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It was old and it had many little dots and specks due to the passage of time, the weather and generations of cockroaches which had put them there.

From the aircraft, the ocean seemed to spread like a bluish grey steel sheet.

The clouds seemed to resemble figures in the ancient legends of China, Rome, Greece and India.

The cabinet ministers in Mauritius do not behave as if they were bom to grace the position they hold. They are unassuming, accessible, communicative and above all, go about without a protective shield of security men.

The Dutch, the French and the English are referred to as the ‘buccaneering trinity’. In those days these three powers fought with one another continuously for possession of the island which had three advantages – spices and sugar, strategic position with regard to the maritime route and, advantageous position for piratical purposes.

The trinity battled for the possession of the islands for its spices and sugar and also for the strategic position of the islands on the maritime route to the East.

The Dutch, the French and the English.

Centuries ago his ancestors were brought to the island of Mauritius as slaves or later as indentured labourers to work in sugarcane fields and factories or to cut timber in the jungle and haul it to the boats.

Port Louis brings to the writer’s mind the memory of writers like Joseph Conrad and Somerset Maugham.3

C) a tiny speck

The economy of Mauritius is dependent upon sugar.

The trees in the Andamans are gigantic. In Mauritius, however, they are short and gnarled even in interior jungles, looking like abnormally overgrown bonsai.

The blue mountains that ring the island of Mauritius are a volcanic happening of geological ages.

The island of Mauritius is referred to as paradise on earth by the writer.

Scuba-diving, swimming, surf-riding, speed boat racing, yachting and in some places horse-riding (in water).

The island of Mauritius is 64 km by 50 km in size.

D) the Dutch, the French and the English.

D) All of the above

The writer seems to be despondent about the future of Mauritius. He states that the present Mauritius is idyllic with no problems of population and unemployment. However, the country is worried about its whole economy being dependent on the single commodity of sugar and wants to welcome foreign entrepreneurship. But the writer knows that with the introduction of industries, the population would grow and flats would come up resulting in pollution and congestion.

This would also mean increased cost of living, taxation, unemployment, slums and a whole lot of associated problems. With the growth in industries, infrastructure also will have to change. Roads will have to be widened. With wise planning all these problems can be tackled. But whether the leaders have the vision to preserve the paradise is a question for which the writer has no answer.

The author points out that, in Mauritius, the Cabinet Ministers and others in high positions are unassuming, accessible, communicative and go about like ordinary people without protection and security. Moreover, the Prime Minister lives in a modest-looking flat in a busy street lined with shops and crawling traffic.

It was difficult for the author to locate Mauritius in his Atlas because the World Atlas he had with him was an old one with many little dots and specks, resulting from weather conditions and cockroaches.

R.K. Laxman was born on 24th of October, 1921 in Mysore. His father was a headmaster and Laxman was the youngest of six sons. One of his elder brothers, R.K. Narayan, is a well-known novelist.

Laxman drew cartoons for The Hindu’, ‘Koravanji’ and later for ‘The Times of India’. He is known for his distinctive illustrations, most notably for ‘Malgudi Days’ written by R.K. Narayan.

He has won many awards that include the Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan and the Ramon Magsaysay Award.

‘Mauritius’ is a travelogue adapted from ‘Idle Hours’ written by him.

The author comes up with a detailed description of Mauritius in his essay by the same name. He says that Mauritius is a tiny speck of an island situated below the Equator on the twentieth parallel some 4,500 km. south-west of Mumbai. The world atlas which the author had was very old and contained many little dots and specks. These dots were either the products of cockroaches or the adverse effects of weather. They had nothing to do with geography. So Mauritius could not be easily located by the author in his atlas. The author’s experience on his journey to Mauritius was exciting. He was curious to see the sight below the flying aircraft.

Different aspects of the country such as the bluish-grey steel sheet-like ocean, acres and acres of cloud and land structures resembling the legendary historical’ structures of ancient countries fascinated him. The author remarks that people of different origins are found in Mauritius. There are Africans, Chinese, Biharis, Dutch, Persians, Tamils, Arabs, French and English. Of these, the Dutch, the French and the English who constantly waged battle for the possession of the island for its spices and sugar were called the ‘buccaneering trinity’. They were called so as their interest in Mauritius was piratical in nature.

The reason for the people of different countries to settle in Mauritius was for its spices and sugar or just for the strategic position on the maritime route to the East.

In Mauritius, cabinet ministers and others in big positions do not act as if they were born to the grace. They are all just like ordinary people. They are unassuming, accessible, communicative and without protective shield of hangers on and security men to repel casual approaches.

The blue mountains ring the islands, a volcanic happening of geological ages. These mountains do not have the traditional monotonous pyramidal shapes. Their outlines are freakish and whimsical with unexpected sweeps and have perpendicular drops and pin-pointed peaks.

The author finds some names from the French language such as Trouaux Biches, Beau Bassin, Quarter Bomes, Curepipe, Rose Belle and so on musical but unpronounceable.

The author extends his study to the flora and fauna in Mauritius too. He finds that the trees found in Mauritius are short and gnarled even in the interior of jungles just like overgrown bonsai. The fauna are the bats, monkeys, deer and giant tortoises of Aldabra variety.

Mauritius is prone to cyclonic storms and it is an annual feature. Big ones occur once in 15 years and leave a trail of destruction. People are used to cyclones and have learnt to live with them. King cyclone, a massive cyclone, had struck Mauritius on February 6,1975 leaving vast areas flattened. The island has recovered from the devastation. Trees are planted in congested areas. Tall buildings have come up, plateglass picture windows are fixed and rooftops are put up with an eye on elegance.

On a cruise in a glass-bottomed boat, the author gets to see sea-shells, crabs, shapeless ugly creatures crawling in the dark depths and a school of fish, coloured bright lemon yellow with black bars. Fishes with hideous spikes all over their body, fishes with long tails, fishes with battered faces are also found.

The Government is eager to have foreign entrepreneurs start their industries here. The author opines that with industrial growth, the living space will shrink. Cars and trucks will increase. Their roads will have to be widened to take the load. The price of land will go up and flats will appear. Cost of living, pollution, unemployment, slums, taxation, controls will appear.

During his return flight the author could not see those scenes as it was dark. But he could imagine the future Mauritius in a changed situation – industrialization with wider roads, tall buildings, pollution, unemployment, slums etc. He hopes that enlightened people will guide the growth of Mauritius and preserve this paradise on earth.