//
Photo: franek2, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The main mosque of the city was built in 1853, and enlarged during the following decades. It's a rare proof of the skills of Indian, mainly, Tamil craftsmen, who also built temples and churches. It has a madrasa (Islamic school), and in the middle of the courtyard stands an Indian almond tree, that was there already when construction began. The mosque a haven of peace in the middle of this busy capital.
The Jummah Mosque formerly "Mosque of the Arabs", is a mosque in Port Louis, Mauritius dating from the 1850s. The building combines Indian, Creole and Islamic architecture. The Jummah Mosque houses the remains of Jamal Shah in a marble tomb next to the mosque.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
A part of the old town is the Chinatown, where Chinese culture is alive. Here you can find shops selling products from traditional Chinese paintings, clothing and medicine to trinkets and second-hand goods as well as restaurants. Nevertheless the district gets surprisingly silent at night.
ex-Coolie ghat
When slavery was abolished in 1834, slaves that had been working on the island's sugar plantations were replaced by "free" indentured labourers from India. The complex whose present name translates to "immigration depot" in Hindi was first a French building but it was expanded over the years. From 1849 until 1923 more than half a million Indians arrived here, some to be shipped onwards to other parts of the British Empire, others to be settled on Mauritius. As ancestors of about 70% of the island's population has passed through here, it's a very important site for the history and identity of Mauritius. As the practice of systematically shipping Indians to the island ended, the complex was left to decay, used for other purposes and even partially demolished in the 1970s. In 1987 it was listed as a national monument and got its present name, and in 2006 it became a .
Showcasing the postal history of Mauritius.
Locals come to this square to sit down and take a break. It's surrounded by colonial French buildings, but also some high-rises. There are statues of important figures in the island nation's history like Queen Victoria, Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, first prime minister of the island, Sir Veerasamy Ringadoo, first president of the island and Emmanuel Anquetil, second president of the Mauritius Labor Party. It's quite busy during daytime, also because of the traffic on adjacent streets but it's peaceful in the evening which therefore is the best time to visit.
Parliament.
An old theatre, constructed in 1822 with 600 places. There are theatre performances in French and Creole English as well as jazz and classical music performances. To know about upcoming shows, check posters, read the newspapers or ask at the tourist information.