14.059 Ceviche Wahoo!

Cycle 14 – Item 59

5 (Sun) March 2023

Ceviche Wahoo!

3.5

on MV Adora

-Gaafu Alifu Atoll, Maldives-

w DV and friends

Liveaboard in the Maldives (Day 9/10)

- Day -1 (14.050 Sea Bass Fillet)
- Day 1 (14.051 Blackened Roast Chicken)
- Day 2 (14.052 Mas Huni)
- Day 3 (14.053 Grilled Tuna)
- Day 4 (14.054 Stir-Fried Ramen Noodles)
- Day 5 (14.055 Tuna Sashimi)
- Day 6 (14.056 Buldak Hot Chicken Flavor Ramen)
- Day 7 (14.057 Beach BBQ)
- Day 8 (14.058 Roti with Smoked Tuna Curry)
- Day 9 (14.059 Ceviche Wahoo!)

In the Maldives. Here for my 2nd liveaboard. For 10 days, I’ll be on the MV Adora – same boat as my 1st experience (see previously 9.191 Grilled Beef Tenderloin) – sailing through the Deep South Atolls, diving from the boat, while I eat, drink (mostly drink), sleep, i.e., “live aboard” the boat.

CROSSING THE EQUATOR

Apparently, crossing the equator is a big deal, so much so that everyone was awakened at the crack of dawn to be on hand at the very moment.

On the bridge, a GPS monitor tracking the boat’s coordinates showed the exact moment – though, somewhat anticlimactically, it skipped from .0008 N to .0002 S.

The original itinerary had us crossing around 04:00, but an engine failure had delayed our departure last night, so by chance the crossing happened exactly at dawn.

Perhaps because I’ve been to the southern hemisphere on multiple occasions, including Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands, I wasn’t overly excited by the prospect, but I have to admit that it was fun when it happened.

BREAKFAST

In advance of the tiger shark dives scheduled for the afternoon, we got off the boat and had breakfast at a local restaurant on Fuvahmula island.

As previously noted, a hand chop to the forehead is the underwater signal to communicate “shark.” Though not codified as such, following up with a clawing motion = “tiger shark,” index fingers pointing up from either side of the forehead = “bull shark,” clenched fists on ears = “hammerhead shark,” extended index finger pressing into the neck (like a syringe) = “nurse shark.”

The funniest thing – after extended time on a boat, the first time back on land feels like the ground is swaying, sometimes resulting in a queasiness called “land sickness.” I felt it on the prior trip, not so much this time.

While picturesque from above, the lagoon itself was essentially a swamp.

Mood’Ige is a Maldivian restaurant, sorta, maybe.

Actually, I don’t know if it’s a restaurant in the standard sense. We were shuttled there from the harbor, about a 10-minute ride, nothing else in the immediate vicinity. No tourists on the island, except those passing through for the shark dives. And certainly no locals would ever eat there. Didn’t get a look at the menu. As yet no info on Google.

Exactly what tourists would imagine a Maldivian restaurant to look like, though I’m pretty sure that no actual local restaurant looks like this.

Disappointingly, the breakfast buffet consisted of bread, scrambled eggs, cheese, sausages, fresh fruit, coffee, juice – pretty much like on the boat. From a culinary perspective, I don’t understand the point.

DIVING

Dives 22-23 (this trip) / 177-178 (lifetime)

Highlight: Tiger Harbour – Fuvahmulah – Gnaviyani Atoll

The on-board briefing from the chief DM of Tiger Harbour.

Whereas tiger sharks are among the most aggressive sharks in the ocean (2nd only to the Great White), the famous tiger shark dive at Fuvahmulah is carefully controlled. Every hour, a dive master places a head of tuna in a pile of rocks situated at a shallow depth near the harbor opening, which attracts several tiger sharks that have long since come to rely on the tuna head as a regular feeding source. In a sense, the sharks have become domesticated.

I was reminded of the shark dive at Pacific Harbour in Fiji (see 10.189 Clouds in Sky), which was more intense.

In the video above, taken after the feeding session as we’re heading back to the boat, I observe with cool confidence a tiger shark swimming next to me in the open sea.

FISHING

Just before dinner, the crew caught a wahoo (see also 14.055 Tuna Sashimi). I happened to be on hand to capture the moment on video.

Wahoo is a fish aka Acanthocybium solandri, a member of the mackerel family. Commonly found in warm waters. Staple protein in many island cultures.