O Y S TER NEWS
“HERE IN THE SOUTH, WE WERE REWARDED FOR OUR CURIOSITY! OUR VISITS TO POPULATED ISLANDS CULMINATED IN UNIQUE EXPERIENCES AND WE MADE MANY NEW FRIENDS.”
We set sail from Phuket, T ailand direct to Uligamu Island in the northern Maldives. T e passage was comfortable and, although we driſt ed in the occasional light winds, we were able to sail the entire distance towards our destination. T is was our longest leg of the season so we were pleased to arrive and to anchor behind the island, which protected us from the ocean swell.
Soon aſt er arrival the Maldives offi cials visited to check us in. T e formalities were completed with only one qualifying point – although we had only just arrived, the offi cials wanted to know when we were leaving! Aſt er much debate they fi nally understood our uncertainty and allowed us some time to consider a departure date and a route. As requested we prepared a list with all the atolls we would like to visit. Unfortunately, we must have made the record too good because this resulted in the offi cials not allowing us to stop anywhere. Our planned route melted away like ice cream in the tropics, nothing was leſt ! T e offi cials would only allow us to stop at isolated atolls, and on the condition that we made it to Gan, the most southern island, within 30 days. T ey didn’t even authorise a stop in Male, the capital! T e offi cers told us that if we stopped in Male regulations required us to hire an agent. We had sailed to Uligam specifi cally to avoid hiring an agent as Maldivian agents are notorious for their fees and charges, making cruising in the
Maldives comparable to doing fi nancial chin-ups. We attempted to resolve the situation with the offi cials on several occasions, and in the end they agreed only to allow us to go direct to Addu atoll (Gan) under an ‘Inter-Atoll Travelling Permit’. It was the fi rst time in our circumnavigation that we were confronted with such onerous government bureaucracy! We couldn’t believe the circumstances and our cruising spirits sank, but as visitors we had to respect the system even if it meant that the wonderful cruising grounds just ahead of us were now technically off -limits.
In contrast to the rigid regulations, the local people were warm, hospitable, helpful and open-minded. Whilst we were in Uligamu, they organised an evening dinner for cruisers and prepared local dishes of fi sh and rice, tomato rice, curry and beans and a kind of green vegetable. T e cooking was basic and predominantly fi sh and rice but with an Indian infl uence. We tried to invite the locals onboard Moana but regrettably they were not allowed to visit foreign yachts.
Our experiences changed signifi cantly south of Male. Hiding behind reefs was a thing of the past and we could fi nally anchor in turquoise water with sandy bottoms, inside lagoons protected from swell. Here in the south, we were rewarded for our curiosity! Our visits to populated islands culminated in unique experiences and we made many new friends.
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