Among the waves...

I am a Maldivian. I have never surfed in the open water in the Maldives. I have never had a diving trip in the coral reefs that surround the tiny islands. I cannot believe how much I have been missing out on.

Having taken a trip to Byron Bay recently, and staying at a backpackers hostel, I got the chance to meet quite a few people from different countries. And every time I tell them that I am from the Maldives, people find it exotic and also surprised that I had never engaged in any of these water sports.

Surfing and diving were never really part of the Maldivian lifestyle. My friend who is from Coffs Harbour was surprised when I told her this and said that they actually went surfing as part of school sport. Even snokelling, with the the islands being surrounded by coral reefs, still seem like a luxury activity I would have to pay for. Snorkelling might have been done by a fishermen but this is hardly a job for a girl so that was never a part of our lives, to be done at our whim either.

Today, I am quite sure that if I decided to go surfing in Male', I will be met with disapproval from my Dad and Grandma. Surfing is not quite what you call respectable in Maldives, it being reserved as an activity for tourists and it has a stigma attached to it when locals do it. Especially girls.

I was excitedly telling my cousin in Maldives about the surfing lesson I had, and how much I wanted to surf back at home, but even she was telling me about how things in Australia and Maldives would be different, and a girl going out to surf where there was 'a lot of boys' would not be acceptable. Surfing is just not part of the lifestyle, and definitely not to be taken part by a girl.
It would be more appropriate for me to go to one of the tourist resorts (similar to snorkelling) and away from the public eye, as opposed to going for an evening surf on the island where I grew up in. It's just the way things are, as much as I think it is unfair.