad as it is out here in uk or france,us lot we are used to saying hello to all we meet in the street ,we know most people in our village or... [Read Full Text]
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