Diving in the Banana Reef

My trip to the Maldives was a pure pleasure trip. I had decided on a good 5 days trip to explore the islands of this spectacular paradise. I’m someone who enjoys taking up adventures and unconventional routes but when it comes to water I usually back out. That was before I visited the Maldives. 

You see, I’m quite scared of water. I’m someone who usually starts panicking when the water level goes beyond my stomach and towards the chest. But everything changed after my trip to the Maldives. I had the ‘Arjun moment’ from ‘Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara’. This small vacation made a huge difference in my life, hence, this experience is all the more special to me. 



My research and the people I know had suggested that I visit the Banana Reef situated in the North Male Atoll at least once, even if it is for a few minutes. I did. At first, I thought that the place might have a lot of banana vegetation that’s why it had such a name. But later on, I came to know that it is actually the shape of the reef which is curved, resembling a banana in aerial view which has earned this place the name of ‘Banana Reef’. 

The grains of sand white has snow and crystal clear water make a picturesque landscape that you won’t be able to take your eyes off it. The place was such a beauty that I couldn’t resist taking a dive in the calm waters. Banana Reef has been an attraction not just for its beauty but also for its scuba diving experience. And it felt like the ocean was calling out to me as if telling me to explore its hidden secrets. 



And finally, even though I was very very scared I couldn’t help myself from signing up for Scuba Diving. The experience was exhilarating, to say the least. I summed up all my courage and dived inside the water, my body breaking the calm of the water’s surface and going deeper and deeper inside the water. My first diving experience was magical. It was nothing as I imagined it to be. 

At first, I panicked but slowly my mind and body took control and I calmed a bit. It was then that I saw the most phenomenal, almost fairytale-like vista hidden deep under the water. The colour, the shades, the shapes, the views; all so perfect and so beyond one’s imagination, it was just incredible.



There weren’t just colourful and vibrant corals, but equally jubilant species of fishes and sea creatures. Hidden under veil of the water, the creator has saved its beautiful creations from the eyes of the humans, unharmed and ever-protected by the mighty ocean. Species and creatures of marine-life that were unknown to me became my diving partners as I swimmed with different schools of fishes that had set out to to do their chores. 

The water was welcoming and life under it; breath-taking, literally. I had read somewhere that ocean holds a lot of treasure, and now I know that it truly does. I was stunned by the various fishes, their abodes and everything that I saw underwater. There is an entirely different world below the water’s pleasant and calm surface. I was quite overwhelmed by the diving experience and it took me quite some time to realize that I hadn’t just moved past my fear but also experienced one of the most divine experiences of my life.