Gan, Maldives (by Gary)

We hadn’t planned on going to the Maldives, a nation comprising 162 coral atolls encircled by 1192 tiny islands.  Not terribly yacht friendly is the reputation.  A cruising permit costs around a US$1,000, which didn’t seem great value, particularly because we’d heard that the over 100 tourist resorts - scattered through the prettiest, most sheltered locations - make it clear they do not want yachts parked out front.

But the passage south from Sri Lanka is notorious for light wind/no wind, and it seemed as if a refuelling stop would be good.  So when we heard that a much cheaper 3 day or slightly more expensive one week option was possible in the southern most island of the southern most atoll we went for it.  This is what brought us to the island of Gan, Addu Atoll.

And what a surprise it has been!  The town (Addu City!) is just delightful.  It is easily the cleanest, tidiest, calmest place we have seen in all of Asia.  No touts, no garbage, no stink of effluent, no suicidal traffic, no press of humanity wanting to make a withdrawal from us, the walking ATMs.  Just equatorial peace and tranquility.

Gan is typical of islands surrounding atolls, it is tiny (2.25 km²), flat and barely above sea level – the Maldives is reputedly the flattest nation on earth, with a maximum elevation of 2.3m.

Easily the most bike friendly place since Cairns Qld – we rode everywhere, even at night. 

Gan is the site of a former British navy and airforce base – first established during WW2 the British only withdrew in 1976.  Military’s barracks, officer housing, mess halls and godowns still survive.  Most have been recycled for other purposes – including for a budget resort.  The airfield is now an international airport supporting the tourist industry – by far the most important sector of the Maldivian economy.

A series of causeways (another legacy of the British) link the four most populated islands of Addu Atoll together.  

The backstreets of Addu City (pop. about 30,000) are a fascinating maize of narrow, crushed coral laneways lined with little houses and walled gardens – many constructed of coral rock.

The CBD of Addu City is a bit hard to pick – left above is the ‘high rise’ section.  Taken early morning, it was mostly deserted as are most of the town’s cafes and restaurants.

Everywhere around town are these amazing steel framed public seating areas, but in the heat of the day they are deserted!

But come the cool of late afternoon the town comes alive!

The towns cafes and restaurants fill up ...

... the public seating is suddenly near capacity...

... and the footpaths become the locus of fierce competitions.

But just in case you think it’s all tropical paradise – think again.  Civil unrest often bubbles just below the surface in the Maldives.  Just weeks before we arrived the democratically elected government was toppled by a police supported coup.  The community of Addu City was so incensed they rioted, torching the city’s several police stations and some other public buildings.

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