Maldives

I turned 29 this year eek!!  George asked me what I wanted for my birthday and I told him to plan a surprise trip for me.  Little did I know he was planning to put a big check on my bucket list.  June 20 I woke up a little bit older but very excited.  George had packed my suitcase for me (scary) and refused to tell me what type of clothing I should wear to the airport.  I knew it would be someplace cool because George is the king of surprises but I never dreamed of what was around the corner.  We got to the Bangalore Airport and he handed me my ticket.  I looked down and saw the ticket was to the Maldives and screamed.  After waiting at the airport due to an expected "unexpected delay" by Air India (worst airline in the world) we finally made it to Male, the capital of Maldives.  Once in Male we had to take a water taxi to Kuredo Island where we would be staying.  The water taxi was an experience in and of itself.  It was a tiny plane that landed on the water.  The pilots wore shorts and flip flops and one sat on top of the luggage since it was a packed flight.  Flying over the Maldives you could see all the tiny islands with crystal clear blue lagoons stretching across the deep blue ocean.  As we were landing it was absolutely breathtaking.  I was a little scared when it came time to land but it was actually much smoother than normal ground landings.  The only difference was when we touched down on the water, the pilot sitting on the luggage opened the boarding door while the plane was still in motion and stood on the base of the plane.

As we deboarded the plane we were greeted with music and cocktails.  We finished watching the sunset, ate way too much food, and maybe pretended like it was my 21st birthday.  The next couple of days were filled with naps on the pristine beaches, snorkeling, and eating and drinking.  I can't describe how beautiful it was.  I can only say that it didn't seem real and was a great way to spend my 29th birthday!!