I’ve been dragging my feet to work. For a number of reasons. One, I forsee work piling up at a phenomenal rate over the next few months. Two, Umar is growing up so quickly and becoming smarter and more playful by the day. Three, vacations spoil you! I am starting to resent the fact we don’t have nice beaches, and well, not much places you can go where its just you.. and nature. There are so many people everywhere here, even the parks. Or especially the parks. Oh well, must bersyukur we have a peaceful and comfortable life here. So ok stop whining, and get back to work please.

What can I say about the Maldives? We loved it. Or at least, what little we saw of it, bearing in mind we visited only hmm.. 5(?) of some 2000 islands that make of up the Maldives. Like some of you, I always thought the Maldives were overrated.. in fact, we ruled it out for our honeymoon partly cos if this impression. We thought, surely Malaysian islands like Tioman and Redang are comparable. I’m happy to report that we were wrong. The beauty of the Maldives is really out of this world subhanAllah, and I think can’t be captured by even the best camera in the world. You gotta be there, take in the 360deg view of everything, and better still have a bird’s eye view of it from a seaplane (gosh I still wish I could afford this). The atoll formations are just incredible, and the result are sandy white beaches with clear turquiose waters…

Although the Maldives are a typical hot spot for honeymooners, there are many resorts which cater to families with young children. So it turned out to be a fab choice for our getaway with our little one. Just the right mix of relaxation, adventure, and romance. We were fortunate to have found the Anantara. We booked through Atollparadise, who did a fantastic job recommending Anantara to us, and making sure that all our needs were met prior to the trip. I had a long list of questions for them, such as whether the island is stroller-friendly etc. Atollparadise sorted everything out for us and by the time we arrived in the Maldives till the minute we left, everything was perfect. So this trip report is really our way of saying THANK YOU to Anantara and Atollparadise, who I know will read this through their Google alert *winks to Manish, Chloe and Ginette*.

Arrival
We were met by a representative of Atollparadise, who very efficiently transferred our luggage to the boat and presented D with a Welcome Pack. This was 11pm at night, and we were relieved to have assistance with our luggage and stroller. The airport is on its own little island (the runway extends from one end of the island to another!) and as we left the airport by speedboat, we were silenced by our surroundings.. it seemed magical… one minute we were on the plane and the next in the middle of the sea… water everywhere, cool breeze against our faces. It was a 30min speedboat ride to Anantara, and a very smooth one at that. My baby slept throughout. Upon arrival at Anantara, we were welcomed by the sound of drums, again adding to the magic. We were served with cocktails, checked in and showed to our beach villa by a Ayu, who became a good friend to us over the course of our stay.

Villas
When Ayu showed us to our villa, we were very pleased! The outdoor bathroom with its infinity tub was huge, and became our favourite feature of the villa. As Ayu opened the sliding doors of the verandah, I could hear the waves crashing not too far away! We had asked for the best location when we made reservations, and ours was a sunset beach villa no 62. After checking out the rest of the island I would say this was truely the best location in terms of privacy and the amazing views. I could sit on the verandah without my hijab, and if I choose to go down to the beach, its barely 5m away.

Umar also spent alot of time sleeping or sitting in his bassinet of the daybed on the verandah; he seemed to enjoy looking out into the sea. I would put him out every time he starts fussing for no reason, and he would shut up and look absorbed by the view. I also spent many hours on the beach loungers in front of our villa, nursing Umar, reading (or trying to read.. I barely got through my novel!), or just staring out at the ocean. One could never tire of the view.

We moved to the water villa after 3 nights on the beach villa. I was blown away! The room was huge, the deck amazingly private, the bathtub had that out-of-this-world view of the ocean, and my favourite feature… it had its own steps down to the sea, where you could have a dip anytime without leaving your villa. Its complete with a shower deck for a rinse before going back up. My husband preferred the beach villa due to its easy access to the beach and the gym, but I would take the water villa any day for its easy access to the water.

I loved living literally on the water. Sometimes when we sat out on the deck, or in the bathtub, we would see a black-tipped shark, or a manta ray swim past right under our nose. It was amazing. We spent many memorable hours on the deck. I loved the fact that it was designed to maximise privacy, and I could lounge around with D and Umar without worry. On one of the evenings Anantara offered in-room dining for us, a honeymoon benefit which they extended to us although we have been married for over a year! They came before sunset to set up the deck, and it was so romantic, with the lanterns and the flowers… and of course, the sunset. Absolutely gorgeous. Umar wanted dinner then too, which was perfect timing cos by the time he finished and nodded off to sleep, D and I enjoyed a quiet dinner just the two of us.

What was clear from the rooms was that Anantara put in alot of effort to understand guests’ needs. The rooms thought of everything, from beach slippers to beach bags to yoga mats… You literally had to just turn up. Even sarongs were provided. The rooms were cleaned twice a day, and every evening the room boy would do a turndown service for us, leaving some cookies or local fruits, and a flower decor, either pretty rose petals arrangement on the bed or a floral bath in the beautiful infinity bathtubs… which was oh-so-romantic. I wish I have a photo!

Baby-Friendliness
I thought the Anantara worked very well for us. It was very peaceful, and you could find your own ‘private’ beach easily. We ruled our places like Bali and Phuket for the beach crowds. In terms of amenities, Anantara did all they could to make us comfortable. They provided baby cots, baby toilettries (including a rubby ducky!), and had a nice kids club with a daily scheduled programme, including fish feeding every afternoon, which even we adults enjoyed. The island paradise was also very stroller-friendly, and you could practically walk around the island. Even when we didn’t use the stroller and Umar fell asleep in the sling or carrier while we were walking around, the staff would be happy to call us a buggy so that we could quickly return back to our villa. Oh I must mention that some resorts on the Maldives do not allow children on the water villas, but Anantara’s policy is quite flexible.

We also used the babysitting service, and dear Stephanie was such a God-sent. We used her twice, once when we went kayaking and another when we went to a nearby island to snorkel. Both times Umar never cried even a lil bit.. I suppose he doesn’t have stranger anxiety yet and is happy as long as he has someone to play with. The staff members of the resort also really love children, so Umar received alot of attention. By the second day he was greeted by name!

Sometimes at breakfast we don’t even have to hold him cos there is always someone who wants to say hi and play with him. When we went island hopping and took Umar with us, I was so thankful to the boat crew who offered to watch Umar (who was sleeping soundly in his bassinet) while I snorkelled with D. When he woke up, one of these young men picked him up, held him and comforted him, while the other drove closer to where I was snorkelling, so I could come back on board.

So all in all, thumbs-up for family-friendliness. Oh, a celebrity thinks so too; we were some villas away from Salgado, his kids, and his pretty pregnant wife. Haha I guess when Umar grows up we can tell him we were once “neighbours” with a Real Madrid football star.

For Muslim Visitors
The Maldives being a Muslim country, we were fortunate not to have to worry about halal food. Except, food was very expensive! Everything was in USD, and at a 5-star hotel price. So we cooked instant food on our trusted travel cooker for all our lunches, and only indulged in dining out for dinner. Breakfast came with the room, and was plentiful. My only grouse was that they often had pork instead of beef or chicken sausages, and this limited our protein option. Food aside, Anantara was very accommodating when they realised we were Muslims; we were shown the kiblat in our room, provided with prayer mats, and a Maldivian tafsir :) A staff member also mentioned that they had a mosque on the nearby staff island, and offered to take D there for Friday prayers. D went, and had an interesting experience meeting with the Muslim staff on their “home ground”. Throughout our stay, the mostly Muslim (from Maldives and Bangladesh) staff members are always very hospitable and curious about us, asking us where we come from, and taking delight in serving us. Apart from the resort, the Maldives itself is a very interesting Muslim community to visit. During our visit to the local island, we observed that they had rather strict Muslim laws, and the women are also rather conservative in dress, most donning the hijab, including children.

Activities
There’s really nothing much to DO. Most resorts are on their own island, so you are pretty much self-contained. I wish we dive, cos I think that’s where the beauty of the Maldives lie. But I’m grateful we managed to do some snorkeling.

We kayaked a little bit too, to a nearby island, which was a first time for me. I loved the hammock that we came across on our way there, it gave me some respite from D’s persistent “Keep going, keep going!”. Other activities include other trips like the sunset dolphin cruise (which we regret not doing!) and a visit to the fabulous overwater spa (which I did not regret going cos I had the best thai massage in my life!). D babysat Umar while I had my treat… I was tickled when I stepped out of my treatment room and was informed that a Mr Yacob had called twice to find out when Mrs Yacob would be finished. Hehe.. he got abit nervous. Thanks Abang for the much needed break :)

All in all, a lovely trip to one of Allah’s marvels on earth… Alhamdulillah it was a much-needed getaway with our little one and we came back refreshed and well-rested, though many shades darker, all 3 of us!