2012 Issue ENG Official Publication of Maldives Marketing and Public Relations

2012 Issue ENG Official Publication of Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation www.visitmaldives.com YOUR HANDY TOUR GUIDE. Travel well Publisher's Note No reproduction, copying, image scanning, storing, recording, broadcasting or transmitting by any means, in any form, of any part of this directory is permitted without the express prior written consent of Zebra Cross Pvt. Ltd. Copyright ©2011 by Zebra Cross Pvt. Ltd. Published by: Ma. Dhilaasaage | 1st floor, Chaandhanee Magu | Male’ | Republic of Maldives | Tel: (960) 300 1000, (960) 300 1011 | Email: info@zebracross.mv | www. zebracross.mv Druck: Times Printers Pvt. Ltd., Singapur     Maldives Marketing & Public Relations Corporation | 4th Floor | H. Velaanaage | Ameer Ahmed Magu | Malé | Maldives | Tel: + 960 332 3228 | Fax: + 960 332 3229 | mmprc@ visitmaldives.com Welcome, welcome traveller. Welcome to a land that has granted many a fatigued, stressed and over-worked souls inner bliss, solitude, peace and tranquillity. If this is your first time coming to the Maldives, then get ready to be enthralled by our lush white sandy beaches, the serene turquoise lagoons, the richly colourful coral reefs renowned the world over for their great bio-diversity, the radiant flora and fauna being host to the mother of all tropical trees - the Maldivian Coconut Palm and most importantly the friendly and hospitable Maldivian people. You’ll love that rapturous feeling of swimming with dolphins, gazing at the majestic Manta Rays underwater, catching a gnarly wave, dancing the night away at a beach party, indulging on the scrumptious tropical and multi-cultural food on offer or just plain lounging on the beach sipping on a refreshing cocktail, Recurrent visitors would know exactly what we are talking about and to them we first wish a hearty welcome back and remind them of the fact that they’ll always discover something new and wondrous about these pearl-like islands on each different visit. Sit back, relax and let our island and sea spirits give your mind, body and soul that heavenly high you’ve come seeking for once again. On a more serious note, we would like to remind all visitors to become and function as environmentally conscious and aware tourists on your visit. Global warming, pollution and other man-made crimes against nature the world over are devastating the natural eco-systems of various countries including ours. We are a rather small island nation being host to a rather fragile and vulnerable environment and marine eco-system. Help us protect our coral reefs and shores so that we can preserve them for future generations. Please keep our beaches clean and adhere to responsible diving and snorkelling practices such as refraining yourself from touching the corals and marine life or extracting them for personal use (more information will be presented to you by the relevant resort/ liveaboard that you are staying in). All in all, we wish you a pleasant and sunny stay in our beautiful country and look forward for more and more visits from you. As we locals say “Majaa Kollah Chey” (Translation: Do have fun) Welcome to Maldives 08 | WELCOME TO MALDIVES Step onto the beautiful islands waiting to be discovered anew with every visit. 12 | PEOPLE & LOCAL CULTURE Discover the rich culture and the roots from which the exotic mix became the Maldivians. 22 | ESSENTIAL & USEFUL INFO All the things you’ll need to know, from general tips for what to pack to making it smoothly through immigration, changing currency etc. 28 | THINGS TO DO IN THE MALDIVES Handy tips to see you through your day, spend the day exploring the capital city, or plan out the perfect day filled with sunny options. 30 | MALE’ CITY GUIDE Make sure you know all the hot spots, explore the charming little cafés by the sea side or go shopping for souvenirs and trinkets to take back home. 45 | TUNE UP YOUR DHIVEHI Brush up on some common words and phrases and mingle with the locals 48 | USEFUL NUMBERS All the numbers that you’ll need to travel by land or sea and to find medical help for a well rounded healthy trip. CONTENTS 17 | ENVIRONEMENT Sustaining and conserving the beautiful, yet fragile ecosystems of the Maldives   Mohamed Luveiz     Abdulla Ziyath    Ahmed Shuau     Aminath Hasna          Yusfa Athif Lazzath Shareef Moosa Mamdhooh Mohamed Binah   Hussain Saleem     Samra Saleem !   !" Ahmed Shuau Mohamed Sifah Mohamed Riyaz Miusam Mohamed Brian Knutsen Oxbow Kurt Amsler MMPRC Image Library #  $  Hawwa Yumna Fathimath Niusha Mariyam Yasmin Ismail Miuwan Production Team 8 Local Time Capital Population Languages Currency Rufiyaa Exchange Rates Location Geographic Co-ordinates Area Immediate Neighbours Northeast of Maldives South of Maldives Southwest of Maldives Climate Best Time to Visit Clothing Religion No. of Islands Inhabited Islands Resorts Liveaboards (Safaris) Major Industries Electricity Working Hours: Government Working Hours: Private Sector Working Hours: Banks International Telephone Code +5 hrs GMT Male’ 360,000 Dhivehi (Official), English Rufiyaa (MRF, MVR or RF) USD$1 = MRF15.42 , GBP£1 =MRF24.65 , EUR€1 = MRF21.85 Indian Ocean, Southwest of Sri Lanka 3 15 N, 73 00 E 90,000km² (of which less than 1% is land - 298km²) North of Maldives: Lakshadweep Islands Sri Lanka and India Chagos Archipelago Seychelles Tropical, Warm temperatures, lots of sunshine December to April (Dry-Season/North-east Monsoon) Modest, Light cotton Islam 1190 201 100 60 Tourism and Fisheries 240 Volts, 50 Hz 0800 hrs to 1600 hrs (Sunday to Thursday) 0800 hrs to 1700 hrs (Sunday to Thursday) 0800 hrs to 1400 hrs (Saturday) 0800 hrs to 1330 hrs (Sunday to Thursday) +960 Quick facts & figures Maldives 9 LOCATION & GEOGRAPHY ENVIRONMENT WEATHER & CLIMATE The Maldives consists approximately 1,190 coral islands clustered in a chain of 26 atolls in the Indian Ocean. The atolls are scattered along the north- south direction with an area covering roughly 90,000km². However, only 1% of this surface area consists of land. The nation lies between latitudes 07° 06”S and 08° 00” N, and longitudes 72° 32” and 73° 46”E. Land wildlife and vegetation in the Maldives are limited in terms of bio-diversity. However, this aspect is overshadowed by the abundant marine flora and fauna to be found in the Maldives. The month of June 2011 even saw Baa Atoll of the Maldives being declared a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve. The Maldives is home to over 2,000 species of fish ranging from reef fish to Manta rays, Moray Eels, reef sharks and to the majestic whale shark. These marine eco-systems are both extremely vibrant and extremely fragile at the same time. Their vulnerability was made clearly evident by the nation-wide coral bleaching incident caused by the El Niño (An unusual warming of the surface water) of 1998. Furthermore, global warming and rampant pollution are becoming greater threats to the environment of the Maldives. The Maldives enjoys a tropical climate and has two distinct seasons; the dry season, known as the “Iruvai” Monsoon (Northeast Monsoon) - April to December, and the wet season or “Hulhangu” Monsoon (Southwest Monsoon) - May to November. The dry season, as the name suggests, is a period of regular sunshine with little or no rain showers. This is also the best season for scuba diving. The wet season is a period in which the whole of Maldives experiences torrential rain showers which includes thunder storms. This is the best season for surfing due to good swells and wave generation. The wet season does offer periods of sunshine similar to balmy days you would experience during the dry season, as Maldives enjoys year long sunshine. The temperature normally ranges from   Maldives Roman manual of navigation Periplus Mari, Erihraei mentions of the islands Liberation from Portuguese control Conversion to Islam Historical Chinese Documents records the Maldivian King sending gifts to the Chinese Emperor Kao-Tsung of Tang Dynasty Reference of the islands by Ptolemy in his geography Roman historian records visit of delegation bearing gifts to Emperor Julian Malabar Invasion establishing a 3 month rule Portuguese Invasion 1st Century AD 2nd Century AD Libera contro 1573 Mala 1752 Protectorate Agreement Signed with the British ment tish 1887 isit 362 AD H M Em 662 AD 1558 1153 Maldivian History Ancient Maldivian history is rich and diverse in events infused with mythological elements and folklore. Archaeological records also reveal that people had settled in the Maldives over 5000 years ago most probably being of Indian, Sri Lankan and Arab origin. Gained Independence from the British First Constitution Enacted The fourth Republic (Election of Mohamed Nasheed as the President) Inception of the Maldivian Tourism Industry, first island resorts developed, arrival of first tourists The third Republic (Election of Maumoon Abdul Gayyoon as the President) End of the 853 year old Monarchy, start of the second Republic (Election of Ibrahim Nasir as President) Establishment of the uploads/Geographie/ maldives-visitors-guide.pdf

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