Male: where is it and how to get there?

ATThe view from the airplane window is breathtaking... The legend says that one night a huge scattering of stars fell into the waters of the Indian Ocean. At dawn, some of them surfaced. This is how the Maldives archipelago appeared, where today it is located Republic of Maldives with its capital Male. Looking, from a bird's eye view, at the fabulous and unrealistically beautiful islands scattered across the turquoise surface of the ocean, you involuntarily begin to believe in this legend. Where is Male located, how best to get to it and what is interesting about the smallest capital in the world?

Maldives archipelago and Male on the world map

The Maldives is an archipelago of volcanic origin, located in the Indian Ocean, southwest of India. The archipelago consists of 1200 islands grouped into 26 atolls.

Photos of the islands of the archipelago, taken from the board of an ordinary passenger airliner, are simply mesmerizing. They look like a fairy tale, like fantastic landscapes of a beautiful distant planet from another galaxy.

Returning to the topic, it must be said that although there are 1200 islands, only about 300 of them are inhabited. The largest island has a length of 7.8 km and a width of 3.4 km. Male Island, where the main part of the capital of the republic is located, covers an area of only 6.8 km².

To make it absolutely clear where the city of Male Maldives is located and what it is like in general just look at the world map.

Despite the small total area of all the islands, which is about 300 km², the Maldives are vast. The distance from the southern edge to the north is more than 800 km.

Republic of Maldives is the lowest (relative to sea level) country in the world. And its highest peak is also the lowest in the world. Sounds strange, but that's the way it is. And it is located ... about 2 m above sea level. Yes, that's right - only 2 meters above sea level!

If you live in an apartment building, then the neighbor above you is higher than the highest peak in the Maldives. Perhaps that is why it is necessary to hurry with their visit, because due to the rising level of the world ocean, the Republic may disappear from the map in a few decades.

How to get to the island city of Male?

Maldives - white beaches, turquoise water and coconut palms. If you think that such things for mere mortals are only available on postcards, in a retro version, and on desktop wallpapers, in a modern version, then read on - the Maldives is much closer than you think!

So we fly to the Maldives, which is almost the same as we fly to Male. After all, the main republican airport named after Ibrahim Nasir is located on the island of Hulule, which is located about a kilometer north of the capital. In fact, Khulile Island is an airstrip and a small complex of buildings serving Male airport. It is one of three airports in the world whose runway begins and ends almost in the water.

Direct flight Moscow Male is carried out by the airline Aeroflot. Considering how much to fly, and the travel time is about 9 hours, this choice will be optimal for all assiduous passengers. Air tickets Moscow Male economy class in two directions will cost around 37-45 thousand rubles.

However, if you don’t mind stretching your legs and wandering around the Duty Free shops at Abu Dhabi airport, then take advantage of the airline’s offer. "Etihad Airways. A one-way flight, taking into account landings and transfers, will be 14-16 hours, but you can taste excellent German beer and change the situation during the flight for 2-3 hours. In addition, a pleasant surprise awaits you - the cost of your ticket will decrease by 10-14 thousand rubles.

A Turkish airline also offers good deals with one short transfer in Istanbul. Turkish Airlines. There are interesting prices for flights from several companies. For example, Etihad Airways and "Srilankan Airlines» or Aeroflot and "Air France".

In general, there are plenty to choose from, and with a certain freedom of the time range, it is quite possible to find an adequate option. Of course, all prices are approximate and depend on the season, weather conditions and promotions for flights, but they are quite suitable in order to get your bearings.

A bit of history of the Republic of Maldives and the capital

It is believed that the Maldives was inhabited in the 5th century BC. The first settlers were Buddhists from Sri Lanka and southern India. Around 1100, the sultanates of the Didi dynasty began to rule here, which were in power until 1968. Initially, the islanders were followers of Buddhism, but under the rule of the sultans, the majority converted to Islam.

In the second half of the sixteenth century, the Portuguese (1558-1573) unsuccessfully tried to capture the Maldives, in the seventeenth century the Dutch tried again, but only the British managed to capture it. Since 1796, and formally since 1887, the Maldives became their protectorate.

In 1932, the country was again transformed into a sultanate, but under a British protectorate. In 1953 they were proclaimed a republic, but a year later they returned to the Sultanate again. The independence of the islands was obtained in 1965, and three years later Maldives became a republic again.

Male is one of the smallest capitals in the world. The city is also a commercial center, the seat of government, and the cultural center of the region. The city covers the entire territory of the island of the same name.

It is the most populous and noisiest island in the entire Maldives archipelago. The city is surrounded by a $136 million concrete breakwater built by the Japanese. This prevents the flooding of its territories by the Indian Ocean. The city was severely damaged in December 2004 by a tsunami triggered by the Indian Ocean earthquake. The waters of the ocean flooded almost two-thirds of it.

Administratively, the city is located in the southern part of the northern Male atoll. In addition to the island of the same name, the city borders include 3 more small islands - Villingili, Hulhumale and Hulhule.

What is interesting in the capital of the Maldives for tourists?

As a rule, the capital of the Maldives is an intermediate travel point for most tourists. But if you have 3-4 hours left, then it will not be superfluous to get acquainted with the main attractions of this city. Imagine that your trip to the Maldives has already begun…

And so, our plane landed at the airport on the island of Khulile ...

After arrival, we get off the plane. The temperature outside is +28°С — quite comfortable. Hotel representative meets us at the airport. Then a quick change of clothes, applying a cream with a high level of sun protection, and now we are already moving by ferry to Male. A ticket costs about 1 USD or 15 Maldivian Rufiyaas. Everything is perfectly organized. While we are buying tickets, our suitcases are taken to the deck. The water has an amazing turquoise color, as if someone tinted it. The ferry ride to Male takes about 10 minutes.

We have a full six hours to get to our hotel "Scuba Inn" on an island with a neutral name Omadu and we decide to get acquainted with the capital city.

Here comes the first mosque on our way, followed by the school and the parliament. The city is crowded and the traffic is heavy, so pedestrians should be very careful when crossing the street. Everywhere there are whole clouds of motorcyclists, although there are also enough cars.

We see Palace of Sultan Mohammed Shamsuddin IIIwhich today serves as the official residence of the President of the Republic. This blue and white building is slightly oriental. The flags are raised, which means that the president is in place. Next to the palace is a tower from which in the old days the sultans addressed the inhabitants.

Here we come across a completely ordinary and unremarkable building in our opinion. But it's not so simple - this is the tallest building in the capital! Go ahead. The sun started to shine a little. Do you like beer? Cold with a little white foam? We'll have to be patient - they don't sell alcohol here, they don't sell it at all. But there are many other pleasant drinks, but beer is waiting for you on the tourist islands.

Nearby is the oldest in the Maldives Hukuru Misky Mosque - Friday Mosquebuilt in 1658. Surprisingly, the material from which it is made is real coral.

The inner and outer walls are decorated with beautiful patterns and Arabic inscriptions. All doors and wooden details of the mosque are made of various expensive woods.

Next to the Friday Mosque is located old cemeterywhere the sultans and their families are buried. The tombstones are also made from coral blocks.

Then we move on National Museum, which was once the Sultan's Palace, which houses a large collection of exhibits, including ancient weapons that were used in battles against the Portuguese, Dutch and British.

Then we get into Sultan Park (Sultan Park), where today there is a satellite system that provides communications throughout the country. Very interesting trees with strange leaves and flowers grow in the park.

One is particularly impressive. This is a "tree of happiness" with a huge twisted trunk. Someone else calls it the "tree of desires", and who believes that it helps to return here again.

Finally, we come to the largest mosque in the Maldives - this good friday mosque. This gift from the sheikhs of Saudi Arabia is located on the territory of the Islamic center with a complex and long name Masjid al-Sultan Muhammad Tukurufanu al-Auzam. Next to the mosque, of course, is the minaret, which is visible from a considerable distance.

On the way we pass the place of memory of the victims of terrorism. Eight flags mean eight dead policemen.

There are no problems with shopping in Male. There is a pretty decent selection of shops offering all kinds of goods. You can always buy fresh produce at the local market, including a variety of fruits and vegetables.

It is also not a problem to buy fresh seafood at a special fish market. Male is a place where any fish is found and always in abundance. At the fish market, shopping is best done in the afternoon, when the fishermen return from their daily fishing trip. But today we will not buy "seafood", but just look at them.

We have already passed the fish market and finally we are approaching the pier, from where the boat should pick us up and take us to the island of Omadu. In general, we can get to the island by ferry. Travel time by ferry would be about 4 hours, the fare would be 30 USD. But we chose a boat or, as they say here, a speedboat. Twice as expensive, but much faster...

We still have 40 minutes and we spend them in a small cafe, somewhat reminiscent of McDonald's. By the way, the pier from which ferries and boats depart to the islands is located on the opposite side of the island, the one where ferries arrive from the airport. From there, to the desired pier, you can walk for 20 minutes or by taxi for 5 dollars.

But finally our boat arrives, we load and set sail. See you Male! Time flies unnoticed and here we are on the island of Omadu. The sun slowly sinks to the west and beautifully illuminates the coastal palm trees. We are starting a real Maldivian holiday!