Thursday, May 22, 2014

MALE'

I landed at Male International Airport in January 2002. The airport is on a small island called Hulhule. It is close to Male. The Indian Airlines flight from Trivandrum took about one hour. I was among a group of teachers recruited from India. Some officials from the Maldives Ministry of Education met us at the airport. We had to take a ferry from the airport to Male. I was amazed by the turquoise waters, it looked so beautiful. Our accommodation was arranged at Athama Palace, a centrally located hotel.

On the next day, we visited the Ministry of Education. We were informed about our postings. I was posted at Raa Meedhoo an island in Raa Atoll. They also gave us an idea of what to expect in the Maldives. They told us that we are not allowed to discuss religion and that the students cannot be given any physical punishment. The Ministry held our passport. We had to deposit an amount of money to get it back, in case we wanted to leave the Maldives unexpectedly.

Male is the biggest island in the Maldives. If you are at the centre of the island, you can reach any place in Male by walking for about fifteen minutes. It is safe city. Crime is rare but there are a few drug addicts who engage in theft. There is no bus service and I did not see any big trucks. There are taxis and small pickup trucks. There are plenty of two wheelers on the streets. Automobiles are imported but there are no automobile showrooms.

I noticed that the shops closed for about fifteen minutes during the call to prayer. In the smaller shops, customers are told to hurry up with their purchase since they have to close. In the bigger shops, customers already inside are allowed to continue shopping but new customers are not allowed in during the prayer time.

STO Trade Centre is the biggest Supermarket. There are many souvenir shops selling handicrafts, corals, T-shirts etc. They are popular with the tourists. There are some shops selling diving gear. Maldives is famous for its diving spots.

There are several old buildings in Male. The Hukuru Miskiiy or Friday Mosque was built in 1656 during the reign of Sultan Ibrahim Iskandhar I. Close by is a gleaming white minaret called Munnaru. It is a circular tower like structure built in 1675. The chief muezzin of Male called the faithful to prayer from this minaret before the Islamic Centre was built. Opposite the Hukuru Miskiiy is the Medhu Ziyaarath, the shrine of Abu al Barakaath Yusuf al Barbari, a North African who is believed to have converted the Maldives to Islam in AD 1153. There is a National Museum which displays items from a glorious bygone era. Sultan Ghazee Mohammed Thakurufaanu is the greatest national hero. He liberated the country from Portuguese rule. A tomb is erected in his memory. The Presidential Palace is called Mulee-Aage.

The local currency is the Rufiya. Dhiraagu is the mobile phone service provider. Initially the SIM card was expensive and caller ID was available only at extra cost. When a rival company started functioning the cost of SIM card went down and caller ID was available for free.

Most of the expatriate teachers, doctors and nurses were from India. Cheap labour from Bangladesh was used in construction and farming.

The only Coca Cola factory in the world that uses desalinated water is in the Maldives. There are local TV and Radio stations in Male. You can listen to English songs for about one hour daily on the local radio. Local TV programs are in the Dhivehi language but they do have news in English. Cable TV and DTH service are also available.

The local bank is the Bank of Maldives. Other banks include State Bank of India, HSBC, Bank of Ceylon and Habib Bank. The two main hospitals are Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) and ADK Hospital. There are several hotels but most Indians stayed at the Athama Palace or Buruneege Residence. The rooms are air conditioned. They place about five mattresses on the floor of each room. It was my first experience sharing a room with strangers. I realised that Male is a small island and space comes at a premium. Moreover the tourists drive the costs up. There is a big park in Male, called the Jumhooree Maidan, where people relax in the evenings. At the east end of the park there is a huge flag pole with a large national flag fluttering in the wind. We can see many speed boats of varying sizes in the sea nearby. Near the park there is a large mosque which is a part of the Islamic Centre.

A submarine service is available for tourists. It is called the whale submarine. You can go under the sea and look at the fishes from the submarine. Some people told me about an artificial beach in Male. I was disappointed when I saw it. It was not worth the walk. I noticed that the locals don’t cross the road till the traffic lights indicate that they can, even when there is no traffic. It is surprising for an Indian.

The local boats called dhonis are anchored near the fish market. Bigger dhonis are used to transport goods and carry passengers. Smaller dhonis are used for fishing. If you walk into the fish market you can see different types of fish. Tuna is the most common fish. Sometimes you can see big swordfishes too. There is a fruit and vegetable market near the fish market. The post office is also located in this area.

After spending two days in Male, I was woken up at 2 am by the officials from the Ministry of Education and told to board a boat to Raa Meedhoo. The boat was a dhoni. A fellow traveller advised me to get a bottle of water since the journey would take about eight hours. I bought the water, boarded the dhoni and found a place to sleep. The boat started for Raa Medhoo at about 8 am. The boatmen gave us some biscuits and tea. Later on they gave us some noodles for lunch. The boat had a stop at Baa Eydhafushi to unload some cargo. I got down and sat on a bench till they finished unloading and resumed the journey. Along the way I saw some dolphins jumping out of the water and also some flying fish.

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