Maldives 2021

A few weeks after we returned from Exuma in 2018, Cadi had her next big idea. She wanted to vacation in a place where we could stay in an over-the-water villa. I was all in and started doing some research. What I found was that the best two places to experience this were the Maldives and French Polynesia, neither exactly “budget-friendly”. We definitely did not want to cost-cut on this trip though and my daughter knows me well – when a travel challenge is laid before me, I will do what it takes to smash that goal. We started planning in 2018 for an epic high school graduation trip in June of 2021. I contacted our favorite and reliable travel agent, Braden Boh, and we started planning a trip to the Maldives. Braden was (almost) as excited as we were about this trip. He suggested a long layover in Doha, Qatar to allow gentler acclimatization to the 10-hour time change plus he added a quick tour of Doha, including a dinner desert safari on the backs of camels. Braden took care of everything. We were to stay at Hurawalhi Resort on Llaviyani Atoll in an over-the-water ocean villa with a personal pool. An award-winning, all-inclusive resort, it included three restaurants, a fully stocked mini-bar plus two optional restaurants that could be reserved and paid for separately. We were asked about our slipper and robe sizes upon booking…holy cow, we were so excited!

And then, 2020 came and the world shut down. SHIT! There was no way we were canceling this trip unless we had no other option. We monitored the Maldives IMUGA website daily. We monitored the COVID numbers in Qatar daily. We monitored the US DOT website daily for travel advisories. The US travel advisory remained at high risk for traveling to the Maldives. However, the COVID numbers had been very low in the Maldives since it is completely secluded. The resort staff at Hurawalhi takes long-term assignments and they had been quarantined on the island since the pandemic began. I talked to Braden about our options weekly as the travel landscape was constantly evolving. But then, vaccines! Cadi was 17 at the time but working at a nursing home so she was on a priority list. She received her vaccines in January and February of 2021 – a bright spot during our tenuous planning. My age group was eligible in March and I got my first and second vaccines as soon as I was able. Shew! As our departure date grew nearer, it was clear that testing protocols would be a problem. A negative PCR test was required 72 hours before departure to the Maldives. We found a local PCR testing agency and solved that problem. In the meantime, they reviewed our vaccination histories, and we went ahead with the other vaccines we would need to travel to that part of the world. Unfortunately, that PCR test wouldn’t count if we were doing our long layover in Doha. We would have to get re-tested in Doha before we re-boarded for our flights to Male, Maldives. After weighing our options, we relented and gave up on our dinner desert camel safari in Doha and decided to go straight to our final destination. We did not want to risk “popping a positive” and getting stuck nor did we want to hassle with trying to find a reliable testing site in Doha. Our relief and utter giddiness at the thought of actually pulling off this trip in the midst of a pandemic overwhelmingly outweighed the minor disappointment of this change in travel plans. Braden was completely amazing throughout this whole process and it would never have happened without him…specifically him, Braden Boh…I can’t imagine any other travel agent who would have given us this level of personal attention throughout this process. I sincerely wish he could have gone with us and we will be forever grateful for him. Holy shit – we were going to the Maldives!

Swimsuits, vaccination cards, masks, and passports were packed. We were ready! We arrived at CVG 3 hours early to check in for a quick 1-hour flight to Chicago. We had a 4-hour layover followed by a 13.5-hour flight to Doha, Qatar on Qatar Airways, the most amazing airline I’ve ever flown. From the coordinated flight attendants to the service to the food, everything was above and beyond expectations. Upon landing at Hamad International Airport in Doha, we were again amazed. Vendors at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky airport (and typical US airports) include Brighton, Brooke Brothers, Spanx, and various shops that provide t-shirts, magnets, books, and magazines. Vendors at Hamad include Gucci, Tiffany, Coach, TAGHeuer, Rolex, Swarovski, Saffron & Caviar, TUMI, and various gold vendors. We had another 4-hour layover here to explore the shops and then boarded for our 6-hour flight to Male, Maldives. Upon arrival on Male, the main port and biggest island in the Maldives, we were welcomed into a private lounge for Hurawalhi guests only. The weather was hot and delightful. My ankles were swollen as big as my calves but it didn’t matter. We could smell the sea beckoning us and we sensed we were getting closer. We had two hours to wait in the lounge before departing on our seaplane to our next stop on one of the neighboring islands. The propellor seaplane seated approximately 30 passengers plus the pilots and the crew of 1. As a former student pilot, this was EXHILARATING for me! From the air, we could see never-ending Maldivian blue atolls below us. After an hour-long flight, we landed and prepared for our final leg. A small group of 6 of us were picked up by a speed boat and took a 20-minute ride to Hurawalhi. The best part of the boat ride was when our host informed us that, after 35 hours of continuously wearing COVID masks, we could safely take them off. All staff and guests on the island were required to be fully vaccinated and all guests were required to provide a negative test before getting this far. We were literally on the other side of the earth and back in a place free from COVID.

We arrived at Hurawalhi and were immediately treated like royalty. We walked down the pier through a welcoming drum line where we met our personal host for our stay. We hopped in her golf cart and she gave us a tour of the island…kayaks, marine research center, fitness center, water sports shop, scuba shop, restaurants, padel court, hammocks, beaches, spa, and then our long-awaited over-the-water villa. As she drove us out the pier toward the row of villas, we started giggling uncontrollably. She pulled up to ours and opened the door. We couldn’t control our excitement any longer. This was it! We were doing it! Neither of us had experienced anything like this before and I was so incredibly thankful to be doing this with my Cadi girl. Waterfall shower with a door that could be opened to the ocean, a bed with fresh tropical flowers sprinkled on top, fresh fruit grown locally on the island, robes and slippers, an outdoor couch, lounge chairs, table, our own saltwater infinity pool and the best part, the steps leading from our deck directly onto the reef below. We immediately opened our bottle of chilled champagne to celebrate.

Hurawalhi is a 5-star resort and routinely receives awards for luxury travel accomodations. We took advantage of all there was to do. We walked to a shark nursery where we saw a plethora of baby white tip reef sharks in a natural lagoon protected from the ocean current. We kayaked around the whole island in an hour and saw White Tipped Reef Sharks, Olive Ridley Sea Turtles, Green Sea Turtles, Stingrays, and Giant Eagle Rays. Cadi saw a huge Greater Indian Fruit Bat, which I wouldn’t have believed except that she took a picture! We saw countless Bottlenose Dolphins and their adorable and endearing cousins, Spinner Dolphins, from our villa. We snorkeled and saw a myriad of tropical fish, including lobsters, indigenous Lionfish (not the invasive ones I’ve seen snorkeling off the US coastlines), and my favorite, the Picasso Triggerfish. We took a Waverunner tour around the island which was a most treacherous ride in the middle of the Indian Ocean (not our best idea but alas, memories made and lots of laughs AFTER we were back to the safety of shore).

Among the many memories made during this trip, two experiences stand out to me. The prelude to this first encounter was a brief conversation with one of the other guests while Cadi and I were walking back from lunch one day. This man was an older man with an Australian accent, with skin that had seen many years of sun, a peaceful, happy countenance, and the energy of a grateful person who loves life and appreciates every moment. He asked about our day and said that he had the amazing experience of snorkeling with a fever (i.e. group) of 6 Giant Eagle Rays earlier that day. This was incredible! I do not believe in omnipotent invisible beings but I do believe in the interconnectedness of earthly beings and I think that he influenced my path that day. My sense of time was still off-kilter from traveling, and I had been falling asleep early and waking up at 3am. Since this was vacation, I didn’t really care about maintaining sleep patterns so I would go outside in the middle of the night while Cadi was peacefully sleeping, lay down on the lounge chair, and look up into the black night at more stars than I had ever seen. I was fully present in those moments and reminded myself and really FELT how lucky I was to live the life that I have. The sun would start to peak over the water horizon around 6am and I would watch the sunrise. Thanks to a little bit of Irish influence from my dad’s side, I figured if it was early enough for the sun to be up, it was late enough for a cocktail. I put my swimsuit on, made myself a mimosa from the mini-bar, and took a dip in our personal pool to gaze onto the reef below and watch the sharks, rays, and fish during their morning feeding. This morning, I saw curious flapping that I thought might be shark fins along the reef. It was moving slowly enough that I thought I might be able to get a closer look if I was careful and didn’t scare them away. I grabbed my snorkel and mask and slowly entered the water. I floated motionless as I looked in the direction of the flapping when I saw one Giant Eagle Ray that had apparently broken from the group to come see what my curious flapping was. He/she swam within 10 feet of me and we locked eyes. It circled around me faster and faster and I slowly and gently turned on my axis like a hand on a clock. This amazing creature and I sized each other up, realized we were no threat to each other, and shared a moment of connection. After about 10 rotations and our curiosity satisfied, he/she swam back off to join the fever. I pulled my head out of the water and gasped in amazement. I probably had happy tears in my eyes but they were diluted with salt water. This is a memory that will stay in my soul forever.

The other experience occurred at 5.8 Undersea Restaurant at Hurawahli Resort. We had booked this dinner almost a year before our trip. There was a COVID limit of 10 people in the restaurant at a time. Reservations are required because the kitchen serves each of five courses to all guests at the same time. Guests have the choice of a seafood option, a meat option, or a vegetarian option. Cadi chose the meat option and I chose the vegetarian option. This is a “beach formal” establishment so dresses for women are expected, however, guests must remove their shoes before entering. I liked it already. From the pier, we walked down a spiral staircase below the waterline and began to see dozens of tropical fish along the coral reef. At the bottom, it opened into the largest underwater restaurant in the world. We were both in complete awe. I am so happy to have been able to share this one-of-a-kind experience with my daughter. First, the food… I have never eaten flowers that tasted so amazing. Actually, I had never eaten flowers anywhere. The presentation, the flavors, and the colors are something you would expect to see on the Food Network. Each course was better than the last. I can’t say enough about the food but that said, even the food did not surpass the view and atmosphere. The restaurant is surrounded by the local reef. We ate adjacent to a multitude of happy little tropical fish and then saw schools of hundreds of bigger fish swim by above us. Absolutely incredible…like nothing I’ve ever experienced.  

We cleared our heads. We drank the sun. After an unforgettable 8 days, it was time to return home. We bode farewell to our wonderful hosts, our favorite restaurant staff, and bartenders. We both realized that, in all reality, this was likely a once-in-a-lifetime experience but we nevertheless left with the hope that we would be back again. Our trip home was a little longer, but after 38 hours of travel time, we returned to the ‘Nati with a renewed sense of wonder in our Earth and all its inhabitants. We were happy to be home but forever changed and our world was a little bigger than it was before.

Get out the map, get out the map and lay your finger anywhere down,
We’ll leave the figuring to those we pass on our way out of town.
Don’t drink the water, there seems to be something ailing everyone.
I’m gonna clear my head,
I’m gonna drink that sun,
I’m gonna love you good and strong while our love is good and young.

-Get out the map, Indigo Girls