June 2019 |OxfordshireLimitedEdition| 177M
aldivianfarmerAlicutsopenaheavy,
juicywatermelonfromhisplotof
land,proudlypresentinguseachwith
aslice,juicedripping,stillwarmfrom
thesun.
Standingonhissmallfarm
inMeedhoo,anislandwithintheAdduAtoll,the
southernmostgroupofislandsintheMaldives–nextstop
Antarctica–youcouldbeamillionmilesawayfromthe
luxuriousfive-starresortscompletewithpicturepostcard
whitebeaches,aquaticlagoons,over-watervillasand
swayingcoconutpalmssynonymouswiththeseislands.
Walkingpastacorrugatedshack,whichdoublesashis
shed,Aliproudlyshowsushisfarm,whichlooksabitlikea
hugeallotment.
Watermelonsandhoneydewsareripeningonthe
groundinthesun,manyofwhichservethediscerning
clientsatthenearbydeluxeShangri-La’sVillingiliResort
&SpaonneighbouringVillingiliIsland.Aliisoneof 50
farmersonMeedhoowhohavehelpedformaco-operative
tocleanuptheirlandandmakeitmoreproductive,in
partnershipwiththeShangri-Lagroup,andtouristsare
nowbeingofferedthechancetoseehowthispartnershipisworkinginanewfarm-to-plateexperience.Sincethetourist
boomofthe 1970 s,hotel-islands(there’sonlyoneresort
hotelorcomplexperislandintheMaldives)wereoriginally
developedwiththeaimofkeepingWesternvisitors
separatedfromtheMuslimlocalities.
Buttrendsarechangingand,despitethecontinuing
politicalunrestofthisnation,touristsaregrowingmore
curiousaboutlocalcommunitiesandtheircultures,seeking
moreauthentictravelexperiences.
ThelocationofShangri-La’sVillingiliResortisnotonly
idealfortheluxuriousfly-and-flopbreak,wheretouristscan
boastthatthey’vecrossedtheEquator,spottedturtles,seen
mantaraysandprolificpodsofspinnerdolphinsorenjoyed
aroundofgolf,butbeingclosetotheotherislandswhich
formtheAdduAtollalsoallowseasyaccesstoaninsight
intolocallife.
It’saslightlylongerjourneytogetthere,asyouhaveto
takea 70 - minuteflightfromthecapitalMaletotheisland
ofGan,formerlyamajormilitarybasefortheBritisharmy
duringtheSecondWorldWar.Ganisconnectedbya 17 -
milecausewaytothreeotherislandsintheatoll,makingit
theMaldives’largestlandmass.
FromGan,it’sa 10 - minuteboatridetoVillingili,whichTRAVEL