Still dreaming of my lovely date with Oksana yesterday, I had to rise early today unless I wanted to pay $50+ for a speedboat to Male instead of the local ferry for less than $2. If only I could spend another day here, better yet, alongside Oksana. A refreshing thing about Maafushi, unlike many other tropical islands, is that there are no dogs or roosters. Today I had another goal in mind: find a dentist and get some teeth worked on. For a long time I've had Thailand on my radar for both dental work and hair restoration surgery, but that means I'd have to plan another trip. With my final sights of Maafushi I boarded the ferry at 8 AM toward the hustle and bustle of Male.
How the hell do they fit 100,000+ people and just about as many motor scooters into such a tiny atoll? Ever since my first trip to Norfolk Island, I make it a point of photographing Norfolk pines around the world. Here in Male there's a split Norfolk pine.
With several hours left in this magnificent paradise, it was time to get my teeth worked on. Watching my legs as scooters whiz by, I found the office of Dr. Sasheeth Nair. A CouchSurfer here in Male advised me to ensure my dentist is Indian. "If he's Maldivian, run the other way" he said. Dr. Nair, who is from India and did his training in Europe, agreed to work on my teeth but I had to come back two hours later. With the steaming heat, it was nice to step into air conditioning and get a coffee. Outside is a view of the under-construction bridge that will connect Male and Hulhumale.
After sitting in the dentist chair for more than an hour, I had three front teeth fixed for slightly under US$200. Fixing one tooth in Australia and in the US would cost at least $200. With my bottom front teeth smooth once again, I went for one final walk round Male. I called in at a shop for some cardamom tea and then walked toward the Friday Mosque.
By late afternoon, it was time to take the ferry to Hulhumale to grab a final Maldivian geocache and watch one final Maldivian sunset. I'll sure miss this lovely paradise, and I'm still dreaming of my time with Oksana. Another fabulous journey is in the books, and from on and on, I shall be dreaming of sun, sand, and sea.
