Seychelles island 3: The riches of Silhouette

Our final island stay on the Seychelles is Silhouette, which boasts a veritable abundance of riches.  True to its name, it cuts a dramatic shape as the shiny catamaran slips into the executive harbour, opening up the Indian Ocean’s most densely vegetated island. 

Thankfully Silhouette has no cars, and only one hotel – though it alone displays richness in the way only a high-end Hilton knows how.  My first (and likely only) stay in such luxury delighted and embarrassed me in equal measure – but after all, this was our honeymoon.

Turning to me with her priceless smile, my new wife simpered “oh schatz, isn’t it just divine? – though what if we were hit by a giant tiramisu?” Tidal waves are unlikely here, but we were inundated with heart-attacking waves of the most delicious cuisine.  And if the rich food didn’t give you a cardiac, the hefty prices would ($12 for a small bag of minibar nuts, anyone?).

In fairness, the island has a history of enrichment.  The first recorded landowner, Fancis Hodoun reportedly buried treasure deep in the forest – though this is said of most islands here.  The well-healed Dauban family then bought Silhouette – part of it, allegedly, in exchange for a violin – and went on to make a fortune from their plantations.  Their success is still visible in the lavish wooden house, now home to the deluxe creole restaurant Gran Kaz – and by the simple rusting slave bell down the road.  

So perhaps the Hiltons are just the new colonial masters?  Yet I couldn’t help noticing that there was a shiny new health centre for less than a hundred locals, and I’m sure the brightly-painted school could cope with far more than the present five pupils.  In fact, the only music and laughter we heard came from the staff quarters, us five-star guests seemingly weighed down by our richesse.

Yet there was so much to relish.  The wealth of biodiversity was stunning:  this tiny island  is a trove of over 2,000 species, including the rarest mammal on earth, the critically-endangered sheath-tailed bat.  Most of the land is mountainous forest, with mangrove, takamaka and endemic palm trees mixed with plantation cinnamon, coconut and breadfruit, plus a plentiful sprinkling of perfumed frangipani and flamboyant flame trees.

As if the land didn’t hold treasures enough, the marine life was equally stunning.  Swimming with dartingly-inquisitive snappers and dazzling Picasso fish was a huge privilege, whilst their shy, silver cousins the Milk fish coyly peaked from banks of seagrass beyond.  Ignoring guests’ inflated boasts of hunting or eating these prized creatures, the perfect combination of snorkel and seawater allowed us to bathe in a vast aquarium teaming with tropical fish.

My lasting impression of the island was one of wealth:  the lush, verdant forest; the abundance of valuable fish; the dull, monied guests; and the lingering taste of deliciously decadent, heart-stoppingly rich tiramisu.

And so, as the now-familiar silhouette faded behind us, I faced a final irony:  the island’s name turns out to owe nothing to its dramatic shape – nor to Air Seychelles in-flight magazine – but rather  to Etienne de Silhouette, an eighteenth century French nobleman and Controller General of Finances for Louis XV. 

Which I found to be just a bit rich.