Monday, December 6, 2010

Honeymoon Recaps: Male

We spent one day of our honeymoon not lazying around like bums, and actually doing something! We took a day trip to the capital of the Maldives, Male, which is of course an entire island, and we even had a private tour guide arranged by the hotel. It was fun to see the history of this span of islands, that only became known in the 70's.


I forget what the building in the background is. Some type of government building I think. But the flag of the Maldives was huge.

Here we are outside the President's Office. It faces the water and there are a fleet of navy vessels "parked" outside.

Male was packed with scooters. There were very few cars mostly because one would have to pay 100% tax on a car brought to the Maldives!

This is an ancient cemetery for royalty. The large, pointy stones are for men, the rounded ones for women, and the small one for kids.

And this is the Presidential Palace. There was a newer one built a few years ago on an island a few minutes away, but the current president has chosen to live here we were told.

This is their museum in Sultan Park. It was built with China Aid and hence the building reminds you a little of Chinese culture.

This is their largest mosque and one of the only ones that can be visited by tourists inside. 

My favorite part is visiting the markets. In this particular one, locals were only allowed to sell local products. The dynamite looking packages are a mixture of crushed coconut and brown sugar. Really yum!

Lots and lots of bananas! Makes you think about the gigantic things we buy at the store!

Betel leaves. Good for aiding digestion apparently. 

Betel nut. 

Local fishermen in their boats.

More boats. 

Beautiful tuna from the fish market

And finally a souvenir shop. We got some beautiful pieces from in here

We spent about 4 hours on the island and I feel like there was a lot more to see. If we had the time I would have gladly gone back and just walked around on our own. 

So thats it for the honeymoon ladies! We had a great time and would love to go back to the Maldives again at some point. Next time I post will be about the wedding! Should be getting our pro pics any day now and I can't wait! 

6 fabulous blogger's comments:

Kim said...

Beautiful photos! I love the current presidential palace - so colorful and fun :)

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing! Looks fantastic...and provided a nice break from studying :-)

Brittany said...

Hey girl, looks like a fabulous Honeymoon! I love all your beautiful pictures! Doesn't it make you want to go back ASAP? haha
I'm finally back into the blogging world and I have a lot of catching up to do. Hope you are doing well!!!

BonBon Rose Girls Kristin said...

What an incredibly gorgeous looking places. WOW!

Debbie said...

How fun! I love seeing the photos of new places and other cultures. Love all the colors.

The Blonde Duck said...

Popped in from SITS to say hi! It looks like an amazing adventure!