A Small Paradise on Earth

I have not yet been to Kashmir which is called the paradise in India , but this year on my birthday I saw the real paradise on Earth , Maldives. As my husband planned a surprise trip to Maldives , I came to know 2 days before my birthday that I have to pack my bag!! At that point I did not have much time to think about how to express my happiness. The whole idea of a small holiday at Maldives was not sinking inside my mind so easily.

a view of an island from the flight

Our flight took off at 10 :30 a.m. and after half an hour or so I could see only a vast deep blue canvas outside my window, thats the Indian Ocean. The 2 hour flight was an awesome experience.

landing at the airport

Maldives, the land of around 1200 islands , has several atolls. Atolls are small coral islands encircling lagoons. You will get the best resorts on some of these islands. Few islands are large enough to accommodate two different resorts where as most of the islands are so small that you will hardly get any structures on the land. Maldives is famous for its white sand, the corals and a very rich flora and fauna. Though the main religion there is Muslim, you will find that people have come from various places with their own share of culture. Most of the people working in the resorts are from Sri Lanka or India or Bangladesh. The islands are at a great risk because of the global warming. When the Tsunami struck the Indian ocean,  few of the islands became uninhabitable. The capital of Maldives is Male. Though we say the airport is at Male, our butler told us that the airport is located on a different island which is just behind Male. 

a view of the island

Now lets come back to my very own experience. As soon as we landed at the airport,  I could realize that why everybody said a sunscreen lotion is a MUST in Maldives. Though the temperature was near 30 degree, the heat was quite unbearable for me :(...The airport is very small one. After the immigration , you will have to go through a screening. This is done to stop any incoming of alcohol or some other luxury goods from outside. Yes, you heard it right...you can not carry alcohol while getting in Maldives. After coming out of the airport you will find around 40 counters of different resorts, who check your resort reservation and take you towards your sea plane or boat. We were taken to our boat where we had another couple waiting for us. The ride was amazing. Most of the time I thought I was in the air :P....The boat was jumping  every second on those high waves and I was able to feel the experience of a marry-go-round. It took us around 15 minutes to reach our island....the island was close to Male.

speed boat ride

And now comes our beautiful resort "Adaaran Prestige Vadoo", South Male Atoll which was the only resort on that small island. The entrance does not give any clue about what is there inside. There was a small deck and a closed wooden gate. Few people were waiting for us. As soon as I landed on the deck , I was greeted by everyone and they all wished me a very happy birthday. We were taken to the bar where we were given a refreshing iced tea and towels and were introduced to our private butler. I just could not wait to see our room so we asked our private butler to take us for an island tour. He happily showed us the garden, the small tortoise pool, the beach, spa, Japanese restaurant, pool and diving center. Every time when I stopped to click some photos, he waited patiently.....that was really sweet of him. I was completely on the cloud nine as each and every resort member on the way were wishing me happy birthday!! I think my hubby dear got jealous of that...:P...kidding...he's the one who did it for me :)

The resort is based on a small 2.5 acre land. The restaurants, diving center and bars, are on the island but the 50 villas are made over shallow water. The long wooden passage has villas on both the sides....do not forget to go for an evening walk on this platform from one end to the other....its just awesome...the cool breeze , the sound of water, the sunset, the sight of few fishes and a lot of privacy.

the wooden passage

The resort has 3 bars, one just at the beginning of the island, be there at 9:30 p.m. everyday to see fish feeding. I saw different fishes (quite large ones) there like teen aged sharks and sting rays  and many others. The other bar is over water at the entrance of the villas and Dhoni bar is situated on the beach side. They have a small museum showing Maldivian cultures and all. 

over water bar and museum

On the wooden passage you will see four thatched large open spaces, they are called pavilions where you can relax on the sun bathing beds or can enjoy a private dinner on request.

evening @ the pavilion

When we reached our villa , I just could not suppress my joy when I saw our own plunge pool on the villa's deck. That was a very pleasant thing for both of us. There was a table and two chairs where you can have your meals and a queen-size sun bathing bed. 

Enter the room and you will feel so relaxed. The two air conditions took away all my itchiness of the heat. The room was really spacious (compared to what we got in Mauritius). There were two LCDs (one in the room  and one in the washroom), large cabinets, electronic safe, couches, internet connection, DVD player , mini refrigerator, hair dryer, coffee making machine.....you name any of the luxury amenity you will get it there. 

the room

We had made a special request for a sun set villa before reaching  Maldives and  they gave us that. It was really wonderful because the front wall of the room (facing the ocean) was made up of glass only and was curtained. When our butler removed the curtains, the view made us drop our jaws. It was like relax on your king size bed, seep into the glass of wine and watch the beauty of sunset while enjoying the coolness of the ACs.

sunset view from the villa

Then there was an open bath and an open toilet. Outside the washroom was a jacuzzi and a small veranda where you can hang your wet clothes on hangers. You will get all the toiletries refilled everyday. 

jacuzzi in the backyard of the villa

There is a glass bottom portion in the washroom and a couch near it. You can sit there in the morning  or evening while brushing and if you are lucky enough like me, you can see some fishes. 

can you see the fish?

There is a large window on the wall of the washroom, if you open that window, you can directly  get a view  of the ocean and the sun deck at the front from the jacuzzi. Both the pool and the jacuzzi have an amazing lighting at night, but if you want some more, ask for candles from your butler. They gave us two complimentary wine bottles (a sparkling white wine and a red wine) along with 2 water bottles on the first day. Everyday they will replace the water bottles. You will get two life jackets, raincoats, bathrobes, 2 pair of bathroom slippers and lots n lots of pillows (you can even ask for more if you are not satisfied: P) in the room. During our stay it rained twice but for a very short span of time. And I guess nobody will prefer to wear those rain coats and stay away from enjoying the rain in Maldives. The night when we went to see the fish feeding , while coming back, it started raining heavily and it was quite an  exciting experience running on the wooden passage (which has no railings on the side....which means once you get disbalanced....you go directly into the dark water..ohh how creepy). 

You will get all the three meals served at the main restaurant and only lunch and dinner at the Japanese one. The breakfast was included in the reservation. You will get variety of food ( continental , Chinese , European), though I heard that Maldivian breakfast was a good one, we did not go for it because it was normal daal , subzi things. Do try the cold cuts, stuffed omelet, danish bread and waffles with maple syrup. Everyday I used to take a different fruit juice, it was really refreshing. If you are vegetarian, you might  get bored with the limited options.

cold cut , danish bread and waffle

Being non-swimmers we have never tried any water sport. But this time we went for the underwater diving. It was a two hour session, in the first hour you will get the basic lessons, practice a little in the shallow water and then in the next hour go and venture out in the beautiful world under water. It was an amazing experience. Though all the time I was scared of the thought that if I loose control over the air pipe, I will be dead , I saw hundreds of fishes and two giant turtles. My husband was so happy that the trainer almost had to drag him few times in the proper direction because he was going up and down and left and right (just like a two year old baby). Unfortunately that day the diving center's under water camera was gone for maintenance so we couldn't take pictures of those wonderful memories but the pictures will always be in our mind. It truly was a lifetime experience for both of us.

the beach

Another best thing of the stay was our private beach dinner on my birthday evening. It was a nice set up only for two of us. The food was delicious and so heavy that we almost could not finish the last two dishes. And we asked our butler to serve the desserts at our villa which he did. And in the villa was waiting a surprise for me.........a yummy chocolate cake and a nicely decorated bed with flowers. I just loved it. 

my b'day cake

On the day of departure we had to leave the place 3 hours before our flight time because we had to share the boat with other guests. Every one waved at us until we were out of their vision. I thoroughly enjoyed the stay. Each and every member of the resort were so polite and helpful. If you wanna buy something as a souvenir , there is a shop at the airport. I could not get the Maldivian coins :( instead I got the rufiya.

Like the waves, tourists will come and go in Maldives. And we all will always remember the precious moments spent there with a lot of love.

Adaaran prestige vadoo