Seychelle Part 7

Date: 2014-02-28

There are places where magic resides and there are places of total beauty. La Digue is a pearl in the basket of the granitic islands of the Seychelles archipelago cluster.

The Luxury of the Le Domaine de l'Orangeraie was our next destination and one we will cherish for the rest of our lives. It was not just the friendly welcome or the sensual scent of the island of la Digue it was the complete package.

La Digue is where you can really experience the true Seychellois' Culture. Life is lived the island way and everyone has a special soft spot for you.

At Le Domaine de l'Orangeraie, we were treated like royalty and our Villa matched this imperial status. Situated in a majestic jungle, each morning we were woken by the calls of exotic birds and presented with a splendid view.

Freddy Esparon was our chef, and he made sure that every meal was a celebration of his heritage. Whether we dined at the buffet styled main restaurant or the a la carte alternative, each preparation was a dining delight. "I cook for many international visitors, here at Le Domaine de l'Orangeraie and each visitor is equally important." Freddy explained one evening after creating another fantastic feast. Married to a Balanese lady, Freddy manages to combine the exotic Indonesian flavours with aromatic Seychellois combinations.

"My father is my mentor, he is the one who influenced the style of my cooking. I started from the bottom by washing dishes. I love eating and so I fell in love with cooking I have international experience my specialty is fusion, I take creole cuisine and I elevate. I take my mothers Arabic food and my fathers Asian cuisine and combine it with the creole I love to serve freshness and complimenting flavours." Freddy spoke with genuine enthusiasm and I could feel his passion, "From Monday to Sunday I make completely different dishes. I love what I do, I am happiest in my kitchen. I encourage my staff to do better and reach higher. I take such pride in what I am doing."

Freddie has recently returned from Bali where he completed the latest of many cooking courses. The base of Seychellois cuisine is coconut and Freddie is a genius in flavour combination. "When you eat creole food you must taste the soul and passion of this island and its people." Freddie concluded.

Our time in Le Domaine de l'Orangeraie was an experience we will not forget, not only were we given an upgrade to a Villa de Charme on the hillside, but we were also presented with a bottle of champagne in the room when we arrived. The exterior bathroom was a novelty and I loved the shower, which was open to the heavens. When we arrived the Jacuzzi was already warm and bubbling for our convenience. After an adventurous day spent cycling across the island, on one of the free bicycles provided by the resort, it was fantastic to sit back in the effervescent cool waters and sip chilled champagne.

The breakfast buffet was outstanding and we cherished the extra champagne we were served with our hot croissants. The variety of food was fantastic, the best we had in Seychelles, also the presentation and the flavour of each component was something to relish.

Le Domaine de l'Orangeraie provides free bikes to hotel guests and we took advantage of this. Our first adventure was very courageous; we set out for an idyllic little beach on the other side of the Island. La Digue is a relatively small Island so we were expecting some exertion but not too much.

It was wonderful, the most part of the journey was flat and we trundled along with the cool island breeze in our faces, the humidity helped to cool us off. Then we were whooping with delight as the gradient steepened and we picked up speed. Of course, what goes up must come down and in our case what goes down had to come up again too. Needless to say we ended up pushing our bikes a lot of the way on our return.

The journey however was more than worth it, we arrived at Grand Anse, parked our bikes next to a traditional Seychellois restaurant and plunged our sweaty bodies into the most beautiful blue water imaginable. Grand Anse is just across a dune from Petite Anse, which is next to an even smaller bay called Anse Cocos.

We just didn't have enough time to explore all the delights that this amazing little island had to offer, the traditional Ox cart has become something of a tourist trap and although we would not have ordinarily used this mode of transport, we would have jumped on board on the way back from the beach.

Le Domaine de l'Orangeraie really made our stay on the Island magical, the attention to detail and the opulent luxury was worth every Dollar we forked out for our stay.

So pack your bikini and swim shorts, throw in a tee shirt and book your magical island adventure today. Do it while you still can.

Seychelle Part 7

Springclean

Enlarge View Link

Nissan T5ekton

Enlarge View Link