Accommodations: Beach villa, half-board, small bicycles :)
Don't mind the mess that my mom and I have already made.
Gots our own personal pool and outdoor seating area.
Not such a bad backyard ;)
Maldives, oh, Maldives... Here we go again! For this trip I stayed at the Four Seasons: Landaa Giravaaru in the Baa Atoll, a UNESCO bio reserve area. This atoll is known for its large congregation of Manta Rays when in season, which is from around June-November. Luckily, these months are also the resort's low season. This is also for a good reason: it is the Maldives monsoon season. We experienced a day and a half of heavy rain and gale-force wind of which I spent going to the spa, eating, and watching TV. To be honest, that wasn't so bad in itself since I spent the rest of my time there diving.
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to see the Mantas this time because I kept missing the call while under water for my morning dives. :( Oh well. Next time!
The accommodation and level of service here was excellent. The room was always cleaned and the staff very helpful, especially the staff at the restaurants.
Food, oh my gosh, the food! The best I've tasted so far from all the other resorts I've been to in the Maldives. I especially loved their themed dinners. There are four areas/restaurants to choose from: Blu, Al Barakat, the Grill, and Landaa Cafe. My favorite meals were Al Barakat's Sultan Night, Fisherman's Night at Landaa Cafe, and the Chilean sea bass dish from the grill. Thinking about it is making me hungry! (Sorry, no pictures. I keep forgetting my camera when bicycling to dinner.)
The spa was very interesting. It definitely provided a different experience from most other spas. While they offer regular massages you can get anywhere (Thai, Swedish, aroma, deep tissue, etc.), they also offer Ayurvedic massages and rituals. Ayurveda is a principal originating from India which focuses on holistic healing. It is essentially what we would call alternative medicine. I thoroughly enjoyed my treatments and have nothing bad to say.
The following will be some of the (best) pictures I've taken on my dives. I apologize in advance for the quality (because I am forever an amateur at taking pictures).
Elsa is in the turtle sanctuary behind the dive shop. She has several other friends there who unfortunately were also caught in some sort of man-made material.
There is, of course, always an abundance of life underwater.
Leaf scorpionfish
All them fishies!!!
I found Nemo! Well, there are a lot of nemos out there actually.
Leopard moray eel. He was pretty big and beautiful.
Sea turtles are never a bore.
And this precious Maldivian clown fish in a bleached sea anemone.
*** This is actually a serious issue. I'm seeing more and more coral bleaching in places that I go diving, and it's definitely creeping into the Maldives. This anemone may soon die if it is not able to adopt a certain type of algae, which gives the anemone its color. Coral bleaching is mainly due to the rise in water temperature. Talk about global warming. :(
My mom paparazziing the turtle.
Overall, it was a fun and relaxing trip. The Maldives has not seen the last of me yet.
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