WORLD CHOCOLATE DAY HANGOVER
Yes, we still got the Maldivian buzz after a glorious last week in Sun Siyam Iru Fushi in the island of Medhafushi, Maldives.
Before moving to Dubai in 2004, we were born and raised in an archipelago of 7,100 islands, and so we have seen our fair share of incredible islands and jaw-dropping beaches. However, the far-spread, low-lying islands of Maldives were something else! Tranquil, turquoise waters mesmerized, and the islands seen from the plane looked like geode rocks.
It was a nirvana for chocoholics from morning….
.. until evening.
And in between the workshops, we found ourselves simply falling in love with the island and the most gracious and hospitable Sun Siyam Iru Fushi staff. Some of them have been there for four, six, nine years, while others came back after years outside of the island. What an inspiration. Luchie and I found ourselves re-invigorated to assess the level of hospitality we give at Co Chocolat. Though we are in manufacturing, the other half our business is hosting guests, too. With almost 300 reviews in three years, we enjoy an exhilirating 4.9-star rating in Google Reviews now, but can we maintain this high a standard for the next five years? Ten years?
In my teens when I started earning and saving some money working in our own catering business, I discovered the bliss of a spa; aromatic oils, deep-kneading massages and the joy of quiet, away from all the worries of this world. Maybe heaven is something like this? Luchie and I are so ever grateful that for some hours in Iru Fushi last week, we had a small piece of that heaven through their award-winning Thalgo Spa. They even have a Chocolate Massage!
For accommodations we lived in a villa with a private pool and private access to the beach. The floating breakfast was a real treat. Maybe if we pray reaaaally hard enough, next time we’ll get the water villas! 😊 Collab or not. #workhardplayhard #prayharder
In those six days, I walked barefoot everywhere which was mostly fine sand or wooden planks. My flat feet had never been as soft nor as clean. The calluses were naturally scrubbed by sugar-like sand. I imagined the earth’s energy passing through the soles of my feet, reaching my heart and from there emanate happiness. #earthing #grounding
I have to mention now the Kids ‘ Club which was such a delightful feature of the resort. Although we absolutely love doing things with my daughter Khadeejah, it was just excellent that Sun Siyam Iru Fushi had an amazing Kids’ Club where kids can be dropped off for hours (and hours!) and they’d have activities of their own. They were supervised by Diva, Leah and Nancy who didn’t just babysit. They had games with them at the beach. They had their own evening of kiddie disco, kiddie karaoke aside from arts and crafts during the day. Small kids could enjoy the mini-pool too in the club itself. Because of this, we were able to do some hours of snorkelling and grown-ups-only activities.
We also went on a 2-hour “Lucky Dolphin Trip” searching for..(what else)... dolphins! Luckily, we found some 7 to 8 small gray-ish ones who swam beside and to the rhythm of our roaring boat about forty minutes out in the open sea. There was even one dolphin who made a triple turn in the air out of nowhere. That was 2 or 3 seconds of pure magic! We caught him/her because we put our phones down on that trip, and decided to just stare out in the sea. We said let's commit whatever we will experience to our memory, not the phone's memory this time.
On our last morning in the island, a small friendly light gray shark, around 2 feet long, waded on the beach just 2 meters away from us. The moment we moved, it got scared and swam away. These very timid sharks are generally not aggressive and can be spotted in many areas of the island along with stingrays and reef fish. Here’re some of them:
When we started our cacao journey in 2016, we really didn’t think much about where this enterprise would lead us. We just wanted to eat healthy chocolates. Now if I were to talk to the Iman and Luchie of 2016, this is what I would probably tell them: In as much as your future journey will be laden with challenges, they will be laden too with life-long friendships and extraordinary memories. You’ll experience new islands beyond your 7,100 along the way. You’ll create extraordinary memories you never even dreamed of maybe because you deserve it. And even if you feel you don’t, you STILL will be blessed because you do have the Best Provider.
To our gentle readers, stay optimistic and I hope we inspire you with this little adventure of ours. Eat well, pray well, love well. And put on lots of sunscreen.
Until the next adventure!