Maldives islands, sandbanks and reefs
The Maldives. Paradise. It seems fruitless to carry on writing as this single word best describes what the Maldives offers as a holiday destination. But that would be a very short blog post and I sure have a lot to say about this little slice of heaven.
For me, the fact that 99 per cent of Maldivian territory lies below sea level and that more than three quarters of the world’s reef-fish species can be found here means I was sold on the idea of a week here. Add into that the crystal clear warm waters, the white sandy beach and the year round sunshine, it was a no brainer. After a short stop off in Dubai, we landed at Male – a unique experience in itself. Male Airport is a single runway that fills an entire island – no room for the pilot overshooting this one, otherwise our encounters with the reef fishes would have begun rather prematurely!
Seaplane
We were warmly welcomed by our Hayes & Jarvis rep and ushered onto a bus to terminal B and a very nice private waiting lounge where we awaited our sea plane transfer. It wasn’t long before our pilot was revving up the engine and scooting along the water to take off. I was in the front row and so got a first rate view of the pilots at the controls as we shuddered into the sky (see a short film clip of the return flight take-off on our Video page). We waved goodbye to the airport and its neighbour – the capital city/island of Male. The 2km by 1km island is home to some 80,000 residents and growing, although there is no more possible space to build at ground level as the entire island is covered with high rise buildings (with limits set at 8 storeys) and a few open spaces.
As we headed north the real beauty of this stunning slice of the Indian Ocean unveiled itself. A patchwork quilt of atolls and islands, reefs, lagoons, and sand-banks spread out before us in the most stunning turquoise, blues, greens, teals and yellows. The Maldivian government determines that there are 1,192 islands of which only about 200 are inhabited. However, the number can range between 1,300 and 13,000 depending on your definition of “island”.
Meedhupparu island
40 minutes later we smoothly looped around our destination Meedhupparu island, one of the 13 inhabited islands that make up the South Miladhunmadulu Atoll to the north. We landed with just a few skips into the waves and after disembarking we were immediately ushered into lunch and then to our beachside villa. Even the most basic rooms here have a first rate location as all are located directly on the beach with views of the turquoise sea and the random sprinkling of gently swaying palm trees and foliage that provide welcome shade from the hot sun. For a couple used to backpacking our way around one-roomed beach shacks with simple foam mattresses and holey mozzy nets – this place was luxury. Of course it is far from the 5* standard of some of the other resorts here, but for us that meant a slightly more relaxed experience, which was exactly what we were looking for (and could afford!). I personally needn’t ask for more and despite it being rainy season, we enjoyed a full week of sunshine with the heavy downpours coming only at night time – which was convenient!
It took us all of 5 minutes to get into the warm sea with our snorkels and then for the next six days we pretty much only came up for intervals of air and food.
Just 10 paces from our villa (on the northern side of the island, which I would recommend to any visitors as it is quietest and has better snorkelling and views) and 10 kicks from the shore, the reef rises from the white sand seabed. The reef fishes are plentiful even at this shallow depth with a collection of cheeky surgeonfish (pictured below) chasing a rainbow of parrotfish (more than 20 species of each found here) and wrasse, shoals of Moreish Idols floating about, Oriental Sweetlips hiding in the coral, and all multitudes of unicornfish, butterfly fish (30 species here) and angelfish (14 species here) busily swimming amongst the colourful clams. Some minutes later, at the edge of the reef, the level drops dramatically down some 20-30 metres and disappears into the murky depths. It was at this exact spot that we first saw a beautiful Hawksbill Turtle (to make up one of the three encounters) serenely swimming along and pecking amongst the coral. Wow. Among the other marine highlights were an octopus and a sting ray (pictured below) – who we kept a little further away from!
Powderblue Surgeonfish
Stingray
Beautiful clear water
Beach villa
Our 7 day holiday can be pretty much summed up in the lists of fishes and marine life we swam with (pictured above), interspersed with lounging on the white powdery sand and working our way through the all-inclusive cocktails list. However it is pertinent to remember that these white sandy beaches are formed by the break down of coral. And it is not only the rising tide that is breaking up these beautiful habitats – but rising temperatures and acidity of the waters (both of which kill coral) and rising the sea levels that threaten the land mass of this small island nation. The world’s environmental challenges come into sharp focus in the Maldives.
While residents of the Maldives use relatively little energy, it is the tourists who visit here that guzzle power. And it is not power provided by solar or wave power – both of which this place has aplenty. The resorts and locals alike rely heavily on diesel powered generators. While solar power would inevitably be cheaper to run, the up front cost of implementation and the willingness of tourists to fork out hefty sums for a holiday here prevent it from being widely established. Like all countries reliant on democracy – the Maldives is a victim of short term politics and there is no short term impetus to change. It’s the long game which will cause the final and irreversible damage to this little slice of paradise. However with a population of just 345,023 people, the impact the islands have on the world’s environmental issues is minimal and so like much of the world, it is reliant on the conscience of the powerhouses – ironically the same countries (USA, China, etc) that most frequent this paradise holiday destination.
The stunning coral reefs of the Maldives from the air
Male city
Life Well Travelled 