La Réunion is located about 700 km east of Madagascar and belongs to Mauritius 200 km away. For the first time she was spotted by Arabian sailors baptizing Dina Maghrabin (West Island). Since the Portuguese sailor Pedro Mascarenhas landed there on the name day of St. Apollonia in 1507, Apolonia was on the nautical charts for a long time. At the beginning of the 17th century, the island often served as a stopover for the English and Dutch fleets, and in 1640 it was declared French by King Louis XIII and, according to the noble family, Ile Bourbon. This name changed to La Réunion after the French Revolution. Main destination of the island is still the sugar cane and the rum.