This morning, we noticed the Hulhumale ferry terminal was recently decorated with lots and lots of flags. When we got to Male, there were more flags out than yesterday. There were flags of assorted sizes everywhere as far as we could see! We were right on time to the dive shop. The day was overcast and gloomy, and it was raining. There was also quite a bit of wind. We sat in the shop until after 1000, when a truck finally pulled up and we all helped to load the gear on the truck. We walked down the road for a few blocks, where the truck was waiting to be unloaded onto a boat tied to the sea wall.

The first dive site turned out to be very close to the resort we had been rejected from yesterday. The ride out there was rocky and wet from the rain and rough seas. The site is called Magivi Rock. We all geared up and hopped in. After much arguing and insisting, the dive master relented and gave Christi 10 kilos of weight. Christi’s allergies had mildly bothered her all day yesterday, and still continued to bother her this morning. As expected, it was a very slow descent because of the difficulty clearing her ears.

The primary dive site is actually a rock 90 feet under the water, then from the rock you head up a gentle slope with coral up to the surface. The site is really nice. The visibility wasn’t South Pacific phenomenal, but it was pretty good. Definitely better than the Andamans. As soon as we started to descend, we could see there were thousands of little blue fish with sideways looking fins, oddly enough called redtooth triggerfish. Later the dive leader told us they were juveniles, probably only recently hatched.

Down at the bottom, we saw a very large multi-colored triggerfish, a large tuna, and a crayfish or slipper lobster right off the bat. We also saw some grouper, in more of the natural brown tones with some brighter colors amongst the brown. As we rounded the corner to the other side of the rock, we saw an enormous school of blue lined snapper. We have seen these fish all over, but never knew their name before.

There was also a school of small silvery fish swimming in very tight formation. There were a lot of anemones around, and this variety is a little different than any we have seen before, but of course, just as graceful and pretty. The little orange clownfish hovering around it are called Maldives amenonefish. We also saw a few black eyed rabbit fish and a guineafowl puffer.

We are pleased to report that the dive guide took us at a very slow speed, so we had plenty of time to look in the nooks and crannies, where we saw lionfish and eels. There are a wide variety of corals, including fan coral, daisy coral, mushroom coral, and many more. The coral was colorful, but not as colorful as we have seen some other places.

With all the wind, it was much colder out of the water than in. The dive company gave us some cookies and we froze as we waited for enough time to tick by so we could get back in the nice, warm water. Christi had felt like she was over weighted with 10 kilos and dropped down to 8 for the next dive, which got some serious “I told you so”s from the professionals on board.

The second dive site was even closer to where Kosmos was anchored and is called Banana Reef. This was a wall and another nice site. Once again, Christi had a very hard time with her ears. We saw quite a few batfish and grouper. We also saw a few banner fish that have the funny nodules in their head.

We saw a couple tuna. The highlight was a large Napoleon Wrasse swimming alongside a large eel. We rarely see eels out of their holes, so this odd swimming pair was quite an amazing site. We saw a few more eels in their holes, a red pincushion starfish, and one of those caterpillar looking sea slugs in purple, a color we have not seen before. We also saw a new type of surgeonfish that we couldn’t find in our fish book that has bright yellow accents. There were quite a few oriental sweetlips and lots of little red fish. We think the red fish are soldierfish, but they could be rabbit fish, or maybe some of both. We see them lots of places, too, and there are generally a couple of similar varieties swimming together. And a unicorn fish. And a young adult yellow box fish, which is olive in color.

Once again, there was a large variety of coral and some nice colors. Unfortunately, it was a short dive. It took Christi forever to get down, then Mike ran out of air very quickly, and since we all stuck together, we weren’t under very long. After we came up, the others saw an octopus hiding in a niche in the wall, and we have put in the picture because it is cool. We think he looks like Fat Albert’s friend from that angle. We included a couple more cool shots, one of an interesting six pointed starfish and one of Johan swimming alongside a large fish that we never identified.

Before and in between the dives, we had chatted with two different men who did not know one another, Peter and Johan. Both were taking photos, and when we asked them if we could get copies of their photos, Johan invited us back to his apartment for a picture sharing party. Johan has a nice apartment in one of the narrow “high rises” on the west side of the island. His windows overlook the bay where we waited for customs, and from the rooftop patio we could see almost all of Male. From up high, it was clear that our original assessment that the city is jam packed was accurate. Virtually every square inch that is not a road or a park has a building of some sort on it. There are no American suburbia type houses with big yards, that is for sure! And we were also right about the construction. We could see the construction crews working away on the new buildings.

It turns out the two men have a lot in common. Both do international aid work and both are diving enthusiasts. They are both fascinating to talk to. Both have worked both with the poorest people in the world and in the middle of war zones, sometimes both, and have a different perspective on life than anyone else we have ever talked to. Somehow our quick visit turned into a late night in what seemed like the blink of an eye. We reluctantly left shortly after 2300 (11:00 pm) only because we were worried the ferry might stop at midnight. The bad news is that as the night wore on, it was clear to Christi that she had an ear infection.

By the way, as you may have guessed, the photos in this post are compliments of Peter and Johan. And, while we are on the topic, Mike took several of the photos in the last couple of posts. And, we forgot to mention that Omar took most of the photos in the Hong Kong posts and many of the photos featured in our Singapore posts. Thanks to everyone who helps with the photos!