Raising a family in Mauritius

(deleted)

Thanks for the input.

It's not stated in my personal profile, but actually we live in "tropical paradise location" already (and we love it!) - our little paradise just has a somehow unattractive education/business environment/religion/culture/crime/etc cocktail and that has prompted us to consider finding another place to live in the future.

Denmark does indeed tick many boxes in terms of health, safety and social services, however we just love living in the tropics! 

We have been looking at some of the islands in the Caribbean, and many of countries are wonderful (e.g. BVI) but just too small, Cayman Islands nice but a bit over-developed and "touristique".

When it comes to higher education we'll have to send the children off to the US or Europe, our immediate concern is schooling until the age of 15-18 yrs.

The "perfect place" obviously does not exist but I was thinking that Mauritius might offer us the ideal mix of tropical lifestyle, safety, good infrastructure, good private schools, reasonable bureaucracy, etc. And Mauritians seem genuinely friendly (also outside the hotel walls!).

As said it's very important for us not to live a live in a luxury-paradise-prison (you will not find us in an IRS villa!), and from my initial impression MU seems like a place where you can live in a normal, mixed neighbourhood without sacrificing safety and comfort.

We are obviously also looking at all the hard/technical sides of MU:
Being able to manage an international company from the island, recruiting competent technical staff, etc.

But before looking into that we want to know if MU meets our "soft criterias" if not we'll have to scratch it from our list.

Again, thanks for the input!

GG

(deleted)

Expatblogusername wrote:

Just a quick thought, Denmark is probably a much better place to raise children than Mauritius..... I would personally consider relocating to Scandinavia to raise children. Doing the opposite seems a bit odd to me, I havent met any other scandis here btw. Expats mostly come here for career reasons, and some people have secondary homes here.

My insight about MUR:
Forget about gender equality, and strollers in the bus... or even biking at all! there are no cycling path here.  Mauritius value are quite old fashioned with still gender-separated schools, a general feeling of homophobia, wealthy families are used to on-site staff and it seems to affect the maturity of children. Youngster still live at their parents far too long....

Cultural groups:
Since there are Mauritians from every background, as long as you are fluent in both french and english, people won't know you are a foreigner even if you are danish-looking BUT people care a lot about community.... So muslim indo-mauritians stay together, sino-mauritians on their side, and so on.... and so on... those cultural groups barely communicate. I have seen better. 

Education offer:
Higher education is really bad when i see my staff, but i don't know much about secondary education. However, there is no cultural offering compared to what you would find in a place like Copenhagen... I would consider it a no-go in my children's education.

Social services:
Finally, because its all almost a tax-free country, the level of social services is really low. I recently step in a police station and it looked like something from a 1920s movie, they barely had any computers.

One of the most idiotic posts I have seen in a while.
If it's really bad...why are you still here? There are more than 200 countries on the planet...surely you will find better.
Mauritius is an island in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Africa...so tell me what did you expect to find here? Europe? USA? Please.
And you come from North Korea...yeah sure!

"Youngster still live at their parents far too long...."
Maybe that's because the salaries are so low comparing to the rent rates, that almost nobody can afford it. Nothing to do with the maturity of children.

Sleeping Cookie wrote:

"Youngster still live at their parents far too long...."
Maybe that's because the salaries are so low comparing to the rent rates, that almost nobody can afford it. Nothing to do with the maturity of children.

It has nothing to do with salaries or rent rates or maturity.
Mauritius is still a pretty much family-based society and has its own way of life, traditions and values. You don't just leave the family house and rent because it's 'cool and modern'.
As youngsters, you have your share of responsibilities with regard to the home which has seen several generations of your family.

I disagree. I have many friends that are dying to leave the house but can't because they just can't afford it. Maybe it's both reasons.

Maybe for a tiny minority...but Mauritius remains a family-based society and is likely to remain that way for a long time...especially within Asian-origin communities.
'Dying to leave the house' in Mauritius commonly indicates family structure failure or troubled relationship among members.

Kaviraj G wrote:

One of the most idiotic posts I have seen in a while.
If it's really bad...why are you still here? There are more than 200 countries on the planet...surely you will find better.
Mauritius is an island in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Africa...so tell me what did you expect to find here? Europe? USA? Please.
And you come from North Korea...yeah sure!

So that he can lead his privileged life here - I guess he does not want  too much taxes in Europe or wherever he comes from !!!  but is eager enough to benefit from 15% tax.   
Some like to rant about their expatriate life but still want to bleed the system when it suits them.

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.p … 76#1804618

Kaviraj G wrote:

'Dying to leave the house' in Mauritius commonly indicates family structure failure or troubled relationship among members.

lol not really Just people that lived in Europe or studied abroad and want to feel a bit more free.

Sleeping Cookie wrote:

Kaviraj G wrote:

'Dying to leave the house' in Mauritius commonly indicates family structure failure or troubled relationship among members.

lol not really Just people that lived in Europe or studied abroad and want to feel a bit more free.

All of that is included in the tiny minority I mentioned. And it's not simple as 'wanting to feel a bit more free'. Mauritian society is far too complex.

Thank you for all the contributions to this thread!

I think it's positive that "expatblogusername" measures MU according to an "European scale" - who really wants to use very dysfunctional African states as a scale for what is good and what is not?

Gender inequality, homophobia, etc may not be essential issues for everyone, but for most of us Scandinavians it's a big thing!

In my experience some shortcomings of certain locations can be bridged with proper planning - you can, for example, send your children to a private school if you are not happy with the standard of the public schools (provided that there are good private schools available).

However, things such as crime, rampant drug use in the young population, religious or political tensions, low acceptance of foreigners, gender inequality etc are issues that you cannot really plan your way out of.

I hope we can go back to my initial questions, especially the question about availability of really top-notch (private) schools on MU and the issue about how well foreigners (and especially their children) are received and integrated on MU.

All the best,

GG

Mauritius is not dysfunctional, quoting your word, nor European as you would like it to be.

And as for any other country, it has its own culture and traditions, way of life, characteristics and specifications. And as an independent country, it implements laws which suits its society and for the benefit of its population first.
As an expat, it's up to you to adjust to the law of the land and to the culture of the country, not vice versa, based on the tone of your post.
And up to you to decide if you will make it in such a country and if not, then just put a cross and move to another. Whether some issues are controversial or a matter of concern to you won't change things as it's up to you to adjust if you can.
Will you complain about gun ownership legislation if you go to the USA? Surely not. The same logic applies to another country with respect to the type of society and way of life prevailing.
You cannot think about moving to another country 10,000 kms away from home and expect to find the same. You said you want to live in the tropic, then you have to bear all the stuff that goes along with it, good or less good.

Now coming to your questions about education:

There are private schools in Mauritius which cater mostly to children of expats. Many follow international teaching programs and exams.
As for top-notch, many type of meanings can be attributed to this term. It all depends on the type of school curriculum and way of teaching that you have in your home country. What is top-notch for someone else might not be for you.

As far as how well foreigners are received...well the number of Danish people or Scandinavians in Mauritius is very small, therefore I have no idea about how they fare and about their status or way of life.
Some expats integrate well, other not. Some make the efforts, others not. Some get used to the local culture and way of living, others fail badly. Some have the will to accept things as they are, others don't.
It also comes down to what you are doing precisely in the country; work, business, vacations, etc and the relationship you develop with the people in your vicinity.

Mauritius is world apart from Denmark in all aspects and it will be a dramatic and consequential move.

Therefore, the wise thing to do is to come on a tourist visa for a short time to see how things are and then decide if you and your family will be able to cope or not.

Hi all,

Just one reminder. Opinions and advices can be shared without flaming the thread.
Keep calm.

Thanks
Armand
Expat.com Team

that is interesting discussion indeed. I'm new here, but I'm already heard many stories how people come and leave. Just today I heard story about young brit, who bought second hand Opel car. So, car got broken often here and there, he spent most of his time with car mechanic. Then, one day he said - "Everything I touch on Mauritius broke" and he left taking his depressed and split personality with him.

It is very personal, you give evaluation to place and place (be sure) will give evaluation to you. As Kaviraj kindly explained, Mauritis is a family based society, that is true. It has solid values, which maybe hard to understand for people with hedonistic background. But that is not automatically means, that for couple with children will be more easy to integrate into society and gain some level of acceptance as a family.

Hello GG,

We moved here 20 months ago from Switzerland and I'd say that right now, we have no regrets what so ever. In fact, had moving here while our children were younger been an option I would have done so without a doubt, as I see many young expat families enjoying the outdoors and lifestyle Mauritius has to offer.

Our teenage son goes to an international school where there is a good balance of local and expat children. The school is small and I am pleased with the standard of education. The kids seem to enjoy a good social scene too. No matter where you are in the world, there are obviously things to be wary about and youngsters need to be educated concerning drugs and alcohol. I'd say I was more afraid when my kids went out in London or Geneva as crime levels just keep getting worse in Europe. That being said, nothing stops you from just being in the wrong place at the wrong time...

I would definitely recommend that you spend a little time in Mauritius checking out the schools and places to live. As mentioned before, there aren't many side walks, there are no cycle paths, it's next to impossible to push a stroller around unless you're in a shopping mall, traffic - well, you'll never fall asleep behind the wheel that's for sure! But there are little things that you begin to appreciate, apart from nature and glorious sunshine, there is still communication and generally people are polite and courteous. We have a good social (local and expat) entourage and again, it's up to you to get out and meet people. I'm sure this is even easier when you have younger children as there are many organized get togethers. Mauritius is also a place of opportunity - if it doesn't exist yet, you can always set up a club!

Hope this helps a little

" traffic - well, you'll never fall asleep behind the wheel that's for sure! "

Lol!!!!! I love it. Its so funny because its so true but Mauritians in general are not ones to get into a road rage frenzy and folk are generally patient and polite in my experience.

(deleted)

Mauritius is a fascinating, world-in-one-island slice of paradise. Here, you have the opportunity to experience unparalleled luxury lifestyle. Its not a bad idea to relocate in Mauritius with family. Mauritius is also developing day by day. The best example is sugar exports,  Mauritius estimates that income from sugar exports will rise 4.2 percent this year.
In the next 2-3 years economy will definitely grow. So plan accordingly.