Transfer Indo

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Footballers in Maldives - Diana Lissa

If you think a seaplane transfer is expensive, try a Full Back transfer. The Premier League transfer window (and most of the major leagues) close today so expect some late breaking moves as the best and the brightest of the football pitches return from the their summer R&R on the atoll beaches. Here’s a starting eleven of those who chose to stretch out in the Maldives (and few bonus supporters). For even more examples, check out Bunyamin Ahmed’s social media feeds (though they are all airport selfies).

  1. David Beckham (United Kingdom) – One & Only Reethi Rah – Manchester United
    David Beckham (United Kingdom) – One & Only Reethi Rah - Manchester United)
      
  2. Luis Suarez (Uruguay) – NIYAMA – FC Barcelona
    Luis Suarez (Uruguay) – NIYAMA - FC Barcelona
      
  3. Jordi Amat (Spain) – Anantara Dhigu – Swansea City
    Jordi Amat (Spain) – Anantara Dhigu - Swansea City
      
  4. Emiliano Martínez (Argentina) – Conrad Rangali – Arsenal
    Emiliano Martínez (Argentina) – Conrad Rangali - Arsenal
      
  5. Victor Lindelhof (Sweden) – Hurawalhi – Benfica
    Victor Lindelhof (Sweden) – Hurawalhi – Benfica
      
  6. Jorge “Koke” Resurrección (Spain) – Anantara Kihavah Villas – Atlético de Madrid
    Jorge Koke Resurrección (Spain) – Anantara Kihavah Villas - Atlético de Madrid
      
  7. Claudio Marchisio (Italy) – Constance Halaveli – Juventus
    Claudio Marchisio (Italy) – Constance Halaveli - Juventus
      
  8. Dmitri Tarasov Buzov (Russia) – Velaa – FC Lokomotiv Moscow
    Dmitri Tarasov Buzov (Russia) – Velaa - FC Lokomotiv Moscow
      
  9. Fabio Borini (Italy) – Gili Lankanfushi – Liverpool FC
    Fabio Borini (Italy) – Gili Lankanfushi - Liverpool FC
      
  10. Alejandro Remiro (Spain) – Velassaru – Portero del Athletic Club
    Alejandro Remiro (Spain) – Velassaru - Portero del Athletic Club
      
  11. Santiago Arias (Columbia) – Conrad Rangali – PSV Eidnhoven
    Santiago Arias (Columbia) – Conrad Rangali - PSV Eidnhoven
      

Beach Football goal - Any Salceanu (Italy) - Paradise Island

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Best of the Maldives: Jetty Walkaway – Soneva Jani

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Soneva Jani - jetty 1

Everything evolves to more and more colourful and striking variations in the Maldives. Soneva was the first to innovate with picture-shows in paradise, but now many of the top resorts have some sort of outdoor cinema. So not resting on its laurels, its new property Soneva Jani not only innovated with an over-water outdoor cinema, but also made sure that the imaginative entrance was as distinctive as the feature film. This is Soneva Jani’s second nomination for Excellence in a Jetty category having won the award for “Best Arrival Jetty” earlier. In general, Maldives Complete is showing lot of jetty appreciation with the addition of “Arrival Jetty” pictures to the Resort Profiles a few months ago. Great to see Soneva’ ongoing (over-water) trailblazing in this area.

Soneva Jani - jetty 2

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Best of the Maldives: Kickboxing – Kanuhura

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Kanuhura - kickboxing

The World Kickboxing Championships conclude today, but the Maldives champ is Kanuhura with their celebrity guest kickboxing programme:

“We are collaborating with the famous fighter and world champion Irshaad Sayed, he is the patron of our martial arts academy. We have launched the beta phase in April during Easter and have received fantastic feedback from our guests. The private or group training sessions with Irshaad rank from beginners so pro level and can be purchased in singe sessions or package rates. Several fighters and trainers will be based on the island in the future, the project will be fully up and running by August 2017.”

Yet another thing to get a kick out of the Maldives.

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Best of the Maldives: Crab Plover – Rihiveli Beach

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Rihiveli Beach - crab plover beach

Resorts feature all sorts of resident creatures including turtles, cats, octopi and rabbits. Many islands host a bevy of birds. But no resident has charmed us as much as “Julietta” at Rihiveli Beach.

Julietta is Rihiveli’s resident Crab Plover. The local story goes that she was found on the neighbouring bird island when the resort was first developed in 1983 and brought over to Rihiveli because she couldn’t fly. Obviously, 34 years is a long life for a bird so there is speculation that this “Julietta” arrived in 2006 after the tsunami hit.

Whatever her back story, her present day exploits are downright captivating. She came right up to us and greeted us sitting on our lounge chairs soon after our arrival. She follows the staff around like a puppy and at one point strolled along with us when a staff member was taking us some place. At first we thought that she was looking for food handouts or droppings, but it turns out she’s not interested human food in the least. All she eats are the little crabs that run across the beach. Actually, the staff can (and do) help her with her meals by shining a torch on the beach when the crabs are most active which helps Jullietta spot them. During a beach dinner one night, Julietta was being particularly sociable and so one of the chefs decided that she deserved some of her own treats. He stepped away from the buffet, turned the flashlight on his iPhone and shined it on the sand while Julietta eagerly snapped up a meal of unsuspecting micro-crustaceans.

But the most fun part of the night was her joining the crowd on the disco floor of the infamous Rihiveli White Party (see photos below). During the thumping house music, she was out there in centre of the dance floor seemingly enjoying the vibe as much as any guest.

Julietta has inspired her own virtual fan club with lots of paparazzi shots of her by visitors posted on TripAdvisor and Flickr. She has become such a high profile part of the property that the resort logo features her (in the midst of some of her disco dancing maybe) – see photo at bottom.

Rihiveli Beach - crab plover disco 1

Rihiveli Beach - crab plover disco 2

Rihiveli Beach - julietta logo

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Best of the Maldives: Rare Bird: Dhigufaru

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Dhigufaru - white tail bird

Airplanes aren’t the only things gracing the skies above the Maldives. One of the most distinctive birds in paradise is the “Dhandhifulhu Dhooni” or “White-Tailed Tropicbird.” The bird is quite rare and protected. Dhigufaru is blessed with having a resident pair who are often seen around the water sports centre. Logo designed based n tail. Just a few hundred metres away is a sister island which is actually dedicated to birds dubbed appropriately enough “Birds Island”. These long feathered friends are especially honoured by the property with a rendition of their extraordinary tail fashioned to form the logo of the resort (see below).

Dhigufaru - logo

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Best of the Maldives: Aeronautical Heritage: Equator Village

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The resort to celebration all things aviation is Equator Village. Not only set in the epicentre of Maldives aeronautics past and present, but itself originally an airbase. The villas themselves used to be officer quarters and the dining room the officer’s club. The classic post-war style is still in evidence and the property features a number of reminders of its high flying pedigree. RAF veterans still make regular pilgrimages for reunions to the resort. I especially enjoyed this nostalgic collection of videos taken of Gan way back before the tourism industry had brought foreign guests by the planeload.

For the full story, check out my previous post about the base’s history (as well as some of the other historical highlights of Gan.

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Best of the Maldives: Pinot Noir – Huvafenfushi

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Huvafenfushi - Sommelier Indica Romani Pinot Noir

  • “Only somebody who really takes the time to understand Pinot’s potential can then coax it into its fullest expression. Then, I mean, oh its flavors, they’re just the most haunting and brilliant and thrilling and subtle and… ancient on the planet.” – Sideways

Pinot Noir Day today. If you are wondering why we should be celebrating such a specific varietal, then check out the clip from the Oscar winning film “Sideways” at bottom (excerpt above). I guess Miles’ sentiments echo some of my inspirations behind Maldives Complete. It really takes time to coax the Maldives “into its fullest expression” in an informative website.

And if you want to sample the most haunting, most brilliant , most thrilling and most subtle Pinot, then you need to visit Huvafenfushi for its Romani 1999. The bottle (shown by sommelier Indica above and in the photo below) will run you $30,000.

Huvafenfushi - Romani Pinot Noir

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