Maldives 2011
In November 2011 Agnes & Myself spent two weeks scuba diving in the Maldives. The first week was spent on the island of Vilamendhoo on the South Ari Atoll. Vilamendhoo offers excellent accomodation and restuarants, but most importantly has a well run and friendly Dive centre and an array of dive sites a short boat ride away. We still can't understand how people spend their holiday on a sun lounger each day no matter how stunning the surroundings.
In contrast the second week was spent on the livaboard M.V. Amba which operates on the Haa Dhaalu Atoll approximately 300km to the North of Male. The Amba, owned and operated by wife and husband Nicole & Franco is a custom build wooden dive safari boat which looks more like a luxury yacht.
The dive sites on the Haa Dhaalu atoll are remarkably pristine with untouched hard and soft corals and a wide variety of fish life. The majority of the dives were Thilas, the tops of which were around 15-20 metres deep. Visibility on the dive sites was variable with quite a lot of sediment in the water and often small to medium current.
Both Agnes and Myself were suprised at the limited number of Sharks we saw during the two weeks compared to the last time we were in the Maldives in 2004. This decline is due to the effects of shark fishing to satisfy demand for shark fins from Asia, a practice which has now been made illegal in the Maldives and its territorial waters.
During this trip I had my first attempt at underwater photography and videos, the result of which can be accessed from the links on the left. Having photographs from the dive is certainly helping us to recognise and learn the fish and coral types. It also helps to resolve some of the after dive differences of opinion we often had about what we had seen.