Safarnamay by Sadia

  It is amazing to see schools of bright fish swimming through corals and reefs in clear waters on National Geographic but to feel a big gray fish swim underneath your legs or couple dozen tiny fish fluttering their little fins in front of your eyes is something else! A rare blend of anticipation and happiness that defines all the first experiences! That is how I was feeling when I opened my eyes underwater! A whole new world!   It is a sunny day! A day to soak in waters, take pictures, wander, and explore! Everyone is out today. On such a gleaming day when pools are abuzz and people are cheery, all I can think is our upcoming PCR which is scheduled at 3:30. Besides, our snorkeling trip is looming in the air as well. Kids are excited while I am praying to get over with it safely! We collect snorkeling gears from sports center and walk towards the boat. There are few other families and couple of men. Our coach from yesterday ‘Attu’ is there, he welcomes us aboard and intr...

When waves gush toward you swooshing and squirting and you see grayish water turning into teal foam, your heart fills with gratitude and joy! You walk on oak white sands and ponder, what else can be more beautiful but Nature never ceases to surprise! Every place has its own charm; every aspect of Nature is mesmerizing in its own way! Who knew that I will be devouring hot and crispy Aaloo paratha on my second day in Maldives #homeawayfromhome. It is a layered flatbread stuffed with potatoes, shallow fried to golden perfection. In Pakistan folks prefer to have a bowl of yoghurt with these parathas but here they are served with spicy, sweet pea curry. Though it's not near to the taste I prefer but the sheer surprise of having them in Maldives has enhanced the flavor.  I am loving the food here. Unlike hotel food, which is usually lukewarm and bland, whatever I ate so far is fresh and flavorful! Yet it is our second day here, let us see how it goes! Breakfast is finished and now we a...

    It’s our first morning here and  what a gorgeous morning it is! Overcast sky, uplifting wind, downpour to drizzle and drizzle to downpour! We as a family love rain. Partly for living in KSA where rain is rare and mainly being from Pakistan where rain is heralded with excitement and celebrated with special snacks. It always reminds me of a lovely rainy day in Hyderabad. It was a friend’s wedding and we drove all the way from Daharki to Hyderabad to attend. It was our first time to the city, so we thought to spend a day in exploring and doing little shopping. On the day of wedding, we were awoken by the sound of drizzling. Wherever we went shops were either closed or with half down shutters. We asked a guy that is there a local holiday? He replied, “It’s Hyderabad and it’s raining. Customers come every day, but rain doesn’t, so we don’t want to waste the moment.” Shopping was out of the options, so we decided to vibe with the tribe and enjoy the rain! Markets were...

Only few minutes had passed since we reached our hotel and I already regretted coming to Maldives! It all happened when we were sipping tropical drinks while reclining on comfortable, hip sofas of vibrant hotel lounge and our attendant Alka, while going through our papers casually said, “So you have one PCR before leaving which is required by Saudi government and two are part of hotel procedure!!!” What??? I could not believe my ears, so I asked her to clear what she meant by that and there came the shocking news…all the people traveling from South Asian countries were supposed to do two PCR tests. I was totally taken a back. Name PCR is synonymous to terror for me. I’m awfully scared of the test, the one we did in Pakistan was already an ordeal and I was having tough time to convince myself for the upcoming PCR looming over our heads in two weeks ‘time. And here we were with two more PCRs!!! Tranquil, turquoise waters of Republic of Maldives welcome you the moment you come out of ...

  The bird’s eye view of Maldives you get from your plane is something else! An array of enchanting ombre` spheres tinged with emerald and ivory surrounded by blue waters, mesmerizes you to the core! Plane descends and you realize that these magical spheres are  atolls  A string of pearls scattered over the deep blue Indian Ocean! While coming from Colombo to Male, it was just an hour’s journey. Passengers have taken their share of sleep in the first flight and now everybody was either chit chatting or busy being busy while waiting for plane to land. COVID has heightened the presence of incertitude in our lives to the next level! To people living abroad, air travels become a routine over the years. Security check, immigration, custom clearance, these terms might sound intimidating but for frequent travelers its mere patterns. However, under current circumstances where things are so transient that every other day you are getting a different piece of news, people ar...

When Air Bus 330 was sailing as low in the air that we could see swinging trees and lush fields with streams and river flowing through them, a word appeared on the screens ‘Ayubowan’! Moments later when we were off boarding the plane, I enquired our lovely host Wayomi who had dark kohl rimmed eyes, about the meaning of the word. She replied in her soft voice, “May you be blessed with long life!” I just fell in love with the word! One word with such pragmatic meaning! We had a connecting flight from Colombo to Male. All the passengers were from Pakistan. There were two categories going to Male; families and bachelors, but destination was same; Saudi Arabia!  It was as strange to see so many people from so many diverse backgrounds, striving and struggling to reach the place they call home, as it was to see the indifferent and inconsiderate attitude of Saudi government towards her residents. There would be many for whom it is not an easy feast to spend two weeks in Maldives or...