Curvy island

Today we're packing our bags again and moving on. It's a good thing we were at the volcano yesterday, because there are a lot of clouds today. Everything was done right.

We start after a good breakfast,

in the thick cloud haze

and head for the coastal road,

to explore its attractions. First stop -

Suspension bridge over the River East

The bridge was designed by Gustav Eiffel, the architect who was also responsible for the design of the Eiffel Tower. When it was completed in 1894, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world with a span of 110 metres.

The delicate metal construction, the wooden planks as the bridge deck and the bridgeheads made of natural stone mean that it is beautifully integrated into the landscape. It has been closed to car traffic since 1979. Today it is only passable by pedestrians and was restored with 10 million EU funds (and it somehow looks like new).

It continues to

Notre Dame des Lavas

Built in 1927, Notre-Dame-des-Laves is called "Our Lady of the Lava." The church was miraculously spared from the lava flow in 1977. (The lava flow mostly flowed around the church.)

The "Virgin with the Parasol" is also located right in the church. This virgin was commissioned by a vanilla planter as a patron saint. In fact, the lava had spared his vanilla fields in response to his prayers.

Directly opposite the church is

The Metisse 77

This 4 meter high basalt statue was made by three local artists to commemorate the lava flow of 1977.

We continue to follow the N2 and turn to the signposted parking lot of Anse de Cascade.

Anse de Cascade

The Bay of the Waterfall in Sainte-Rose is a true green setting. This beautiful bay is home to a typical fishing port and many small waterfalls.

But where does this fresh water come from? Because when you pass the road above, no river! A secret of the volcano: the water enters from above and runs underground, following the layers of impermeable rocks... until it reaches the bay. That's why the water comes out of the middle of the cliff.

A wonderful place to linger.

We continue on the N2 towards St. Philippe. According to our first landlady Isabel, this is where you can find the best vanilla in Reunion.

I expected that you could get them cheaper here, but I was proven wrong. According to ChatGPT, €5 per stick is normal. I just tell myself that the stick is bigger and more aromatic. That justifies the price and at the same time I support a poor vanilla farmer. And according to Madame Mounier, one stick is enough for 3 cakes. (Besides, you have to bring a typical local souvenir with you)

The next stop, the

Coulée des Laves (lava flows)

The 15 km long stretch of coastline, at the level of the Piton de la Fournaise volcano, is called Le Grand Brûlé (the big burn) and is the most impressive part of the coastal road. It passes through the various lava flows of the last decades. The most spectacular and still most visible is the 2007 lava flow, the last to cross the road on its way to the sea.

Continuing along the N2, you will soon see the sign for Cap Mechant. At the car park we are greeted by an elderly lady with a parasol who, despite us telling her that we don't understand her, talks to us in French and practically follows us. At some point she gives up. As Schahaatz puts it: she must have warned us not to go too close to the cliffs.

Cap Mechant

Translated as “treacherous cape”, according to legend, many ships, their cargo and sailors have gone missing on the wild coast, the reefs and the sharp-edged lava cliffs.

Actually, we wanted to

Tl sable beach - the black beach

and the Bassin de Manapany

but we have to be at Europcar in St. Pierre by 5 p.m. to get the papers for the exchange car. Thanks to the rush hour traffic, we reach the office at 4:48 p.m. Expecting that they don't know anything and we have to leave without accomplishing anything, we were pleasantly surprised.

In just 5 minutes we had the new papers in our hands👍🏻.

Now we quickly buy some water and then complete the last stage of the day, the drive to our hotel Les Vieux cep in Cilaos.

Meanwhile it is already dark again, because during the shopping tour

In addition to water, baguette, cheese, salami, olives, tomatoes, onions, knives, Dodo beer and chips also made it into the shopping bag.

We still have 40 kilometers in 1 hour and 13 minutes to go. You're probably wondering why it took so long? We asked ourselves the same thing - and now we know. There are a lot of winding roads and hairpin bends here in Reunion, but today was the absolute highlight.

Here are just two examples from Google Maps (because we didn't see much).

Facts:

Cilaos can only be reached by road. With 430 bends over a length of almost 40 kilometers, the N5 is one of the most beautiful landscapes that Reunion has to offer. The town of Cilaos is located at 1,200 m in the middle of the Cirque de Cilaos valley and, on a clear day, offers a fantastic view of the peaks of Piton des Neiges (3,070 m), Le Grand Bénare (2,898 m) and the Trois Salazes (2,132 m).

The journey was adventurous. Schahaatz and Micha in race mode. Do you know what it's like when you get a kind of tunnel vision? Right - left - hairpin bend - bottleneck - left - right - another hairpin bend - tunnel... it went on like that the whole time. With the headlights and without the cornering lights you could hardly see anything.

It was a good thing that there was not much traffic at that time and the road was bordered by a wall.

A big compliment and thank you to Schahaatz and Micha for bringing us here safely.

Thank you 😘

We move into our rooms on the 2nd floor, without an elevator of course. The rooms are nice and the heating works, as it is only 14 degrees outside.

This has