MC Travel Special | A nature walk in the Maldives

The Maldives is an archipelago of 1,190 islands in the Indian Ocean. (All photos courtesy Kalpana Sunder)

The sea plane flies over ring-shaped coral atolls and a sea in 50 shades of blue, from cerulean to aquamarine, silhouetted against an indigo sky, before it splashes down on the water, close to a long island that is blanketed in tropical greenery. The hotel’s staff is lined up at the jetty to greet us, to the beating of traditional drums, and we walk along the powdery sand to my villa by the sea with a plunge pool at the back fringed by palm trees. The only sound is the lapping of waves and the clamour of the strong winds.

It is my second trip to the Maldives - this archipelago of 1,190 islands in the Indian Ocean - and I am at the Atmosphere Kanifushi Resort, located in the stunning Lhaviyani Atoll. The 2 km long island has tropical rainforests with canopies, ferns and fruit bats and birds flitting through the branches, with mangroves and lagoons. What usually comes to mind when you think of the Maldives is the diversity of marine life, but as we cycle through the frangipani-scented paths along the beaches the next few days, I want to explore the lush vegetation also, and the resort is happy to depute their security officer Amrit Raj, who is a veritable font of information and a great guide.

Raj explains that most wetter islands have large tracts of rainforests and a large part of what we see here is exotic species, introduced from other parts of the world. He tells me that on some very fertile islands they even grow citrus fruits and pineapples. Coconut palms are the most common trees that one sees in the Maldives, and they play an important role in the food of the Maldivians. Coconut is used in curries, sweets, and desserts. The syrup from flowers is made into coconut molasses. The husk is used for making ropes and fibres used in rigging in ships. The wood is also used for house and boat building.

Huge travellers’ palms line the path, with fan shaped leaves sprouting from the stem. “These were introduced on the island as decorative plants and collect a lot of rainwater in their stems and can help a thirsty traveller and therefore their name,” he explains. “The white flowers take almost 15 to 20 years to bloom.” Another early coloniser of the Maldives which is found all along the beach front is the clumps of pale green sea lettuce that grows well in sandy soils and is tolerant to salinity. “We used to use this for building traditional homes in the Maldives. The leaf juice is used to alleviate painful swellings and a few drops of juice extracted from the seeds are added to the eyes, to reduce reddening,” he says.

We walk past the screw pine or the pandanus, palm-like trees with drooping leaves and aerial prop roots that are branched and hold the tree in sandy soil, whose leaves are used by the Maldivians to make mats and baskets. “They are sturdy trees, resistant to the salt spray or the strong winds. This is the tree that helps us in famine or scarcity, as the fruit, the root, the stem everything can be used. We even make refreshing juice from it.” Raj adds.

Suddenly Raj darts into a small grove and plucks a speckled, pale green fruit and holds it up to us,” Locally known as Ahivah, Noni fruit also called the East Indian mulberry, is very common in the islands of Maldives. Traditionally, Noni fruit was used by Polynesians to counter weakness and promote energy. “Noni is now a super food around the world, known for its anti-cancer and tumor-fighting  properties. But because of its unpleasant smell, locals avoid eating it,” he says.

Walking along the beach, passing Indian almond trees, and a 100-year-old banyan tree with aerial roots and a swing on one of its branches. Raj takes us through a dense part of the jungle and shows us the unique Mangrove apple that looks like a persimmon, also called Kulha locally. “The leaves and the fruit are edible and tastes like cheese - the kids love it,” says Raj.

Many iron wood trees, called Kuredhi locally, grow along our path. This is the favourite timber here as it is very hard, heavy, strong and durable and resistant to wood-boring molluscs and termites. “We use it for boat building, making furniture, especially for the strong beams and pegs to hold together planks and to make toys and handicrafts,” explains Raj. I marvel at how nature survives in the most difficult environments – like monsoon winds and saline soils. There are also Portia trees with dense umbrella like crowns that are valuable coastal windbreaks.  Because of their high resistance to wind and ability to grow well in sandy, saline soils, this tree is popularly known as a ‘living fence.’ The wood is also used to building boats.

“Another tree that grows well on our islands is bread fruit and we eat it in various ways - raw, boiled steamed or roasted. It can be made into a sweet, made into chips and boiled breadfruit with tuna is one of our favourites,” he says.

Omnipresent in the Maldives is the king coconut, in fact we were greeted with fresh king coconut water when we arrived. Our paths are also lined by frangipani and fragrant, bright yellow beach hibiscus and gardenia. My favourite part of the walk is when Raj shows us the fleshy octopus plant, an evergreen shrub, also called the Beach heliotrope, with tiny white flowers. He holds clumps in his hand to show us that this plant really looks just like an octopus, and is commonly found on the sand and rocky coral slopes. It can grow really close to the sea, even if the waves batter its roots.

By the end of the walk, I appreciate the various aspects of life in the Maldives- it’s not only about the ocean but also what grows resiliently on land and sustains the locals. Raj has a surprise at the end of the walk arranged by the resort. I get to plant a palm sapling near the shore with a small wooden board that has my name - a fitting end to my tryst with nature here.