My cousin VY surprised me this morning by brusquely bursting into my room. I thought it was to demand the whereabouts of her daily smoothie as I was having a bit of a lie in, but no, this time was different. "Wake-up we're going to Mauritius in 4h. Get packed." Sleep still in my eyes, it took me a full 10 seconds to process this. "Also, where's my smoothie?"

Four hours later I was on a SAA flight to Ramgoolam Airport. Turns out it was VY's mother's (my aunt's) 75th birthday and VY had decided on a whim to surprise her with a visit. VY is many things and generous ranks right up there with peevish. Using her companion ticket allowed me to tag along for the ride and celebrate my aunt's birthday. Best of all, the occasion, compressed time frame and no notice nature of this trip had mercifully freed me from any obligation to reach out to my (extensive) extended family.

I feel the need to cover my ass here: if you were in MU at the time and feel miffed about not having known I was there please reread the preceding sentence. Then read it again.

A Ng among the Y's. Big thank you to my cousins NY and VY for having me along. I had a blast hanging out with you!

Three days flew by in a whirlwind of food, family, fun, and more food. Best of all, my cousin NY invited us to celebrate at the luxurious Zilwa Hotel in Calodyne. What can I say, I'm blessed with amazing family.

Being here also gave me the idea for a new photo project. I'm taking contextual portraits of all my aunts and uncles in a way that captures what they mean to me. It's going to be a big project (I've got a big family) but a worthwhile one I think. I've taken a few photographs already but probably won't share them here.

This quick Mauritian jaunt was the perfect way to cap off my time in Africa and was well worth delaying my brief return to London. The British passport can wait.

I had only a few fleeting hours in Port Louis but it proved rich with photographic opportunities. Being able to speak the language and converse with the people as a local was a great advantage.

Street food vendors. NY's glasses at the edge of the frame

This guy was running the parking lot we were using and had an avuncular air about him which I liked. Also he gets Xtra points for his "Xtra Style"

Dipain frir ek satini! Deep fried bread with a crisp flour coating (like India Pakora) with a "Mauritian salsa" accompaniment

The Atlantic Store, in central Port Louis, has been in our family for three generations and sells all manner of general household items

Niouk Yen (shredded chayote) ,a Hakka Chinese staple

Jalebi, or Gato Mootai as it's known in Mauritius, is a (very) sweet Indian confection of deep fried batter saturated in sticky syrup

Taken in the Port Louis bazaar, these guys look like the produce they sell. Long green man selling long green veg

Round brown man selling round brown veg

Fried battered chillis made fresh. Gato pimant but not THE gato pimant. Still delectable!

"Min tuni" literally translates as "Naked Noodles". Not hard to see why. It's simple fare but delicious