Maldives 2002

The president of the club, Alan Griffiths, went on a holiday to the Maldives and thought we would like to know what he saw.

The Maldives are a series of small coral islands situated in the Indian Ocean a few degrees north of the equator. They are reached by a ten-hour flight from Gatwick to the capitol Male. We stayed at Fihalhohi Island, one of the two hundred and fifty inhabited islands in the group, arriving after an interesting hour-long trip in a speedboat from Male.

The resort is under a single management and consists of a restaurant two bars and a string of thatched semi detached rooms separated from the shore by a line of coconut palms and other trees. You can walk right round the island in about twenty-five minutes or straight to the sea in one. The highest point on the island is only 1.6m so there are no big waves! Wild life is mostly limited to lizards, geckos, grey herons, common sandpipers, fruit bats, a crow like bird that has a loud cry and the very occasional sea bird. There are few insects and no malaria.

It is the most wonderfully relaxing place. The temperature is steady at around twenty-nine degrees with the sea a degree or so cooler. Light breezes most days make it a lovely climate. There are no motor vehicles, strimmers or chainsaws to annoy you, nor is there noisy nightlife. The entertainment highlight of the week is crab racing in the bar. The beach of white coral sand extends all the way round the island. There were never more than a few people in view even though the resort was full. Bills for drinks and other extras are paid for at the end of the stay by credit card so you only need cash (US dollars) for the occasional tip. It is a Muslim country so the staff is all male. They keep a very low profile and are very helpful when needed. A great variety of food is served in the restaurant. They even had Cornish pasties for sale in the bar for one dollar fifty! Alcoholic drinks are served in the bars but there are heavy penalties for importing them.

The edge of the coral reef varies in distance from the shore from ten to a hundred meters or so. It suffered, in common with many reefs around the world, from bleaching in 1998, thought to be the result of global warming. It is recovering slowly. However there are masses of fish of all colours shapes and sizes including sharks, manta rays, honeycomb morays and batfish. The water temperature allows you to snorkel for as long as you like. I came back with four hours of video, mostly underwater. A diving center caters for all needs and there is a catamaran for hire. Various trips are available. One to watch Dolphins is worth while.

It is a venue to suit divers and non-divers alike. We hope to go again soon.

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