If you want to frolic in the octopus’ garden, then Soneva Jani has taken water villa slides to the next level. Not only are they higher and longer than previous water villas slides, they are installed most water villas as well as a public area on at “The Gathering” hub. About time I added a “Slide” tag. Below is Lori enjoying a thrilling ride during our stay at Soneva Jani.
Octopus pancakes anyone? Well, no octopi were harmed in the making of your breakfast at Ayada.
We marvel at our daughter’s vegan discipline as that culinary lifestyle seems so limited. It seems all pulse and veggie stews. But Amilla Maldives features gourmet vegan “seafood” that would tempt us omnivores. The ingredients are based on a soy and meal recipe which with creates both the flavours and feel of range of seafood specialties.
I came across a nifty piece in National Geographic “Five Unmissable Dishes That Define the Maldives”. I’ve sampled 3 of them, but Kulhi Boakibaa, not yet. But if I wanted to, I would head to Riu Atoll where their chef Aritha Fernando not only serves it, but even shares his recipe for you to try at home – “Cooking with love in the Maldives with RIU”:
Part of the adventure in an exotic destination like the Maldives is sampling some of the unfamiliar fare. Not just different recipes, but also different, often home grown, ingredients. Our visit to Soneva Jani featured many less familiar (but not unknown) fruits on their breakfast buffet (like dragon fruit, jackfruit, fresh figs), but it was the first time we came upon a mangosteen (see photo). It is a bit like a lychee and very tasty on some yogurt.
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In this increasingly digital world, books are becoming rarer and rarer. Guide books are replaced by travel sites, identification guides are replaced by apps. Kuramathi’s own publication “Plants of the Maldives” exemplifies so many aspects of what makes a hard copy an especially enjoyable. It’s not just a source of information, but a superbly well-designed publication packed with gorgeously artistic drawing. The book format makes perusing the leaves about leaves leisurely and satisfying:
It is an aesthetically satisfying memento of this paradise where the land life often seems to get second billing to the legendary aquatic life around it, but the tropical lushness of its flora is just as much a part of this dreamlike destination (and perhaps long overdue, I have now added the tag of “Plants” to the blog).
Mother Language Day today. If you want to delve into Dhivehi for a taste of local culture, it’s often fun to do it with a partner to both learn with as well as to practice with. SAii Lagoon’s Le Be Well spa offers a “Dhivehi for Couples” experience”:
You might wonder what would be the use of a relatively obscure language aside from impressing Maldivian staff on your resort visits? One possibility is to have your own personal code back home to converse in. We always remember meeting good friends for dinner years ago who we knew would try to pay for the meal and we wanted to pay. During the meal, they had a chat in Chinese which they said was just a family matter, but it turns out it was them scheming how to get the bill. Another example of such a shared secret language is the “Divine” language in the film “The Fifth Element”. Writer/Director Luc Besson invented the 400-word language for the character Leeloo (played by Milla Jovovich) to speak. Only Beeson and Jovovich learned the language and practiced it regularly to help it become natural for Jovovich. They ended up getting married after the film’s release so maybe a private shared language does have romantic effect.
Could Dhivehi be your language of love?
If your Valentine proposal on the deserted island was a success, then the next step is to plan the big day. No need for expensive wedding planners with their own concepts as you can create the wedding of your dreams at Amilla Maldives with their DIY wedding offering:
My sister Sharyl is an interior designer who has pioneered the DIY concept in her field. Instead of coming in and necessarily spelling out the entire design (which some people do prefer), she provides the option to be their “design coach” and guide clients through the design process themselves. I especially liked this concept as we redid our house years ago and got frustrated by designers dictating their ideas and us clients having less hands on to molding this expression of ourselves.
Make your own special day truly your own.
The biggest heart in the Maldives would be an island shaped like one. I have been on the hunt for such a mystical land mass ever since #15 of my 7th Haven’t Seen Yet series. I did another Valentines post on the “Most Heart Shaped” islands “in the Maldives”, but only one was real and that one wasn’t really that heart-shaped. But now OBLU Select Lobigili features not just such a romantic plot of sand, but it also has the archetypal palm tree.
If you want to put the “forever yours” into your Valentine, then OBLU by Atmosphere at Helengeli features a romantic heart wish tree. I ♥ Maldives.