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TRAVEL - Escaping to the Scented Islands (Part 5)

TRAVEL - Escaping to the Scented Islands (Part 5)

Author: Kasia & Tomas Yoko
Date: 2016-06-24
The Legend of La Buse

We remember growing up reading pirate stories and movies. As children we fantasize about Pirate shipstropical islands and the lost treasureit is so much part of exotic children's fantasy. We wondered about the fascination we have with these thieves and hijackers of the seaof years gone by.

It is about the freedom, the endless horizons and a care-free, do as you please lifestyle. The rum, the songs, the accent, or perhaps, one of the reasons the legend of these pirates has never died is the most obvious.... the treasure. There are numerous stories of hidden or lost pirate treasure that has never been found. In the 1600's, pirates would sometimes bury their treasure on remote islands in order to keep it safe from other pirates, or prevent it from weighing down their ship. Of course these pirates would then have maps and cryptic clues in order to findthe treasure... we've all seen the movies, we all know the stories.

On our travels in the Seychelles we encountered many stories of hidden pirate treasure. In the 1600's before the Seychelles Islands were inhabited, pirates used to anchor off the islands and it is believed that some of the pirates were in the habit of burying their treasures on these islands. Then we were treated to a stay at Treasure Cove Hotel on Bel Ombre beach, where evidence of pirates was found.Treasure Cove Hotel is on Mahe Island and just a short walk from the hotel stones were found with carvings of animals and horses, even a figureof a young woman, and the head of a man were depicted. After some excited digging two coffins were found containing the remains of two pirates, identified by a gold ringin the left ear.

The restaurant at Treasure cove is named after one of the most popular and enthralling stories of a pirate and his treasure. The famous French privateer, Olivier Levasseur, lived from 1680 to 1730. As a pirate he was nicknamed La Buse, The Buzzard or La Bouche The Mouth, because of the ruthless speed with which he attacked his prey.

La Bouche is famous for the treasure that he relieved the Bishop of Goa of, including a solid gold cross so heavy it took four men to lift off the ground.

When we walked the windy paths to the cutest remote beach that was almost inaccessible by land, I constantly searched for a glimpse of a golden coin or some sign of a treasure chest or anything.

When Levasseur was captured he refused to give up his treasure and when the authorities eventually tired of trying to prise the information out of him they decided to hang him. A fate of many a pirate. At his hanging a crowd had gathered and it is recorded that Levasseur threw a cryptogram into the crowd, allegedly with the directions to the treasure in code. "Find my treasure, he who may understand it!" he shouted before his neck was snapped.

Hiking along the coastline was made that much more interesting by the possibility of stumbling across a pirate's treasure, snorkelling and diving too, my eye ever vigilant for a sign or a solid gold coin glinting in the perfectly crystal clear water.

The islands themselves are a treasure and you will surely agree with me when you visit them, put the Seychelles on your bucket list and if you have a metal detector, perhaps you would consider taking it with you.