Recruitment Trips......

We started the month of March with a bang!

Recruitment………recruitment……and more recruitment trips to go…..we need to visit all the islands in Laamu atoll as major priority is given to residents within the atoll in terms of employment in the resort.

Last weekend, we visited two of the most beautiful islands in the atoll --- Dhambidhoo and Isdhoo. As a keen student of Maldivian history, I’ve always been fascinated by these 2 islands as they are always featured in all books about pre-Islamic history of the Maldives.

The remains of Buddhist stupas were found in Isdhoo Island (the other one in Gan) and the 12th century copper plates from the Buddhist monasteries in Isdhoo and Dhambidhoo are still preserved and in the national museum (I presume! Not sure though…hehehe). In the Dambidhu Lomafanu (ancient royal edicts written in copper plates), the king has ordered the conversion from Buddhism to Islam and the subsequent destruction to be made in the temples and monasteries.

Dhambidhoo
We went first to Dhambidhoo, the smaller of the two islands. It has a population of more than a thousand residents and has a surprisingly well-developed agriculture industry --- they even send their produce to sell in Male markets!

They have a healthy loamy soil which is really good for farming. They have also started to grow a lot of other varieties aside from the usual island fare of watermelons and Maldivian chilies!

Isdhoo
As one of the biggest islands in the Maldives, we had to travel from one place to the other in a van. No way am I going to walk in the hot sun and get baked when I can sit in a car! Lol

We had to lug around our stuff from one school to another as the island is politically divided into 2 groups. I don’t know how the fight started but as of recent political history, but they have 2 island councils, 2 schools (until the 12th standard, mind you!) and 2 different characteristics……well, from our recruitment point of view. Amazing!

(we had lunch in this cafe -- had a plate of mixed fried noodles)

As the island is slowly becoming more and more developed, traditional houses like these can be seen alongside the more modern types like the other one.



The house reef enclosing the 2 islands is so immense! One of the biggest I have seen so far. On our way out from Isdhoo, it was already late afternoon and the sun’s reflection on the water surface was blinding our speedboat driver and oooppsss……… we got stuck on top of a coral formation! The guys had to dive in and get us out…….I started calculating how far we were from the jetty and whether I can swim that far! But hey, no worries……the guys were pro, we were out in about 10 minutes!

Comments

Four-eyed-missy said…
Bonangskie, sarap naman ng work mo! You get to go deep into the Maldivian islands and see the culture. Baon ka lang ng galon-galon na sunblock hahaha. Wala bang mga NGO dyan?
Bonangskie said…
@ZJ, hay naku minsan masarap minsan naman nakakabanas! hehehe yes, there are NGOs naman dito but I think they don't have longevity...lol ang bibilis magchange ng utak ng mga tao dito! But there are a lot of Pinoys attached to the UN and its other agencies like UNDP....they have good packages kc mostly on family status so even the spouses have yearly tickets.

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