Best of the Maldives: Tower – Velaa

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Velaa - tower exterior

For a country whose highest natural elevation is no higher than your average stoop, the few places where you can get some height is a real rarity. The seascape is so uniquely exquisite, but the sea-level topology precludes much of an expansive vista overlooking it. This is why the sea plane transfers are such a special treat providing that breathtaking perspective that eludes the beachside gaze. I’m a big fan of Kandooma’s tower and whenever I am in Male I always stop by Traders’ roof top Azure lounge.

While not open for another couple of weeks, Velaa has started to post pictures of its ravishing new resort online including a number of shots of the surreal Tavaru Tower…

“Tavaru houses a Teppanyaki restaurant and makes up the centerpiece of the island: a visually striking ivory-white tower where live cooking and Velaa’s extensive wine cellar take center stage.”

High standards.

Velaa - tower interior

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Best of the Maldives: Bridges – One & Only Reethi Rah

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One and Only Reethi Rah bridge

Bridges are often icons of the places they join together. The Golden Gate. The Brooklyn Bridge. Today is the anniversary of the Budapest Bridge which has a personal connection to me as its miniature cousin graces the banks of the Thames in my hometown of Marlow.

Most cities are situated on some body of water, a river or a harbour, due to a heritage of waterway commerce. And yet with all of the water surrounding the Maldives, I had never come across a bridge until One and Only Reethi Rah. They actually have two. You can see the second one in the distance in the photo above. It is a charming Kodak moment spot with distinctive vistas in both directions.

Bridges also have their own romance about them. Pont des Arts in Paris started the now worldwide trend of “Locks of Love” where lovers attach locks and throw the key into the river. The Khaju Bridge in Isfahan, Iran is a famous as a lovers tryst as it is elegantly captivating.

Reethi is sort of a Rialto Bridge for Venice of the tropics.

One and Only Reethi Rah bridge stream

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Best of the Maldives: Raised Walkways – Gangehi

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Gangehi walkways

Sometimes the “no shoes” ethos isn’t all a walk in the park. It is meant to embody the relaxed and casual atmosphere of the Maldives combined with its pervading sensual nature right down to the powdery soft sand across the island. This element is so prominent that during this last tour, I started collecting data for a “Walkway Rating” by resort (stay tuned). But, when I got to Gangehi, their walkways defied Maldivian categorisation. They are unlike anything else you will tread on in the Maldives. Instead of sandy, hardened or paved walkways, Gangehi features wooden walkways snaking through the island interior.

When I first saw these, I was quite intrigued. I wondered if they would be a real detraction, but over the stay I grew to appreciate them more and more. For starters, they are a ‘natural’ solution to folks who need hard walkways. The sandy by-ways seem romantic, but for people who have difficulty getting around – wheelchair users, otherwise unsteady individuals, and ladies who want to enjoy their high heeled fashion on their holiday – they are actually quite an inconvenience. Also, some people have sensitive feet and the aboriginal avenues can be a bit uncomfortable at times if there are stray stones and coral pieces that you can step on.

Some islands have paved paths, but somehow that often seems to take away from the natural feel. Gangehi’s wooden paths preserve a very natural aesthetic. They even impart a bit of stylistic distinction to the place. Because they are slightly elevated, it almost seemed as if I was traversing something out of Swiss Family Robinson’s lush tropical settlement.

Of course, if you hanker for the sand between your toes, you can always circumambulate the island beaches (quite easily as Gangehi is so tiny).

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Best of the Maldives: Nature Inspired Architecture – Kandooma

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Kandooma reception

Magic coconuts in the Maldives news this week: “Police summon white magic practitioner to investigate possible cursed coconut” meant to influence yesterday’s long awaited elections. Everything seemed to go smoothly and peacefully which hopefully paves the way for the people’s voice to settle all of the political controversy of the past year and a half.

For some real coconut magic, though, Kandooma architecture is nuciferally inspired reassembling coconut husks.

These dramatic structures aren’t the only soaring design features of the resort which takes extensive advantage of vertical space with not just these massive vaulted ceilings (see photo below), but also tented canopies, a dramatic reception area and a unique tower even.

Kandooma restaurant

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Best of the Maldives: Wooden Groynes – Baros

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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.

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Best of the Maldives: Streets – Sun Island

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Sun Island streets

 

 

The ‘Best of Maldives’ I probably never thought I would give. Not only did I think I would never find ‘streets’ in the Maldives, if I did find them, I probably wouldn’t want to showcase them as I adore the no shoes, sand between the toes Maldives. But the streets on Sun Island aren’t just any streets.

An island as big as Sun Island starts to depend on a little conventional personal transport to get from one end to the other. Most bigger islands make do with electric buggies, but use sand paths in keeping with a natural, rustic aesthetic. Sun Island has a different ambience to it. Less deserted island and more tropical plantation. More retro-colonial than uninhabited. It still has acres of unspoiled natural splendour, but they are accented with touches of civilised elegance.

The ‘roads’ on Sun are a striking example of this design. Sun still has plenty of sand paths and the ‘roads’ are just a few main thoroughfare to get from one end of the island to another easily and smoothly. But the roads do not detract, but actually enhance to the look and feel having been laid out in such a refined way. No pedestrian asphalt or concrete, but rather colourful red and black brick lattice. In addition, the main streets are lined with smart lanterns hung from palm trees.

The combined effect also gives the island a bit more of a homey feel to it. Instead of feeling like some plot of sand with a few dwellings, you feel like you are in some exotic tropical community. It seemed a bit Dharma Project with its own distinctive exotic allure.

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Best of the Maldives: Longest Jetty – Constance Halaveli

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Constance Halaveli jetty

Guinness World Record Day today.

Only natural that Maldives Complete ‘Best of the Maldives’ collection of distinctions would rank not just among the best in the country, but across the world as well. One such example appears to be Constance Halaveli’s water villa jetty. They have the longest jetty in the Maldives at 850 metres. Two-thirds of the Maldives resort islands themselves aren’t even that long. And with the Maldives leading the way in the world with water villas (due to its unique shallow reef/island topology), some research indicates that it appears to be the longest in the world.

Back here in blighty, we have to console ourselves with celebrating distinctions like ‘Fastest bog snorkelling triathlon’ (see below – slide 36). With the current UK weather, it might become the new national pastime. If Maldives is the ‘Best Snorkeling in the World’, then the UK has probably achieved the distinction of hosting the ‘Worst Snorkeling in the World’.

 

UK bog snorkeling record

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Best of the Maldives: Urinal – Gili Lankanfushi

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  Gili Lankanfushi - urinal day

 

 

Downing glass after glass of refreshing iced tea on a hot, sunny day can only lead to one place. Resorts do their best to make every experience an exceptional one. Restaurants and hotels around the world have done creative things to make a man’s comfort break a bit more comfortable. Most usually, these are in the form of a bit of art, maybe a frame for the latest newspaper (typically sports page), or even adverts (to exploit the attention of this quite captive). But Gili Lankanfushi has created a luxury experience for gentlemen in the room that bears their name. A marble and stainless urinal mounted on a slight promontory into a lit reflecting pool with wall fountain. Relief never looked so resplendent.

 

Gili Lankanfushi - urinal

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Best of the Maldives: Business – Kurumba

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Kurumba board room

 

 

Happy Labor Day!

Americans are celebrating the end of the summer and the end of wearing white with countless final BBQs and beach trips this weekend. The holiday commemorates “celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers”.

The last thing one wants to do is ‘labor’ when you are visiting the Maldives, but it you have to, the place to do it is Kurumba…

  • Best Conference Facility
  • Closest to Male (for access to Maldive businesses and HQ as well as other business facilities and support not available on a resort)
  • Most Restaurants (if by any chance you are doing some business entertaining)
  • Business centre
  • Wifi (pervasively supported across the resort free of charge)

With the rise of remote working, people often protest at work’s intrusion into one’s private life. In actuality, the technology works both ways and can also be a windfall to extending one’s leisure time. One example is people being able to extend their time off and holidays with the investment of a small amount of work during them in order to keep things ticking over back at the office. Checking in for a short period might not be everyone’s idea of a vacation, but if a day of work allows one to extend their time in paradise by several days, then it seems like a good payback. And if you are going to adopt that strategy, choosing a resort set up for a bit of business is a wise move to make the work you do have to do as painless and easy as possible.

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Best of the Maldives: Higher Education – Sun Island

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Sun Island tourism college

 

 

One of the best ‘semester away’ ever I think. Villa College is a higher education institution with a number of campuses in the Maldives including one on the island resort of Sun Island. Which is pretty apropos given the one of the most prominent courses is ‘Tourism’.

Other offerings include…

“The college offer a number of diversified programmes and courses in the areas of Hospitality Management, Business Administration, Information and Technology, Educational Studies, and Human Resource Management. Educational Studies, Information Technology and Business Administration programmes are available up to a Masters’ Degree.”

While Maldivians are the largest part of the student body, the school does attract people from all over the world including Europe and Asia. They have posted the YoutTube virtual tour below to provide a closer look…

 

Sun Island Villa College virtual tour

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