Travel Guide Bouéni

The city of the octopus is a good base to discover this authentic region while enjoying quality tourist services. Bouéni means "woman" in Shimaore, with a certain notion of respect. But in this country where words count a lot, Bouéni does not take its name from the women, who are nevertheless reputed to be particularly beautiful in the south, nor from the evocative shapes of the peninsula or Mount Choungui. Some say that at the time when the Mahorais took refuge in Bouéni to resist the Malagasy invasions, the name of the village was attributed to a Sakalave kingdom of Bouéni. Finally, the third interpretation: the village, gently laid out on the edge of the lagoon, is bordered by a beach of orange sand where an enormous rock is placed under which one can pass and where children play. Bouéni is "the place where there is a rock" in old Shimaore.Bouéni is famous for its woodwork and the embroidery of the women. They excel at the "recélé" stitch, with which they create sophisticated Muslim calligraphy for kofias, intended for the faithful. Some of these require weeks of work. There is also pottery. Go to Taambati to learn more about the culture of Mauritius. On the infrastructure side, there is a post office and a few guest houses, whose number is unfortunately decreasing. In 2019, Bouéni will have a brand new secondary school with a SEGPA section, which will make the town more dynamic.