Comforter availability and other

@traciwoodley I suggest you bring all your luxuries with you. I moved to Australia & bought everything I would need & want with me. Lucky I did, because good quality imported things are expensive here. Most of the things I look at that are imported are about 2-4 times the price I paid in Australia. You will probably not need a Comforter here but locally made ones are reasonably priced. Furnished places are variable in what they have. In any case plastic storage bowls/glass bowls are pretty cheap. Crockery is a bit more expensive. If you are keen baker like me best to buy your own stove with oven complete as most people just use a gas stove top. You can buy stove & oven complete but they can be expensive. I have seen some second hand ones on Marketplace for reasonable prices. If you have a particular preference for storage bowls, I suggest you bring your own . I bought about 50 BPA non plastic/toxic tupperware containers with me - which are not available here. Mattreses are not usually deep cleaned let alone cleaned before a new tenant comes in - probably just a change of bedwear. Maybe bring a mattress protector with you or cover bed with comforter before your bedwear. You can buy mattresses here but if you need something specific I again suggest you bring your own. I have found most of the mattresses here too hard & terrible if you have a bad back/hip. All the best.

I agree with @shirley1421971.

Malls in Mauritius:  https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g293816-Activities-c26-t143-Mauritius.html

I have a thin blanket on my bed and it's always been enough--even when it is horribly cold, like 18°C / 65°F.

Fun observation: Mauritians start wearing sweaters (AKA jumpers, AKA le pull-overs) when it's 21°C / 70°F.

To answer your question, I'm confident that you can find an adequate comforter at one of the big malls--unless you can't live without your high end Organic Baffled Box 850 Down Comforter from Feathered Friends. In that case bring it with you. It will look nice on the bed, but you'll only use it for about 10 minutes.

The mattresses in the furnished flat that I moved into are wonky. Either that, or the sheets I bought here are wonky. One way or the other I imported some sheets that were too big just so they would cover the mattress.

To be fair, I bought sheets when I was new here and I didn't know where to look for them. There are probably plenty of places in the malls where you can find decent sheets.

Ask your landlord to give you careful measurements of the width, length, and depth of the mattresses and bring some nice sheets with you. If you do decide to buy sheets here, take the measurements to the store with you. Sometimes, the sheets just give measurements without a size (e.g.: King, Queen, Full).

Here is are links to mattress sizes:

South African sizes:  https://www.sizechart.com/home/bed-size/south-africa/index.html

United States sizes:  http://sizechart.com/home/bed-size/us/index.html

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Pyrex and Tupperware-like containers are easy to come by. The selection may not be everything you'd hope for, but it's "good enough".

@traciwoodley you can check website lexpress properties on Google for rent , in grand baie you'll get all furnished house and black river area .

Public transport is free for retired person.

Hospital is near ebene , taxi charge around 3000 mur per day, you can rent car for long term it will be 1000 to 1500 mur per day petrol extra .

Enjoy beaches and sun in Mauritius. 

Thank you all for your input.  I am most excited to arrive in Mauritius. We are South Africans currently been living in the UK for more than 2 years. 

If I may ask another question please;  We are both Vape Smokers and I see you cannot get Vape Juice in Mauritius so what do most people do regards this. I was wondering how much I could bring from the UK to carry us through until we can make another plan.

Also, we will be staying in a AirBnB for 1 month and hiring a car for that period until we find a home.  Which area would be a good area based on the following:  Good Fishing spot (where there is safe rock fishing), shops (walking distance safely), with a Hospital or Clinic close by. I have been looking at Flic en Flac, Pereybere, Blue Bay but I like the West/North area more than the East as it seems very busy on the East side. We will both be working online so great internet is very important. So many questions and unknowns. Many thanks again, for all your valuable input.

Flic en Flac

I live in Flic en Flac. I am very fond of our little village. It's.... um... quirky.

Fishing

There is an Ocean Public Access path at Ave des Bretons that leads to a shore full of lava rock and tide pools. There is no barrier reef here, so whatever is out there (sharks, sea monsters, nuclear submarines) can get within fishing range. https://goo.gl/maps/XCe75oKvJRb7M5Ct8

A lot of people go there to fish.

Note: I do not know how successful they are... except for that one guy who caught a nuclear sub that was being driven by a shark. That was awesome.

Restaurants

There are several restaurants in town. Some don't open until after the sun goes down.

Two that I like are: Chez Pepe and King Snack

There are lots of street food places along the beach.

Almost all businesses in Flic en Flac are on Coastal Road.

There are exceptions, of course. For example: Chez Mi Bazaar: https://goo.gl/maps/ZsdvSyCNBkDETqGk8

To find "hidden gem" restaurants, search Google Maps for "Flic en Flac" (https://goo.gl/maps/1W9RZ3FrVjdUxtXP6), then click the "Restaurants" (or "Nearby Restaurants") button in the upper left corner of the map. Zoom in. A lot of small places don't show up until you move in a little closer.

If you want a fancy restaurant, you can go to Domaine Anna: https://www.facebook.com/domaineanna/

Vape Juice

I can't help with vape juice, except to say that if you try to import it after you arrive, it will be a hassle (to say the least). It seems unlikely that anybody will care if you bring it in your luggage--unless you're bringing a lot... in which case it might end up with one of those uncomfortable "Right. What's all this then?" moments.

Look at the last item on this list: https://mra.mu/download/SelectedProhibitedGoods.pdf

Note: I just noticed that I'm very likely to get burned on a very expensive flashlight (aka torch) that I'm importing from the USA. Item #3 on the list tells me it's probably going to be confiscated. A flashlight? Geez. Yet another expensive lesson.

Clinic

There is a Dentist/Medical Doctor/Psychotherapist office close to where I live and it's easy to get an appointment. There are several pharmacies in the area. There is a testing lab for blood tests, etc.

Fast Internet

Most people use an "Airbox" to maintain a 5G "last mile" connection to the ISP's physical network. Mine network connection is unstable enough that it causes me a lot of frustration every day. You can get a fiber Internet connection here--at least where I am. I'm going to do that, soon.

You will need the aforementioned psychotherapist after attempting to understand the billing system for cell phones and Internet connections (not to mention opening a bank account). I'm beginning to suspect that there is a required class in Mauritian schools called "How to make even the even the simplest things exasperatingly slow and pointlessly difficult 101"... and probably several advanced classes for people who are talented and ambitious.

What I wanted was: "Here is my credit card. Give me unlimited everything and automatically charge me every month." What I got was weeks of... (I'm going to stop here before the moderator bans me.)

@Starry Expanse   Thank you. I absolutely love reading your posts which are full of  information and so quirky and most enjoyable to read. Maybe myself and Adrian can meet up with you for a coffee or drink after we arrive.  Thanks again for all the very valuable information,

@traciwoodley Hello

You won't really get great fishing spot from shore anymore, as it is overfished, but with some UL stuff, you can have some little fun. That's not worth it really IMO, but you can do it from pretty much everywhere. The West is better as the East is always windy.

Most of us fish on boats or kayaks now and that's super fun.

For the rest, I let over people answer!

@traciwoodley Bring the comforter, the lightest one possible just to dress the bed, you won't need it to sleep, its too hot then.

Bring all baking goods with you down to measuring cups, and bring spices and small essences etc too hard to get here.

Bring mattress cover too, they do not have many here at a reasonable price, put it on bed then you don't have to worry about cleaning it, just take it off and keep for next bed.

I'm an Aussie living here since February, so let me know if you need further advice.

Anne

@traciwoodley

Hi Tracy

The best way to get something comfortable and fully eqiipped is to go through an accredited agent .....you will be shown photos ...... if you go through the internet you will get contact details of all these agents  and you may choose the best place for renting .....as far as pkastic bowls or other crockeries you get them easily in shops and are of good quality ...... if ever you get a used mattress you just throw it away or swap it for a new one very cheaply.

@anne8639 Thanks very much. If I think of more questions, I will definately take you up on your offer. It is daunting not knowing where to buy goodies for the home. I looked for Air Fryers and they are terribly expensive in comparison to the UK (we are South Africans living in UK for past 2 years).  What is the Mayonnaise like in MAU as here in UK it is terribly bland and I am used to the Tangy Mayo in SA and here I have had to resort to Salad Cream for potato salad as that's the closest to what I am used to.  Could you advise me which shop is cheapest to buy home goodies please.  Thanks

@traciwoodley You get Hinds, Crosse & Blackwell and Nola here. Sheets etc you can get good quality stuff at Woolworths. We are also ex SA living in Flic en Flac. I did not use an agent for a house as you get nailed on agency fees and I got a really good place for a really good price. DM me if you need any more advice. We have been here for over a year now and know most of the right places to go to.

@Glenn G Clayton Awww that is so awesome about the Mayo. FANTASTIC news.  I am so spoilt with Amazon prime in the UK so which Supermarkets/Stores are the best to get glassware for baking etc and kitchen stuff and pillows.  We don't necessarily need very expensive goodies.We have rented a Air BnB for our 1st week and hope to find a rental in Flic en Flac or Pereybere.

@traciwoodley We shop for food at Intermart and SuperU in Grand Baie.

Homewares are more difficult, need to go to shopping centres like La Croisette in Grand Baie. Shops to look at are Mr Bricolage - Hardware and homewares,

get member card for reductions.  Just spend time checking out the whole centre, lots of good shops,

bargain down prices and some stores will give you a discount, others just say no.

At Super U upstairs is a good all round stuff shop called Manjoo.  Yuni very good local furniture store, off main road to Port Louis, look up on navigation.

Really nice people there.

Off to Australia (old home) tomorrow, so will be off air till Jan 1st.

@traciwoodley

I recently bought an air fryer for about 5000 rs in Galaxy here. They often have offers in this shop.

As far as mayo is concerned.....well I'm English but hate the mayo in the UK, (the white stuff that's a bit jelly-like)

I used to live in France and I always get 'Mayonnaise de Dijon" which is our favourite.

Hope that helps....

Can you tell me what a "comforter" is? A blanket? a duvet?

@Starry Expanse

I love your humour! So much of this speaks to me though! The probs with internet, not to mention power cuts on the days I've got online meetings.

And yes, things that should be simple sure are complicated and long! There's often a whole process but you have to figure out the right process first as you get different answers. things that should take days take months....

@lynnesookdawar A comforter is like a bedspread but it is quilted-in UK we call it coverless duvet or quilted blanket.  Hope this more or less explains.  Thanks for your help.

@lynnesookdawar Thanks.  OK that price for a Air Fryer is more realistic but still £94-I bought mine for £44, so that's why I am asking about it. I will have a look at Galaxy then. Many thanks

@Glenn G Clayton Thanks a ton. How did you find a house without a agent?  We also want to stay away from Agents due to the super expensive commission they take.  We really want to be in Flic en Flac or even Pereybere.  We have booked a BnB for 7 days and hoping we will find a property to rent in that time. 

@anne8639 Oh WOW, have fun in Auz.

@traciwoodley

Hello Tracy,

I can refer you to some locals renting but they are more in Town.

Let me know if you are interested.

Cheers,

David

@Davidray10 Hi. We want to be in Flic en Flac preferably or Pereybere and also close to supermarkets, hopefully walking distance. We would require a minimum 2 bedroom villa/house/duplex/cottage with security grids.  You are welcome to let people contact me here, if it is allowed. Many thanks

<<We are both Vape Smokers and I see you cannot get Vape Juice in Mauritius so what do most people do regards this. I was wondering how much I could bring from the UK to carry us through until we can make another plan>>

The law bans the manufacture, import, distribution, sale, or offer for sale of e-cigarettes, including e-liquids, devices and accessories sold or marketed for use in or with e-cigarettes:

https://www.tobaccocontrollaws.org/legi … cigarettes

@daisymay2 Hi Yes, I know it is 'banned' but I know they do not mind tourists to bring enough in for personal consumption (not for re-sale). Most tourists do bring it in, so I will then have to bring in just enough till we can switch over to cigarettes again. thanks for your information.

@lynnesookdawar

Well.... I am French with Australian and UK life experience and like both mayo! The french Dijon one with hard eggs but the English one with shrimps! 😄.

The homemade one using Dijon mustard is probably what you'd like best and is made in a jiffy...only trouble is it is impossible to make a tiny quantity for a sandwich! Too bad