My descent into Mauritius was already promising: After flying east from South Africa over Madagascar and the Indian Ocean suddenly a landscape of stunning beauty appeared below my window seat: First coral reefs next to powder-white sandy beaches, palm trees galore, then lush valleys, sugarcane fields and tea plantations, lastly, just before we landed, dramatic volcanic peaks. Searching for an early lunch, I took a promenade from my hotel into the centre of Port Louis, capital of Mauritius. I passed the statue of Queen Victoria in front of the Government House, and dived into an Amalgam of Creole, Indian, Chinese, British and French influences. From Port Louis’ Chinatown where I started with delicious Dim Sum and juicy Pak Choi which both could have not been better in Hong Kong, I walked over to Little India, just minutes away, where I had octopus curry followed by the national dish dholl puri, a savoury pancake-type dish, stuffed with hearty butter bean curry, served wit mango chutney. It was time to digest by a stroll through the liush Botanical Gardens before I again turned my stomach to Chinatown. The Cantonese rice with barbecued duck was heaven. Amid the feasting I totally forgot about the great beaches. It was culinary love at first sight.