Best of the Maldives: Wooden Groynes – Baros

Baros wooden groynes

One irritation to the most discerning Maldive aficionados are the “groynes”. Water defences that extend perpendicularly to the shoreline to impede erosion. The purists feel that such structure detract from the natural beauty of the pristine beach and the azure waters. And certainly and beach without them is nicer than a beach with them. But in many cases, a beach without them would be no beach at all. The natural currents would have washed them away.

In addition to their island preserving utility, they can also have certain charms and other benefits. They can be a handy way to enter the water for snorkelling, sometimes right at the house reef “drop off”. They serve as reefs themselves attracting an array of colourful sea creatures (we have often found lots of moray eels hiding in the crevasses of these structures. They can also provide a handy romantic dining spot right over the water.

Baros has taken the extra step of making the structures themselves a bit more aesthetically pleasing by investing in wood cladding. It does give them a bit more style and visual appeal. And for some (see photo above), they too have embraced their silver linings by setting out deck chairs and making them a feature not a bug.

Best of the Maldives: Recycling – Kurumba

Kurumba recycling 2
Lori and Jason Kruse, Kurumba GM, with ground glass

With my emphasis on discovery it took some big stuff to lure back to Kurumba for the third time when there were so many unseen resorts to hit. But I must say that the detour was worth it with quite possibly the most inspiring “Best of the Maldives” discovery of the entire trip.

To date, most resort eco-initiatives have fallen into the following categories…

But as anyone who has ridden by Thilafushi will attest, the sheer volume of waste and rubbish is a massive challenge for the country. Most resorts are looking at packaging and waste reduction initiatives. But Kurumba is leading the way with a strikingly comprehensive recycling programme.

And investments they are. First, Kurumba has shelled out some serious capital to get some advanced machinery to process the waste. But more so than that, Kurumba is experimenting with these gadgets and tuning them and the processes around them to get the most out of them.

  • Bottles – Ground down and used in cement
  • Coconut Husks – Ground down into “choir” which is used to make ropes and a range of building materials. Also, using coconut husks to fuel their BBQs. They found out that the husks burn hotter than the charcoal used previously so they have had to adjust their cooking.
  • Green Waste – Shedder composter which mixes heat+air+bacteria for accelerated decomposition. Material basically broken down in 3 hours and then let sit for 40 days (it was supposed to be 10 days, but experimentation has shown 40 to be ideal for the best soil creation). Going through 1700 kgs of kitchen waste per day.
  • Styrofoam – Shedder to make filler for things like beanbags. Not working properly, but still experimenting to get it right.

Kurumba is sharing its expertise with other resorts now and hopes to pioneer a drive to zero waste in the Maldives. If successful, Thilafushi could itself be relegated to the dustbin of history.

 

Kurumba plastic recycling

Plastic and Styrofoam recycling

 

Kurumba recycling

Green waste mulching

 

Kurumba recycling 5

Green waste accelerated composting

 

Kurumba coconut recycling

Shredded coconut husks

Best of the Maldives: Swiss – Maafushivaru

Maafushivaru windsurfing Swiss flag

 

 

The Swiss have long sought the refuge from the altitude in the low lying Maldives and until recently were the 10th highest country in terms of visitors. And the ultimate Swiss resort seems to be Maafushivaru. For a long time, a resort fully owned, operated and marketed by the Swiss-based Kuoni company primarily for the Swiss market. Despite the fact that Maafushivaru is now available to a range of markets, Swiss are still as much as 50% of the guest population.

The residents and management are not the only Swiss qualities. Maafushivaru is one of the smallest resort islands. It also really struck me for its sparkling cleanliness with carefully groomed beaches and paths. Its sand especially is as plushly soft and blindingly white as an alpine snow drift.

Gueti Reis!

Best of the Maldives: Longest Sand Spit – Gangehi

Gangehi sand spit 2

The sense of being in the Maldives in the middle of the Indian Ocean is outstanding. And a Gangehi you can literally (or should I say “littorally”) be out standing in the middle of the ocean.

One of the absolute distinctions of the Maldives destination are its pervasive shallow lagoons. Lots of places in the world have atolls and coral reefs, but the Maldives has an elevation that just hits sea level. A few inches above sea level and a few inches below. This topology means you can snorkel in waist deep water a kilometre off shore, and walk or wade to the neighbouring island.

Or you can, on some resorts, just amble out into the middle of nowhere. One of our favourites is Kuramathi’s which points nearly due west making it an ideal sunset “point”. Other prominent powdery promontories are at Ranveli, Cocoa Island, Palm Beach and Kuredu (thanks Adrian), but the longest is Gangehi’s which juts out a full 800m from shore. The picture above provides some perspective and we weren’t even all the way to the end because the tide wasn’t fully out.

It is a truly romantic sensation to be standing in the middle of the ocean in the middle of nowhere just you and your loved one.

Outstanding!

Gangehi snad spit

Best of the Maldives: Beef – Constance Halaveli

Constance Halaveli wagyu beef

Meat and potatoes. The most basic and humble of dishes. But in the Maldives, even the simplest things can get the luxury treatment. The beef is not typically at the top of the menu at the Maldive resorts. Yes, they import it (usually from Australia) to cater to its popularity, but most of the culinary attention is directed to the location driven seafood fare.

And as a red-blooded American, I have had my share of exceptional beef often at the steak houses that dominate the USA restaurant landscape. Eateries like Daniels Broiler in Seattle, Masterpiece in Kansas City, and Mortons about everywhere. But I have never experienced beef like I have at Constance Halaveli.

The head chef there Holger Joost (see photo above) treated us to a taste of one of his signature dishes – Tazmanian Wagyu Beef Cheeks, slow cooked for 48 hours with local mangos and chillies served with wasabi potatoes. I had had “cod cheeks”, but never “beef cheeks”. Holger informs us they are one of the finest cuts of this very special breed which is a cross between the Kobe variety and Black Angus. Pure Kobe can be as much as 50% fat which can be a bit much for some palates. The Tazmanian Wagyu is a finer balance between flavour imparting fat and the tender meat itself.

Are we picked up our knife and prepared to dig in, Holger stopped us and said “no need for a knife…use your spoon.” He claimed the meat was as soft as butter, but he was wrong. It was softer. A bite literally did melt on your tongue with subtle flavours filling your mouth.

Not to mention that the next time we serve even our humble UK beef we are going to try a recipe for “wasabi potatoes” which were an inspired complement to the beef.

There’s the beef!

 

Constance Halaveli wagyu beef 2

Best of the Maldives: Aviary – Chaaya Reef Ellaidhoo

Chaaya Reef Ellaidhoo aviary parrot

 

Colourful creatures floating all around you. Some inquisitive about your presence, while others more skittish and shy. Large and small, or all shapes and colours. Not the marine life in the water, but the bird life in the air on Chaaya Reef Ellaidhoo. Elaidhoo features an expansive aviary filled with fowl of all description – parrots, exotic hens, cockatoos [OTHERS]. As colourful as any collection of tropical fish you will find in the water.

We took as many pictures visiting the aviary as we did on any house reef. But my wife Lori’s favourite (so much so that she changed her Facebook profile picture to it) was of the baby chicks who hid in their mother’s wings and poked their heads out (see bottom).

 

Chaaya Reef Ellaidhoo hen with chicks

 

Chaaya Reef Ellaidhoo aviary 2

Best of the Maldives: Heart Shaped Jacuzzi – Bandos

Bandos heart jacuzzi

For a destination renowned for romance and honeymoons, I remain a bit surprised at how few heart-shaped features you find in the Maldives. True, the Maldives is has a classy and posh vibe these days, but still some of the schmaltz is can be a bit of cheeky fun. At least Bandos is getting into the romantic spirit with its Orchid Spa VIP treatment room that offers a heart-shaped Jacuzzi.

Best of the Maldives: Venetian – Nika

Nika reception

I’ve done lots of country ambiences, but this is the first “city” ambience. I chose it for today, a bit out of order from the tour itinerary, because of its connection to my wife’s and my anniversary celebrated today.

I wouldn’t be the first to dub the Maldives the “Venice of the Tropics”. Something about being by the water evokes romance and relaxation. And being surrounded by it in every nook and cranny all the more so.

But Nika takes its connection to “Venezia” much more than metaphorically. The owner is actually from Venice himself and still lives there part of the year. The reception (photo above) resembles some antiquated arched grotto, the rooms are decorated with gondola models, pictures and other paraphernalia from Veneto. The channel markers in the lagoon are even authentic “palinas” (the candy-striped mooring poles)!

In recent years, we have been visiting the Maldives mostly in July and very often are there for our anniversary (just missed this year though). When we we much younger, we gave ourselves an anniversary gift to Venice, but both our lives got so packed with professional commitments that we kept postponing it until it fell off the calendar. To make up for the five year wait, on our 15th anniversary, I re-gave the same gift…but I added a trip on the Orient Express (a nod to our honeymoon train ride to Montreal from North Carolina) and a stay at the iconic Hotel Cipriani. It was like our planned 10th…with interest. It was one of the most memorable and romantic trips in our 28 years together. A symbol of how things just get better with time.

Venice and the Maldives…two of the world’s most iconic destinations for romance. And in Nika you find them both!

Felice anniversario, bellissima Lori!

Nika poles

Maldives by the Numbers

We take a break for the Tour #4 Best of the Maldives to recognize Maldives National Day. With an infographic that captures so much of the Maldives nation at a glance.

A few highlight snippets of a graphical Harper’s Index of Maldives fun facts. As a champion for Maldives snorkelling, I was inspired to see how prominently it stood out in the activity survey (see above). And, the rise of Asian visitors is prominent in the graph of arrival stats below as half of the top visitor locations (and more than half of the total guests) hail from Asia (not Europe as was the case in previous years).

Maldives numbers 2 tourism arrivals by country

Best of the Maldives: Salt Stone Cooking – One & Only Reethi Rah

One and Only Reethi Rah salt stone cooking

Maldives resorts are full of surprises. Like getting a taste of the highest place on the planet served to you at the world’s flattest place.

One & Only Reethi Rah offers up an epicurean feast of food and drink superlatives which will fill the “Best of the Maldives” plate for months to come. One that captured our imagination was their salt stone cooking. They heat up a block of salt stone from the Himalayas to 400 degrees on which you cook your food at your table. The salt in the stone gently leeches into the food in the process for a very subtle seasoning.

They also have bowls made out of the salt stone (see below) for serving other dishes. This particular salt crystal from this area of the world is pink. I had never realised that salt came in so many colours. I had visited the famous Wieliczka salt mines in Krakow and their salt crystal was blue.

Reethi Rah cooking rocks!

One and Only Reethi Rah salt stone bowl