33.18 Reunion (France): Col du Taibit: One of those hikes and days that are memorable.
Going for a bus ride or two. We did some planning for our maiden trip to Reunion, a French island in the Indian ocean off the eastern coast of Southern Africa. (My first mistake is I forgot the maiden and took an older (sweet) lady instead.) Whereas it may be close to Africa, so is France for that matter; in our opinion, the island is France, just on a different continent. Even the licence plates (number plates) are Euro-French licences. It seems to us that Reunion is far more French than Hawaii is American. That may not make sense to a reader, but we thought it an appropriate way of expressing the feelings we derived from our visit. Hike-about-33 began in Chamonix, France and concludes, the hiking elements, in Reunion, France—French bookends, perhaps. The main point is that we have enjoyed both countries immensely, the people and the land. The town of Cilaos viewed from a little way up the mountain. Keeping a colorful eye on the not so wild, wildlife. About to be ta...