The first stop was the Four Seasons at Kuda Huraa. We've chosen to stay at the Water Bungalow, where we have all privacy to ourselves in a raised structure above the clear Maldives waters and direct access to the water at the back of our bungalow! We stayed for 4 days and had 2 dives around there...I can still remember the diving instructor, as he was very nice, even though our diving skills were not that great yet. He was patient in helping and guiding us! Breakfast was delivered to our bungalow daily and we had outdoor breakfast in total privacy...it was really luxurious! There was a big glass panel in the bathroom as well! Just as I was thinking of taking a bath in privacy with no one being able to see, I saw a patrolling boat went pass one night and finally, have given up the idea! I've tried their spa as well! I need to take a little boat ride to another small island nearby for the spa facilities. It was great! I enjoyed the tranquility, as I was having the massage with the front part of the room opened up to the sea with unblocked view and when I lay my head down, it was another glass panel, where I can see fishes swimming underneath the room! So interesting!
On the fifth day, we've shifted to the Banyan Tree at Vabbinfaru for another 6 days! At Banyan Tree, there were only beachfront/seafront chalets with/without jacuzzi. We've chosen the seafront without jacuzzi! It was not as luxurious as the Four Seasons, but the priviliges that we've enjoyed was very good value for money. Why? On the first night, whilst having our dinner (full board facility), we find ourselves being ignored by the manager, apparently a French...he was anxiously serving the caucasians and was blatantly ignoring us Asians! Raymond asked me whether I was upset with the treatment and I said yes. So he asked to see the manager and complained about the "racist" treatment and we threatened for a refund to leave the resort, etc...the manager immediately went into a defensive mode and we asked to see the overall in-charge of the resort on this. He didn't know what to do, but to arrange for the meeting tomorrow, as the overall in-charge was out of town. What he did was to offer us a bottle of champagne and designated a particular waiter to serve us throughout our stay.
The next day, we're looking for activities and took a boat ride over to the Angsana Resort at Ihuru. Since both are sister resorts and there are frequent scheduled boat ride to and from both resorts, we can travel freely between the two! After going around a bit and then we return to Banyan Tree to see the overall in-charge, we were telling him how upset we were with the service, as Banyan Tree has always been a big name that i look forward to visiting and in the end, it was such a disaster when we arrived, etc...in order for him to makeup for the disappointment, he threw in a free dinner boat trip with a bottle of champagne and 2 free dives during our stay! It was a very attractive offer and it was too good to resist! So we gave them a second chance and stayed on...in fact, the service by the local staff was very good, it's only that French manager who's pissed us off on the first night!
Banyan Tree was crowded with Singaporeans (no doubt, as it has a Singaporean boss), so I've decided to head over to Angsana for the spa treat! It was much nicer, as there wasn't that many people and I can enjoy the calmness over there! Frankly, I didn't really like the Angsana chalets, as they look very ordinary...I wouldn't spend that kind of money to stay there...hehe...throughout that 5 nights, we were feeding sharks almost every night at the jetty, snorkelling or swimming during the day!
It was such a relaxing trip...one morning, I woke up to see the sun rise! So peaceful and calm...you can really get lost in a paradise over there...the flip side of it is really, there isn't much to do and we were on the verge of getting bored of doing nothing...so that 10 days was a nice break, but still, I prefer city life, which is more vibrant and happening...hehe!
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