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I’m not one for new year’s resolutions, but I do have one ritual I try to make every January: a trip to the Maldives. People are usually still on holiday, so there’s less pressure to respond to emails straight away, and less guilt involved when you ignore them as you sip on a G&T at noon. And while there are several drinks involved, I consider this Maldives getaway an almost-spiritual pilgrimage. It’s hard not to be grateful for whatever has happened to bring you to this moment in your life when you’re staring at an unending expanse of ocean in a thousand different shades of blue, the wind in your hair, your shoes a distant memory.
To be fair, the time I was at Kudadoo Private Island, I was also very grateful for the Japanese bathtub and impressive wine cellar; at Soneva Fushi, it was the retractable roof that opened to the starry sky and the Waste to Wealth recycling centre, an ambitious project that proves just how responsible and mindful travel brands can be, even in this dazzlingly indulgent part of the world. At the Four Seasons Landaa Giraavaru, I was most thankful for the sublime spa experience that took place over three hours, outdoors, in the moonlight, surrounded by foliage. The diving and snorkelling were magnificent at the Park Hyatt Hadahaa. And when I spent my birthday at Gili Lankanfushi, I felt especially appreciative for signs that the pieces of my life were slowly starting to come back together. (They fell apart again soon after, but one must remember the good moments.)
