To be honest, I got a little jealous at my hosts.
They went snorkeling every day, even they got a really bad sunburn on their calves (no, I am truely no jealous about that!), but later they showed us some pictures, they took under water. Amazing how many beautiful, colourfull, funny fishes they saw down there....
I wish, I could have seen that live.....
But this paradise is in serious troubles!
Due to global warming over the last century, sea levels have risen about 20 centimetres (8 in); further rises of the ocean could threaten the existence of Maldives.
However, around 1970 the sea level there dropped 20-30 cm.In November 2008, President Mohamed Nasheed announced plans to look into purchasing new land in India, Sri Lanka, and Australia, due to his concerns about global warming and the possibility of much of the islands being inundated with water from rising sea levels. Current estimates place sea level rise at 59 cm by the year 2100. The purchase of land will be made from a fund generated by tourism. The President has explained his intentions, saying "We do not want to leave the Maldives, but we also do not want to be climate refugees living in tents for decades".
And because the water gets warmer and warmer, many corals and ocean life died and is dying still.
You can still see the damages under water that were caused on 26 December 2004, following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, the Maldives were devastated by a tsunami.
Only nine islands were reported to have escaped any flooding, while fifty-seven islands faced serious damage to critical infrastructure, fourteen islands had to be totally evacuated, and six islands were decimated.
A further twenty-one resort islands were forced to shut down due to serious damage. The total damage was estimated at over 400 million dollars or some 62% of the GDP.
A total of 108 people, including six foreigners, reportedly died in the tsunami. The destructive impact of the waves on the low-lying islands was mitigated by the fact there was no continental shelf or land mass upon which the waves could gain height. The tallest waves were reported 14 feet (4.3 m) high.
