Anse Lazio Beach

Bats and Birds

I sleep in until 5:40am. John is still in bed when I head out to the mango trees on our accommodation’s property in search of rare parrots and other local birds. I am joined by one of the eight Mango Lodge resident dogs.

Aaron (a staff member at Mango Lodge) assists me with bird spotting. Yes the parrots are here, as is the Madagascar Red Fody. Only the male Fody is red and only during breeding season, the rest of the year he’s a drab olive colour. 

Also present are the Seychelle Fruit Bats demonstrating that even a mega bat enjoys a good mango.

These fruit bats are huge with wingspans reaching up to 1.2 metres. They are part of the flying fox family and active early morning, late afternoon and all night.

Fresh Breakfast

The Mango Lodge staff use a mango picking contraption to get me some fresh mangos for breakfast. Click here for a short video.

It is so great to be able to prepare our own breakfast again. Of course we eat on our balcony.

The Mango Lodge guys then pick coconuts off a nearby tree, chop them up and bring them to our room. So thoughtful.

Coco de Mer

In our last blog I mentioned how the Seychelles passport stamp is in the shape of a Coco de Mer nut. Before Europeans discovered the Seychelles, sailors were finding the massive nuts on other South-East Asian beaches where they had floated from the Seychelles. The sailors thought they came from underwater coconut trees so called them Coconuts of the Sea or Coco de Mer in French. 

Here is a photo of one of the Coco de Mer nuts that is sitting outside our apartment. It definitely resembles some part of the female anatomy… front or back? You decide! 

When dried out the nut is very light but when fresh they can weigh up to 30 kilos. They are the largest nut/seed in the world. The giant Coco de Mer tree is endangered and heavily protected in the Seychelles. The tree is only found on two islands in the Seychelles: Praslin where we are now and Curieuse. The Coco de Mer grows very slowly taking 25 years before they produce their first nuts and can live for hundreds of years.

Saturday Morning Market

After breakfast we go to the small Saturday morning produce market. We get lettuce, tomatos, cucumber and sweet potatoes. Surprisingly, everyone is sold out of eggs. If you want eggs, you need to be there by 6:30am. We buy sausages for supper and after I try a sample, some delicious blood pudding. 

It’s a fifteen minute drive back to Mango Lodge and back up the steep, narrow access road.  Click here for a short video.

Anse Lazio

After eating half the blood pudding, we pack our day bags and head to Anse Lazio. This beach consistently appears on many lists of the world’s best beaches.

With some of the softest white sand, a lack of development and bright turqoise waters, it does not disappoint for scenic beauty.

We rent beach loungers and spend the day people watching, reading and going for dips. It is super hot in the sun but comfortable in the shade of a coconut palm.

Because it is not protected by a coral reef, the waves are a bit rough. The snorkeling wasn’t the best. Not a lot of fish, or maybe I’ve been spoilt by the Maldives and Great Barrier Reef. However the water is delightfully warm.

Anse Volbert

We head back to Anse Volbert Village and walk along the beach until a sudden rain shower hits. It is quickly over. 

Evening at Mango Lodge

We head back to Mango Lodge where I hang around the grounds watching the huge bats in the mango trees. At one point a big bat fight breaks out. Click here for a short video.

John and I cook supper using the produce we purchased in the morning. There is a slight change in the menu when I realize what I thought was lettuce is really bok choy.

We light candles and listen to the live music clearly coming from a resort far below while we eat dinner. It is perfect dinner music.