Yet another opportunity for a short vacation presented itself during the Holy Week. Combining two days leave from the company with the long weekend starting with Good Friday I planned a four-day visit to the "Necklace Islands", as Maldives is known in Sinhala and Sanskrit languages. The islanders call themselves Dhivehi Raajje, or country of the Dhivehi people. The language of the archipelago is Dhivehi and the currency is Maldivian Rufiyaa (MVR); 1 MVR is equal to INR 5.6.
The flight ticket from Ahmedabad to Male did not come cheap; the Indigo round trip fare cost me Rs. 55,000. I opted for a budget itinerary and cut out boutique resorts and water villas, choosing to stay in the capital city for two days and another 48 hours in a public island. I intend to restrict the spends to under a lakh of Indian rupees, or thereabouts. One of the essentials, as I deem it, on an international trip is also to drive in the country. All efforts to source a car for a couple of days in Male failed. I hope to find a source after I land in the capital city. Maldives is the 61st country I am traveling to.
The Republic of Maldives is a string of 26 atolls spread across the equator to the southwest of India. The archipelagic country has an overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim population (98.6%) of slightly over half a million. With a population density of nearly 1750 people to a square km, it is one of the most densely populated places on earth.
Human habitation in the Maldives date back to over 2500 years, with documented history of trade with the outside world dating back to 947 AD. That is when traders from the Arab world started using the Maldives as a staging post. With the Arabs came Islam, too. From the 16th century, European colonial powers held sway over the archipelago. The Portuguese were the first to come followed by the Dutch and the English. Maldives officially gained independence in July 1965 from the British Crown.
The country's capital, Male, is the largest city in the country. Traditionally, Male was known as King's Island, as it was the seat of power of royal dynasties and the sultanate. Maldives relies heavily on fishing and tourism for economic sustenance. Facilities to promote tourism began in right earnest almost immediately after independence and the results are there for all to see today. The per capita GDP of the country, in Purchasing Power Parity terms, is nearly $35,000 - more than three times that of India! It is one of the lowest lying countries in the world with its highest point, Mount Villingili, being just 17 feet above MSL!
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