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Majestic Maldives

Majestic Maldives

Paradise Island


As the aircraft began to descend, I peered out the window, desperately trying to catch a glimpse of land. We got dangerously close to the intense blue water before we felt the thud that indicated that the plane had just met land.

You know when you see pictures of stunning Maldivian islands and you’re almost sure that it can’t really look that perfect? I mean, those pictures are beyond words. But the Maldives actually look like those stunning pictures. In fact, it looks better than the pictures. The sight of the turquoise waters is sure to make you wonder if you’re dreaming.

The first thing I realised when we reached Male, the capital of the Maldives, was that it was incredibly hot. We went late August, the monsoon season, and there were barely any clouds in the sky (we only experienced light drizzles twice).

After we collected our luggage and went through passport control, we were met with a breathtakingly beautiful ocean view. The harbour was lined with countless speedboats or larger, taxi-like boats.

Island

Island: Makunudu Island Resort
Room Rating: 3.5
Island Rating: 5

We stayed on a small island that has about 36 land bungalows. It was an hour and a half from the airport with a speedboat. The boat ride was quite bumpy but it was enjoyable as we got to see stunning islands on the way. When we finally reached our island, we realised that we had to wear slippers. Shoes were not going to cut it on the island because most of it was beach sand.

Our bungalow had a straw roof and wooden finishes. It was a comfortable size and the back door was about five meters from the beach.

There was not a single TV on the island and there was no time to miss it. There was WiFi but it wasn’t very strong.

Each bungalow had their own beach chairs. The awesome thing was that the beach chairs were placed so strategically between all the lush greenery, that we were hidden from others.



Every two bungalows had their own beach. However, each beach was not limited to the guests of the bungalow. There were many occasions where we were the only two people in the ocean as it was a quiet time of the year.

The bathrooms were probably my least favourite part of the entire trip. We had issues with our flush and the plumber had to fix it three times before it finally worked, hot water ran out very quickly (it’s really hot on the island so some people may not mind this), and the shower was kind of placed outside (it’s obviously enclosed though).

Anyway, from our ‘section’ of the beach, we could go snorkeling (all snorkeling gear, including life jackets were supplied by the resort).

The island was lush and cosy. The water that surrounded the island was a gorgeous turquoise blue, it was absolutely breathtaking!

The islands that make up the Maldives are some of the most gorgeous islands I’ve ever laid eyes upon. Our island was pretty small, we could canoe around it in less than an hour and we could walk around it in about fifteen minutes.

Throughout the island, there’s beach sand so we were always in slippers.

The sands were white and some parts of the island had super soft sand while other parts had rough sand (from all the coral).

Food

Since the Maldives has a 100% Muslim population, all the food was halaal and every island had a dedicated prayer room/mosque.

Like most hotels, they had a separate bar and they served bacon during breakfast.

The staff assured us that the food was halaal since almost all the staff were Muslim as well. In fact, everyday during breakfast, they would open up all the dishes except for the bacon and they would warn us to stay away from it.

Also, they do not include alcohol in their dishes. On one afternoon, they had a coffee fizz drink and when my husband went to see what it was, the staff immediately stopped him because there was alcohol in it. We were assured by the chefs that there is no contamination with the pork dishes as pork is cooked separately.

The food on the island was simply delicious! It was hands down, the best food I’ve ever had on a holiday. And some of their desserts were the most amazing desserts I’ve ever tasted. The chocolate mousse was pure perfection and the panacotta was the smoothest dish I’ve ever tried.

My favourite meal though, was the fish that my husband had caught and the chefs had prepared. We went night fishing (fishing just before sunset for about an hour - we ended up praying the prayer after sunset on the roof of the boat. It was hard to balance but pretty cool.)

Anyway, the husband caught a red snapper and I didn’t catch anything. Nonetheless, the chefs prepared the fish for us and I can confidently say that I have never tasted such delicious fish in my entire life.

Dinner on the beach

The husband and I decided to have a romantic dinner on the beach as it is a fun tradition that we began two years ago. However, it was pretty expensive and probably not completely worth it. We chose the seafood platter and it was quite nice. Most of the courses had raw fish (to be eaten like sushi). Normally, I would never eat something that’s completely raw (unless it’s sushi and it doesn’t look too raw) but this was actually quite interesting on the palate and somewhat enjoyable.

The set up of the dinner was absolutely stunning! Unfortunately, it was one of the nights it started to drizzle so we ended up having to run for cover.


Sunrise and sunset

Staying on such a small island truly has its advantages! On one side of the island we could watch the sun rise and on the other side of the island we could watch the sun set. Since we were always too tired to watch the sunrises (although we did catch one), we opted to watch almost all the sunsets. The sunset could be viewed from ‘Sunset Beach’ - a dedicated area dressed for catching sunsets.


Activities

There weren’t many things to do on the island so if you’re looking for something that’s action packed, this is not for you. But if you’re looking for something relaxing, this is the perfect destination.

We went snorkeling, night fishing (as mentioned), canoeing and we did a main island tour.

We saw some of the most beautiful sea creatures ever when we went snorkeling.

From bright, multicoloured fish, to thousands of silver fish. On one occasion, my husband saw a large shark whizz past him whilst we were snorkeling.

We saw sharks often. However, these are the type of sharks that only eat fish. During the nights, we would see hundreds of sharks close to the shore. The sharks were about 2 to 3 meters long and there were plenty of baby sharks.

There were countless other sea creatures as well. From stingrays to Dory’s (royal blue tangs) to turtles. The best way to view these fish is to go snorkeling. Once in a while we would see them close to the shore.

On other parts of the island, we could comfortably swim (or try to - if you’re not a great swimmer like me).

The water was warm, warmer than any of the other island waters I’ve been in. Since it was so incredibly hot, we were almost always trying to walk in the water or be in the water.

Tour

We were quite disappointed with the main island tour. Our tour guide was not all that great and he barely gave us any information. To get to the main island, we had to take a speedboat back to the airport, hop onto a boat taxi and make our way to the city.

There is a rich Islamic history in the Maldives. There was a mosque (masjid) that was built about 300 years ago. All the engraving was in wood and it was beautiful. There was also a very large Islamic center which housed a huge mosque (masjid).



We then went to the local fish market. I couldn’t wait to get out of there because the smell was driving me crazy. I had to stop myself from gagging.

The tour guide seemed to not know where to take us next so he took us to his home island - Hulumale. It’s a quiet, pretty island but there’s not much to do there except relax or walk around and enjoy the scenery.


What was meant to be an informative tour ended up being a less than ideal tour with lots of walking. Nonetheless, we enjoyed touring the main island even though we weren’t provided with the greatest amount of information or historical facts.

Miscellaneous notes

It should be noted that there are plenty of lizards and chameleons on the island we stayed on. A lot of them are quite big. Also, you will see countless little shells on the island - most of which move. These stunning shells have been inhabited by crabs. The moment they hear you close by, they retreat into their shells and stay still. I don’t know how many times I picked up a stunning shell, only to find a crab in there.

The lizards and the crabs didn’t bother me, so that was a plus.

There were no cats or dogs on the island, but there were seagulls and a grey heron or two. The grey herons often joined us for breakfast by standing right next to us. I also did not see any land animals on the main island apart from birds and I saw one cat in Hulumale.

If you don’t like birds, this will definitely be a problem for you but since they didn’t bother me, I had a great time.




All in all this was the most amazing trip I have ever experienced. I would go here over and over again. In fact, I’d love to stay on an island as beautiful as the islands in the Maldives. There are more than 1000 islands of which 200 are inhabited by the local Maldivians and about a 100 of them are resorts so you have a large selection to choose from!

This was truly one of the best holidays I have ever been on! It was absolutely indescribable but hopefully, this post can give you a vague idea about it.
Beach, Holiday, Island,
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Zanzibar


Zen Zanzibar
Hakuna Matata


“Hakuna Matata!
What a wonderful phrase
Hakuna Matata!
Ain't no passing craze
It means no worries
For the rest of your days
It's our problem-free philosophy
Hakuna Matata!”

Growing up, I never really thought much about Zanzibar. It had never been on my bucket list; mostly because I didn’t know much about it.

And yet, I found myself exiting the aircraft and making my way onto a land I would have never thought I’d visit.

Shortly after landing, we expected to see a large, fancy airport. On the contrary, the airport was the size of a large room (I’m not even kidding!). There was no turn-style mechanism for our suitcases, no fancy exchange rate counters, no fancy passport control counters.

Our suitcases were packed to one side and the counters were small. It was quite surprising, considering the fact that we had been expecting more.

Nonetheless, we were greeted by smiling people who offered us cold water the moment we stepped outside before we were lead to our shuttle.

Although the airport looked like it was ready to collapse and there wasn’t a single large building in sight, our mood hadn’t dampened. There was something about the place that had me intrigued (and this is coming from someone who is rather fussy).

Island


 We drove through the island and I noticed that there were barely any traffic lights and the island was very simple. There were no large skyscrapers, no fancy houses and no luxurious cars. The deeper we got into the city, the more the realisation dawned on me; this was a poor island filled with a beauty I have never seen before. After all, the beauty was not only in the lush lands, but also hidden within the smiles on the faces of locals.

We continued maneuvering through the island and suddenly, we were met with hundreds of little girls and boys, all clad in the Islamic dress code. The little girls had long blue dresses and cute, yellow hijabs. It was such an amazing and cute sight! They decorated the streets, laughing and playing in unison, oblivious to any worries.

During our ride to our hotel, our tour guide gave us some background about the island. We learned that about 90% of the population on the island is Muslim. There were a lot of simple schools and even simpler mosques that we saw along the way.

Another couple that was traveling with us asked if the entire island looked this way (bear in mind that we hadn’t seen a single sight that we would’ve seen in a first world country). Turns out that the whole island is filled with lush vegetation, basic houses (sometimes mud houses with no windows or doors) and a lot of happy people.

When my eyes finally landed on the ocean and my feet sunk into the sand, I fell in love! The island is stunning. The sands are velvety soft and the ocean is a clear blue. It honestly is a paradise island. If you want to relax and get away from everything, this is the island for you!


We stayed in Nungwi, the Northern part of the island. Before we reached our hotel, which was the last stop, we stopped at numerous other hotels. All the hotels in Nungwi were situated within villages. The plush hotels were in contrast to the modest surroundings.

Hotel: MyBlue
Hotel rating: 3.5
Island rating: 4.1

Room


We were upgraded to a villa (probably because they thought we were on honeymoon after we handed them a copy of our marriage certificate as per the travel agents suggestion).

Our villa consisted of a lounge area that had a couch, tv and a few cupboards, and an ensuite. The room was simple and scarcely decorated. There was a tv in the room as well (but the clarity was terrible so it was pretty pointless). The bed had a mosquito net over it (which was important because we also had to take malaria tablets) and the bathroom was large and spacious.

Beach


The beach left me absolutely breathless! I have never felt such soft sands in my life. It literally felt as if I was walking on expensive, plush velvet.

The waves were gentle and the weather was wonderful. It honestly looked picture perfect. As we took a walk along the beach, we were approached by locals who wanted to sell us tours (they were much cheaper than the hotel), small souvenirs, coconuts, and sometimes weed (no kidding!)



Food


The food at the hotel was good. It wasn’t exquisite, but it wasn’t terrible either. They served alcohol at the hotel (although the bar was separate) and they also served pork. This was quite disappointing for us because we hadn’t expected it. However, we were assured that all the food (except the pork, obviously) was halaal as most of the staff and the chefs were Muslim and none of the food had cross contamination with the pork. In fact, every day a staff member would give us the menu and tell us what was halaal and what wasn’t.

One day, the manager had noticed that we were only eating seafood so he came up to us to tell us that all the meat, other than the pork, was halaal because they slaughter it the halaal way. Nonetheless, when I stay on islands, I prefer eating seafood.

Every night, they would grill the fish they caught that day. This is great if you’re a seafood lover and you enjoy fresh fish. Most of the time, they’d just grill the fish and we’d have to spice it up with the variety of spices we were presented with.

Tours


One should note that apart from the tours, there’s not much to do on the island. You won’t see restaurants or takeaways so you have to eat at the hotel.

We ended up going with the locals for the tours. We had to pay deposits before we went and at first, we were a bit skeptical that they would just take our money but the locals were honest.

We chose to do the spice tour, stone town tour and the Prison Island tour as one tour package and the Safari Blue tour as another package.

The spice tour was actually a lot of fun. I hadn’t thought that I would enjoy it but I loved it! They took us through dense gardens (which gave off wonderful scents) and explained where certain flavours and spices came from. They also gave us the raw material to smell and feel as we explored the wonderful forest of spice. It was informative and relaxing. There’s just something about breathing in the fresh air of a lush garden.

The stone town tour was so heartbreaking. (If you’re sensitive to horror stories relating to slavery, don’t read this part.)

We went through the lives of the slaves and left us emotional and somewhat disturbed. It’s always disgusting to realise that humans can be the worst of creation at times. We learned that the slaves used to be tied to trees and they would be beaten until they were left screaming in agony. Those that didn’t scream or barely screamed were auctioned for higher prices as they were seen as stronger slaves. The slaves were chained to each other and dumped into the tiniest underground storage room you can imagine. There were about six of us in that tiny room and it felt stuffy (there were two tiny slits instead of windows). Turns out that they would dump 50 to 70 people in those rooms! I cannot even imagine their heart wrenching lives... The ruthless stories of their masters left us completely perturbed.

If you get a chance, try to read up on slavery in Zanzibar. It’s a fascinating, yet heartbreaking story.

After the darkness of the slavery history, we went through the stone town. It was pretty interesting to view the intricate architecture and to learn the history behind it.

We were then taken to Prison Island with a wooden boat (almost all the boats on the island are rickety, old wooden boats). As the name suggests, Prison Island used to be an island for prisoners. However, now it is absolutely stunning! There are massive turtles there - the oldest turtle being over 110 years old!

Here, we bought a plain pizza because we were starving after such a long day.


The day ended in exhaustion since we had been left reeling from the slave tour experience.

The next day we spent relaxing, before the Safari Blue tour. Simply explained, Safari Blue is an island hopping tour. We went to a few little islands and a really pretty sand bank.




When we arrived at one of the islands, the tide was really low but when we left that island, the tide was high. It looked totally different from the island that we had arrived at. The huge rocks that had been dry as we came in were halfway submerged in water. It was so amazing!




We prayed all of our prayers on the islands and we had packed a bag for the day containing our phones, prayer mats, snacks, water and hygiene wipes. And I was very thankful for packing those hygiene wipes because it should be noted that bathrooms on the islands were a bit scarce. The one island only had one bathroom that was not clean and another island didn’t even have a bathroom.

We were also given lunch on the islands. The lunch consisted of plain white rice and seafood seasoned with salt and pepper. Honestly, I was not a fan of the menu so I munched on the junk food we had taken with us.

When we moved from one island to the next, we got to snorkel and it was wonderful. The water was so clear that we could see the fish from the boat! We saw a few dolphins as well but as you know, dolphins are speedsters.


Dinner on the beach


Our package included a romantic dinner in the beach. The dinner was a three course, seafood meal and it was phenomenal! I have never tasted a lemon butter sauce like that in my entire life! The food was heavenly and so delicious!


During another night, the hotel held another dinner on the beach for all the guests. After dinner, there was some traditional entertainment and a snake show. The entertainment began with the famous ‘Jumbo’ song that we had heard being chanted by the locals of the island on any given day. It’s a song in Swahili and the language is so sweet and catchy that it’s easy to pick up on a few of the words.



We were also always told ‘hakuna matata’ (which means no worries) by the wonderful locals.

Sunsets


We got to view impeccable sunsets every day from our location. Sunrises were on the other side of the island so we didn’t quite catch them. The sunsets were so stunning that we didn’t feel as if we missed out on the sunrises (and besides we were pretty lazy for super early morning walks).

Miscellaneous notes


For Friday prayers, I prayed in the room and my husband made friends with the staff who took him to a mosque (masjid) in the village.

Unfortunately for me, there were many cats in Zanzibar so I had to be on high alert in order to avoid an allergic reaction.

Medication is not easy to get hold of on the island so if you’re planning on going to Zanzibar, make sure to take all your medication with (even headache tablets).

One of the most beautiful things that you will pick up from the island is that although a lot of the people are poor, they are so content! You will always see them smiling and happy. They truly are the ‘hakuna matata’ nation! They seem to have no worries!

Zanzibar is a beautiful island that is so easy to fall in love with! You may arrive there with uncertainty speckling your thoughts but you will leave with drunken delight!
Beach, Hakuna Matata, Holiday,
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Mauritius


Magnificent Mauritius

Bonjour


The crystal clear waters, the beautiful palm trees against the backdrop of a mesmerizing ocean, the calm weather and soft, hair-whipping winds... Aah, the perfection of an island.

I am obsessed with islands. I absolutely love them! How can you not relax when the ocean whispers so soothingly into your ears, calming all those crazy nerves?

For our honeymoon, my husband surprised me with a trip to Mauritius.

We flew from OR Tambo International, Johannesburg, South Africa. It was a five hour flight straight to the island.


When we arrived at the hotel, we were met by friendly staff who offered us refreshing towels and welcome juice.

Hotel: Solana Beach Resort
Island rating: 4
Hotel rating: 3.5


Food

(If you’re not a Muslim, you might want to skip this part as it focuses on halal food)

I was worried about the halal food because apart from being quite halal conscious, I am a major foodie! Good food excites me.

After our welcome drinks, we were greeted by the manager of the hotel (I think his name was Ahmed, but I can’t remember so we’ll just call him Ahmed). Ahmed told us that the island had about a 25% Muslims population and that almost all of the food was halal because the butchers were Muslim owned. He then gave us the prayer times and provided us with other important information.

Now I am pretty finicky when it comes to halal food so I was not completely convinced. That was up until we went to the dining hall and realised that quite a few of the chefs were Muslim!

The bar was situated away from the kitchen so that was a good thing. I don’t usually eat at places where they serve alcohol so I was relieved.

We specifically asked the chefs every night if the food was halal. However, we opted for fish, just to be safe.

Unfortunately for us, they served pork at the hotel (like almost all hotels) but when we saw the way they prepared it, we were at ease. They had completely separate utensils and were careful not to contaminate the food.

On one evening, as I walked towards the buffet, a waiter ran up to me and told me to stay away from a particular dish because it was not halal (even though it was clearly marked, he ensured that I did not even go near it!)

Every day, we would also ask about the desserts, just to be extra cautious. They did not include any alcohol in their desserts and assured us that they were halal.

We ate outside the hotel thrice. On one occasion, we bought pizza and on another occasion we went to McDonald’s. The McDonald’s actually had a halal certificate which was great! We also went to a small Muslim-owned takeaway after hunting for a specific restaurant that a friend had recommended - we couldn’t find it and we were starving so we found this takeaway.

However, like in any country, you should be mindful of what you eat. Remember, when in doubt, don’t put it in your mouth!

Room


Our room was on the second floor and it was ocean facing. The room was floored with wooden flooring and the furniture was wooden too. Although, I’m not a fan of wood, the room was quite nice because it felt cozy.

The bed was a large king-size bed with plain white sheets and two pedestals on the side. The entrance of the bathroom did not have a door but the toilet stall did (I will never understand why some bathrooms don't have doors!) The shower was an average size, and there was no bath tub.

The room was poorly lit but many could argue that it complemented the ambiance, giving the room a romantic feel. 

We had a beautiful view of the ocean from our balcony. It was one of those breathtakingly-picture-perfect-am-I-really-here views.

Activities and tours


There are countless water sport activities that you can do in Mauritius. As we walked along the beach, we were approached with various water sport options which sounded fun!

We went parasailing and it was super exciting. The way the para-sail lazily lifted us in the air and as we looked around, we gasped at the sheer beauty we were surrounded by… However, if you’re afraid of heights, I suggest to steer clear from this activity.


We did not choose to do all of the activities with the hotel. Instead, we did most of the activities with those selling tours on the beach. They’re cheaper and you can custom pick what you want to do.

We spent a day dolphin watching and touring certain places. On that day, we went with a tour guide from the beach who organized us a taxi and took us for a few activities.


Since I’m not a great swimmer (and an extremely lazy swimmer), I wore a life jacket at all times. The snorkeling gear took a while to get used to but once we got used to it, it became so much easier! Although, I had to remember to breathe through my mouth and not my nose. Also, you need to ensure that the snorkels are attached firmly to your face, otherwise you will have water seeping into the goggles and that leads to extreme frustration.

After swimming with the dolphins, we were taken to an area to snorkel for about an hour or so. By then, I was feeling quite cold because it was a pretty windy day. Wet clothing coupled with wind is bound to make anyone shiver!

So while I sat on the boat, my husband spent some time snorkeling. Apparently there were hundreds of multicolored fish and I really missed out. Oh well, I was too cold to care at that point.

When we got off the boat, we changed into dry clothes. The husband had to hold up a towel and conceal me while I (very awkwardly) got into some dry clothing.

Thereafter, we hopped into a taxi and we were off to our next stop. We arrived at some kind of park that had a hiking trail. We walked for a while before I got tired (#thatlazylife) and wanted to head back to the taxi so that we could be on our way to the next stop.

We then stopped at the dormant volcano. There were lots of monkeys in this area but they didn’t really bother me. In fact, they were pretty entertaining.


We stopped at the beautiful waterfall. It was stunning and peaceful. Here, we walked towards a quiet area and we prayed our mid-day prayers (Dhuhr salaah). We had packed a bag for the day and this included our travel prayer mat and a compass (although you can use your cellphone as a compass).

For our last stop of the day, we made our way to the coloured sands. This was absolutely beautiful and it really got me thinking. As my eyes caressed the many different colours of sands, I was in absolute awe. Each of the different colours of the sand reminded me of the many different skin tones on this diverse earth (too bad we all can’t live in harmony and in sync the way these sands do!). It’s truly an enthralling experience.


One of the other tours we tried was the Catamaran/Ille Leux Cerfs island. Unfortunately, we only spent about an hour on the Ille Leux Cerfs island and the rest of the time on the catamaran. The island was beautiful but our time exploring it was too short.

During our catamaran ride, there was a braai/barbecue. We did not end up eating any of the food because it was stored too close to the alcohol. Also, there was only meat and no fish.


On the Friday, we decided to rent a car and drive around the city (you're allowed to do this with a South African licence so that's a plus). We used the maps on our phones to navigate through the island. We stopped at a mall and the markets for some shopping.


We found multiple mosques (masjids) along the way but just before the Friday prayer (Jummah), we met a Muslim couple who we bought a few things from. They insisted that we join them for lunch but we politely declined. They then took us to the mosque and gave us directions for a few restaurants/takeaways that we should try.

Thereafter, we made our way to the botanical gardens where we spent the rest of the afternoon. We prayed our late afternoon prayers (Asr) in the beautiful gardens.


On our way back to the hotel, the stunning sunset caught or eye so we stopped there, prayed, and headed back to the hotel.

Dinner on the beach


As we had the honeymoon package, we also had the opportunity to have a romantic dinner on the beach (if you do not have the honeymoon package, you can always pay for this extra service.)

We chose a seafood menu and received a personalized menu before our meal. It was super cute!

The food was okay, nothing to brag about but the ambiance was wonderful! Sitting on a quiet beach and having a candlelight dinner with the stars glistening on cue is something that should be on every bucket list!


Miscellaneous notes 


It should be noted that there are quite a few stray dogs on the island and a few cats. This was a bit of an inconvenience because I am extremely allergic to cats. Fortunately, I didn’t see many cats but I did see a lot of dogs. Most of the locals that sell tours will have a dog with them.

Also, on some parts of the island, the sand is not that soft because of all the dead coral or broken sea shells. So make sure you take beach slippers with because it’s not fun to walk on rough beaches!

All in all, our honeymoon was absolutely wonderful! I wouldn’t change a thing about it. It was fun and relaxing and oh-so-special!

If you’re planning a honeymoon or even just a romantic getaway, I would suggest going to Mauritius. You won’t regret it.
Beach, Holiday, Honeymoon,
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