Island hopping

What a beautiful morning. We woke to patches of blue sky and shadows on the ground as we walked down for breakfast. We had a little time to spare before we set of on our island hopping adventure so we popped into the games room above the souvenir store and library.






We had a 30 minute boat ride to one of the inhabited islands, but as we arrived there was no guide for us and the shops were closed. Under normal circumstances there would have been no tour on a Friday, but as ours was cancelled yesterday, we were there. We hopped back on the boat.






We headed off to one of the uninhabited islands where we had approximately 2 hours to ourselves. Magnificent! I'll let the photos speak for themselves.
























From our island paradise we headed back to the inhabited island for a walking tour with our guide. The island was devastated in the 2004 tsunami and has been undergoing the rebuilding process. The 3 mosques on the island have obviously been a priority.












The coconuts were amazing. There were three different types. These orange ones are not eaten, they are used for drinking only.

Back onto the boat and we stopped for a half hour snorkel off one of the islands on our way back to the resort. The marine life was amazing. I have never seen so many different colored fish. It was an unbelievable sight and an awesome experience. A little bit of bread goes a long way and draws the fish in. We even saw an octopus times 2 (which could be octopuses or octopi). The fish were annoying them and they moved into the coral to hide from them. They were quite large with a head the size a football. I loved the snorkeling









Back to the resort after nearly 6 hours. What a wonderful day. I guess I should quit while I'm a head!



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Location:Maldives

Aborted Island visit

What a magnificent morning. We headed off for breakfast around 830am and got ourselves a table on the beach. The bird life is very tame, coming over to Belinda at taking food from her hand. Interestingly, when the staff approached, the birds made themselves scarce!






As we finished breakfast the big black storm clouds rolled in over the horizon. We made our way over to reception to wait for the other guests who were participating in the island hopping adventure. The wind picked up and started to rattle the blinds in reception and almost 5 minutes later, the rain arrived in a torrential down pour. They decided to wait half an hour to see if the weather cleared and we could set off on our adventure. Unfortunately, the weather at our destination was not the best and the trip was called off. They have rescheduled for the same time tomorrow.








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Location:Maldives

Marvellous Male

The birthday that never ends continued last night. Hussain, our butler, arrived at the door with a bottle of champagne and a birthday cake for Belinda. A nice touch. He stayed and chatted with us for a while. He tried to talk us into a submarine trip looking at the underwater sites but were already booked in for the historical tour of Male. He felt this would possibly be too long, but as we have done nothing much so far, we thought we would be up to the challenge.

In the morning we woke to grey skies once again. We headed off for breakfast and the rain came. Luckily were had put our coats on as it was spitting when we left the room. By the time we got to the restaurant we were soaking wet as it had turned into a down pour. I was soaking wet from the knees down. Once the rain had stopped it didn't take long to dry.

We headed back from breakfast to the villa and decided to have a quick snorkel. Two hours later and we were out of the water. The marine life around the villas was spectacular. I spent my time trying to find Nemo, but to no avail. Nemo remains lost. Now that I've had a look at what is below us, it is no wonder our feet were a bit tender when we had been standing on the bottom. There are broken bits of coral everywhere. It really was amazing down there. I am looking forward to going back for a snorkel some time soon.






We headed down for an early lunch before we boarded our boat to head into Male. Another spectacular meal. I cannot fault the food here. The chef at 24 Degrees is pretty good. Tonight we have an Asian themed dinner which should be enjoyable.



Upon our arrival in Male we were greeted by our guide Abdul Razzag and given our complimentary coconut drink.



Were were split into groups for our tour and I am assuming it was by the language spoken, as were were grouped with a Lebonese couple who were from Dubai and spoke english. We did a few hours of walking today. It was a very slow pace and very laid back. We visited the following:

The New mosque and Sultan's garden with the old Palace Building which until recently housed the museum. This building has been heritage listed and as yet there are plans for it.



The new Museum cost $4 US to enter and we had a look around. Abdul said there would be a guide to take us around but she was more of a guard than anything else. She just stood and watched us making sure we did not touch anything. Interestingly, all of the exhibits were not in any sorts of enclosures. Very tempting to touch. There were no photos of anything inside the museum allowed unfortunately.



We moved on to the oldest mosque in Male which was made out of coral stone. In front of the mosque was a cemetery which had different size and shaped headstones that differentiated between men, women and children.



The President's Palace was right in the middle of everything in Male. There was more security at the Department of Defence than appeared around the Presidential Palace.







The Fish Market supplies fish all caught within a few kilometres of Male. There was a lot of yellow fin tuna. You chose the fish you want and they clean it on the spot.






The Fruit and Vege Market with all locally grown produce.






We dropped into a cafe which was your typical tourist type cafe for a quick drink. Then Abdul took us to a supermarket so we could buy some items. The essentials were purchased. Some cans of soft drink, Natural Confectionary Company lollies and Clinkers. Then of course, the souvenir store was a must! Resort prices successfully avoided. A great day was had by all.



Upon our return, a wedding ceremony was taking place in reception as the weather was a bit unpredictable.









We had a nice stroll along the beach as the sun set on another day.



We were invited to cocktails in the Presidential Suite which was extremely luxurious. It costs 3 times as much per night as our villa! It contains 2 bedrooms, pool, deck with beach sand, a huge net suspended between the deck which acted like a giant hammock. We had a chat to a number of the staff and sat around admiring the magnificent venue over a few glasses of wine.







A major down pour saw us finish the night off while eating dinner and Hussain picked us up and drove us back to the villa - another day in paradise!


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Location:Male, Maldives

Mal-drizzle

It is unusually wet this morning having had a bit of a down pour overnight. So far, the showers have passed very quickly but today we are seeing a constant light rain.

Attention to detail is what we have experienced so far here at the resort. Today is Belinda's birthday and when we ordered our breakfast we were also given a glass of champagne each to celebrate her birthday and the staff passed on their birthday wishes to her. A nice touch and another magnificent meal.




Most places in the Maldives provide buffet meals, but we have a full menu to choose from. It is a very extensive menu at each meal throughout the day. There were 5 pages of meals to choose from on the breakfast menu alone. The home made granola and fruit is a favorite and I think I will have this each day and choose something different each day from the rest of the menu as my second course. Tasmanian salmon bagel was delicious this morning. Not to mention the Baker's Basket we receive each time.




As we walked along the decking this morning we noticed the marine life in the lagoon and a bit of snorkeling may be in order later in the day to explore under the villa. I'm amazed at how white all the pylons are that keep the villas out of the water. There is no marine life clinging to them at all. I now know why. As we came back from breakfast, two of the staff were in the water, in their wet suits, scrubbing the pylons. Paths and beach areas are cleared of leaves as the "rake brigade" complete there work mainly under the cover of darkness. Nothing is too much trouble for the staff. They are constantly checking on us to make sure that our needs are being met.




I mentioned the light rain earlier - it is now constant. Male can no longer be seen from our deck as it has disappeared into the mist. It is unusual for rain at this time of year but the weather can be unpredictable. It is a good thing rest and relaxation is a priority.




The rain continued off and on for the remainder of the day. A good opportunity to get started on Matthew Reilly's Area 7. Thanks Linda for getting me on to his books. I really enjoyed Ice Station and I have downloaded a couple more to keep me going.

Each day the staff here feed the local stingrays. There are two of them who appear around 530pm near reception. They get in early before the reef sharks and the Jack fish. Once the Jack fish arrive there is not much food left for anyone else. They are extremely fast and the tuna soon disappears.










Further out, at around 6pm, the reef sharks are also given some tuna near the 'up market' restaurant. There would have been a good dozen of them scrounging for food. My preference would be to see them at this time of night rather than when I am having a snorkel around the place!








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Location:Maldives