The Sinking Islands of Unicorns and Intolerance [The Maldives]

flickr photo link We have just finished an expectation-exceeding week in the Maldives, as our side trip from a two-month post-retirement relaxed stay in Penang. The Islamic Republic of the Maldives, southwest of Sri Lanka, consists of 1,196 islands—most uninhabited—comprising 26 island groups (atolls) spanning a north-south orientation of just under 1,000 km, but with a total landmass of only 298 km² (Asia's lowest). The islands, all less than 8 km long, are made from coral reefs or sandbars, and one literally from garbage (Google "Thilafushi" if interested). Buildings aside, the highest point on the archipelago is only 8 feet, making it country #3 on the list of those most likely to be completely underwater due to sea level rise. (In 1988, the president declared this would occur in 30 years; in 2012, he stated it would be underwater by 2019. Current predictions estimate sometime later this century. The country is even considering buying land in Australia or elsewhere.)

Tourism, which only began in the 1970s, now makes up 28% of the GDP, overtaking fishing and lifting the islands out of the bottom-20 poorest nations. It is now the largest sector of a moderately developed economy. The vast majority of tourists fly into the capital city Malé’s airport (on an island attached by the 1.4 km China-Maldives Friendship Bridge since 2018), then wait to board a seaplane to reach their all-inclusive resort—most of which occupy their own small island. Most visitors never leave these resorts except perhaps for a snorkelling or sandbar tour.

Having no interest in the concept, cost, or clientele of such a vacation, our expectations were rather low going in. The country is not really set up for independent travel, and some effort was required to determine whether the logistics were even feasible. You need to make sure you can reach the island of your accommodation, both in terms of distance and timing of the transfer, which can be done by speedboat (our three boats had capacities of 12–60 people) to at least the closer islands.

We developed a plan to visit two additional islands—Thulusdhoo and Dhiffushi—for three and two days, respectively, then see the capital island of Malé in order to experience the “real” country, staying on attached Hulhumalé (the airport is also attached as a third island in the group) for the last two days. We used Airbnbs throughout—a full home, guesthouse, and condo respectively.

I was already in a lousy mood due to a long wait in the crowded airport for our promised (per Airbnb hosts) but unlisted speedboat (no listings or schedules were found anywhere in the terminal across from the airport). That was followed by hitting my head on the boat’s entranceway top when I rapidly tried to stop the staff from carrying my heavy backpack by a flimsy strap. We approached Thulusdhoo’s small port (the island is about 2 km long), expecting a "Welcome to Thulusdhoo" sign, but instead the only visible words were oversized graffiti reading “Israel Not Allowed / terorist \[as spelled]” next to a large swastika.

Similar graffiti was found next to the main tourist beach, and all islands visited had some combination of Palestinian flags and “Free Palestine” slogans painted on walls. Israeli passport holders have been banned since June 2024 due to the ongoing Gaza conflict. To state what most of you would consider obvious: while pro-Palestinian messaging can be legitimate, swastikas are never acceptable. When Israel is singled out for criticism (why were there no anti-Russian messages? In fact, many of the mega-yachts seen reportedly belong to welcomed Russian oligarchs, as the Maldives are not party to any extradition treaties), and restrictions are newly imposed, that is antisemitism.

The Maldives make Malaysia—which recently reversed plans for guidelines regulating Muslims at non-Muslim events, which would have required organizers to ensure that Indian/Chinese events conformed to Islamic rules regarding images of gods and dress (an impossibility)—look like a bastion of ideological progressiveness. The Maldives, converted from Buddhism in the 12th century, now requires all citizens to be Muslim. Apparently about 0.25% are Christian or atheist, but not openly. Not believing is, at least in theory, punishable by death. The public practice of any other religion is illegal, and there are absolutely no churches or temples to be found.

There is also no alcohol available in stores or restaurants (I believe it is available at larger resorts), and my week was completely dry, opting instead for interesting fruit juices over Heineken Zero. On the other hand, the practice of Islam here is not too extreme, with women (most wearing hijabs, though a significant minority wore full black gear) working and driving motorbikes. For both better and worse, the country has the world’s highest divorce rate, with many marriages apparently entered into immaturely as a way to permit intercourse, though allowing women a way out if needed.

Politically, since gaining independence from Britain in 1965, the country has swung back and forth between more- and less-conservative leaders, with jailing of opposition and what is universally seen as a coup attempt in 1988 being referred to as “terrorism” (spelled with three R’s) on a monument plaque. Given this, I was not about to mention my swastika-induced discomfort to the local police, though I did mention it privately to our Airbnb hosts after leaving the country. (I have since emailed both the hosts and a national police station, without reply.)

Both islands we visited had populations of 2,000–3,000 (the country’s total is about 500,000, half of whom live on 2 km² Malé, one of the world’s most crowded places). There are also many foreign workers; most of our dinner servers were young women from Nepal or Myanmar on 1–2-year contracts with variable conditions.

Each island had an interior town section surrounded by beach, some of which are marked as “Bikini Beaches,” outside of which tourists are expected to dress modestly. No enforcement was seen. Thulusdhoo also had a large industrial section (which included a non-exporting, desalinated seawater-using Coca-Cola factory that we toured) and sandbars at its southern tip.

Tightly packed, medium-rise-building-filled, colorful Malé (inhabited for 2,500 years and the former source of cowry shell currency used by Arab traders pre-Islam) featured a fish market, an old coral mosque, and a small tsunami memorial (\~100 deaths including 6 tourists, but widespread destruction on many islands). However, there were no real beaches.

Hulhumalé is much more livable, with ongoing rapid construction of large-box, multi-unit dwellings. One side of the island is a long beach; the other faces the airport. We stayed in one of these developments.

The weather was great (at least during the dry season), insects were not a problem, and food was a forgettable, tasteless mix of South Asian and Western cuisines. Culture is now limited to Islam, with no visible remnants from 1,400 years of prior Buddhism.

So how did all this exceed expectations? The ubiquitous daily snorkelling. I wasn’t sure if this would be accessible directly from shore, but it turns out you can do it virtually anywhere. Despite sticking to the inner reefs (all islands are fringed by barrier reefs, with strong currents outside or between), we saw coral teeming with tons of colorful fish, large stingrays (we also dined at a restaurant where many came to be fed right next to our seaside table—amazing!), hiding moray eels, blacktip reef sharks, large boxfish, jacks, tangs, and a handful of several-foot-long humpback unicorn fish, whose existence I was previously unaware of.

I also got laughably attacked by a small but persistent Picasso triggerfish, and not-so-laughably by a 3-foot, coral-crunching, toothed Titan triggerfish. I had to counter with swift kicks to fend off his 3–4 rapid attempted advances before he finally let me go without contact. I later found out that this is reasonably common, with several YouTube videos documenting such attacks. We had blissfully watched a much more sedate one munching coral undisturbed during snorkeling off Perhentian Island, Malaysia in 2022.

We also saw lots of fruit bats and got some great photos around sunset—about the only interesting land-based wildlife, aside from herons and waterhens.

So that was our week in the Maldives. Would we recommend it? If coming from Malaysia, then yes. However, for North Americans—go to the Caribbean instead.

click here for full set on Maldives photos on Flickr