 First night wearing every single one of our woolly clothes! So after a lunch of curried fish intestine, rice, onion omelette and 3 bananas I feel ready to tackle the back log of blogging.... I have tried to upload this blog three times now and computer gods hate me so much the internet crashes each time i'm ready to hit publish. We’re all back in Addu and what a time we had! So many firsts for Hasna, Sharu-u and Sarey – first long haul flight (the novelty waned rapidly and by the Doha – Seoul flight the ‘are we nearly there yet?’ questions began to come out – all now hate long plane journeys), first escalator – going up and down them helped pass the four hours in Qatar airport, first time being in air cold enough to see your breath (check out Sarey in his coat!!), first bus ride that lasted for three hours and we had still not reached the end of the road and of course the hills and mountains. Highest point in the Maldives being 2.3m!  Fun, food and photos in the accreditation office Talking of firsts on the night we arrived while waiting to collect a few other countries before going to the hotel we bought a few bits and pieces to eat from the 7 Eleven including sea weed – yes a definite Howard purchase, Mum would be proud. Everyone gamely tried some and a variety of faces were pulled and comments made. However, by the end of the trip everyone was tucking into the packets of seaweed served regularly with lunch and dinner. A note on the food here – thankfully despite missing fresh tuna and ‘proper rice’ the food was deemed by all to be edible and even in some cases tasty (praise indeed!). Happily for the dustbin on the team, I had no problem and was glad the others would try everything once before a decision as to whether they liked it or not was made. Unfortunately, for Hasna she discovered that gummy rice dumplings with gooey unknowns in the middle were not to her taste while a bunch of sweet Korean ladies were doing all they could to entertain us in the accreditation office. She stood behind me and retched and gagged and pulled funny faces until it went down. Then as food was being plied on us grabbed a load of mentos to keep the ladies at bay!  Leisure Boats = super sonic stealth craft... So how to describe it all? Let’s go with Training Camp first. Five FISA coaches, headed by Brian Richardson, had been put in charge of the camp and each country taking part was split between these five coaches. The first day involved me putting on my rigging hat (never my favourite occupation). I have a feeling I looked like I was just pulling numbers out of thin air doing some crazy calculations and then pronouncing we were half a centimetre out or spot on to the bemused looks of Sarey and the other two. Because we were coming from coastal boats the Korean organising committee had rented a couple of ‘leisure boats’ for our use. One stable flat bottomed, complete with stabalisers that I immediately removed, and the other nicely keeled and a good bit wobblier than what we were used to. So having rigged the boats perfectly and finally found two sets of blades that actually managed to go down to 285cm we launched onto the water staying within range of the landing stage. All went well with everyone marvelling at the lightness of our leisure craft. That afternoon, Brian having announced to the whole camp that the weather and water conditions at Chungju were spectacular and perfect, the wind had picked up into a biting cross and the water was covered in lovely waves. So with strict instructions regarding the circulation pattern Sarey and I launched our two little athletes to go and complete their first ever 4km on a proper course. General heart attacks ensued as Sharu-u decided the dead lane was the right one to be in and convinced Hasna he was right. So Sarey and I ran round and cadged a lift with the Korean coach and Anna our lovely translator. We caught up with them and then really confused them by making them come off the course out of the way of all the others while they got the hang of the finer boats. The four km was completed with both boats being blown all over the shop – they felt better about it all when they heard all the other athletes complaining about what a horrendous outing it had been.        The hills are alive The rest of the week was lovely flat calm and sunny and we built steadily up to 16km spread over two sessions. I decided a three session day was in order and hauled everyone into the gym after lunch one day – next day I had two very tired athletes who were barely able to speak so thought it was best to just stick to the two sessions. Instead we went for a couple of walks up in the hills behind the accommodation and played basketball on the court when anyone felt they had more energy.  Some of the ladies in yellow The Koreans had organised a load of interpreters to help all the teams out and they were really lovely and exceptionally friendly. To Anna, Sol and Sura goes a huge thank you for sorting out telephones, washing powder, rigging equipment, basketballs and anything else 'Team Maldivou' required. By the end of our stay 'Team Maldivou' had created quite a name for ourselves for not only causing ‘minor’ issues such as having organised nothing to decorate our blades with – stickers had to be ordered in the last couple of days (doing things at the last minute – never!) but for also being very smiley, friendly and outgoing. Sharu-u was a definite hit with all in yellow jackets holding court regularly even while getting on the water for racing.....! We tease him lots, there were tears when we left.... Ok the rest of the tale I hope to put up tomorrow all things going my way! x Tash Add Comment Join Us.... 05/07/2012
 Do you want to be part of an amazing project where you can really make a difference to people's lives in a unique country? This is definitely not a gap year project or pay for volunteering - this is a job and we are looking for a really special person to drive the project forwards. If you have experience of teaching rowing (you do not need to be a good rower, we want inspiration not perspiration!), have spent time abroad, are independent and resourceful and most importantly looking for a challenge, then I would love to hear from you. Have a good look around this site and if you able to commit for a significant period of time (roughly six months) then please email me for more information. maldivesrowing@hotmail.co.uk I am really sorry but we are only looking for a female coach at the moment, due to the nature of the work and the culture a male coach (at the current time) would not be possible.  On Saturday 1st of April selections were held in Addu for the chance for one boy and one girl to represent the Maldives at the Asian 2012 Olympic Qualification Regatta in Chungju, South Korea. The regatta will be held on 26th-30th of April and prior to that there is a training camp from the 15th of April to which the Maldives had also been invited. All flights, food, accomodation and travel expenses are being covered by FISA (the international rowing federation). As you can imagine everyone was incredibly keen to take part in the selections. So the single was dusted down and everyone given a chance to practice in it before the big day. Only two fell in which was very impressive given everyone's hatred of holding onto their blades at all times! We had 20 students come down for selection starting at 830 on Saturday morning. Naturally we had a few glitches to keep us all on our toes and ensure that everything took just that little bit longer...... The motor boat engine developed a cancerous illness the night before and now only functioned in first gear - unable to keep up with a single it was so slow! The two stop watches we were using for the timing jointly refused to go past 35minutes so every 30 minutes racing would be paused as i ground slowly up and down the course resetting watches! Fishing boats appeared at inopportune moments during races and there was the general fun and frolics caused by steering into banks etc. With me for a coach it's going to be inevitable there will be steering fun and games. Roba and Salmy were our erstwhile timers and had the unenviable task of standing on the shore in the sun for four hours taking times. By the end Roba had built himself a little 'house' - roof made of a sack draped over a bush, leaves for his feet and a nice piece of cardboard to sit on. Once we'd dropped off his cigarettes he seemed very content! Luckily, after 4 hours we had two winners!!! Fathimath Hasna Hassan from Addu High School and Ibrahim Sharu-u from Feydhoo School. Both won by 4s over second place and in the mens group we had 4 people joint second. The two selected were ecstatic and the others went away with a mixture of long faces, pleas to be allowed to race again and promises that they would never speak to me again!! 
Hasna
Sharu-u
Getting ready to go....... 04/12/2012
So selections done all that was left to do was obtain a passports, three visas, book flights, accommodation and try to find winter clothing in a tropical paradise where the mercury never drops below 26 degrees! All in the space of 11 days – how hard could it be.......??? Well it turned out that we needed two passports to be issued and although you may be able to apply for them in Addu you can only collect them in Male – problem number one. Problem number two there is no Korean embassy in the Maldives the closest one is in Sri Lanka and if you apply for visas here it takes 14 days. So I was now going to have to fly to Sri Lanka (with all passports) on the 8th to apply on the 9th collect on the 11th and be back ready to fly to south korea from Male on the 13th. Oh and you also needed a visa support letter from South Korea with the names of the travellers on it before applying. That is all very well if you know the names of the four people going! The last place was to be filled by a coach from the Maldives and after four false starts we finally confirmed the fourth person, Sarey, at 1300 on Thursday. A manic rush then ensued to get all paperwork re- printed and signed by the relevant people before they left for the weekend at 1500. 
Sarey
 Hithadhoo from the air Sarey was packed off to Male to get his passport on Saturday. Sharu-u and I followed on Sunday to pick Sharu-u’s up so that I could fly to Colombo weighed down with paperwork, photos, letters, signatures and documents from all over the place! It was Sharu-u’s first flight ever and first trip to Male which like everyone he found very crowded and built up compared to Addu. Also a day spent sitting around in passport offices was not what he had imagined his first trip to the capital would involve....  Colombo Rowing Club Sharu-u returned to Addu Sunday evening, Sarey stayed in Male and I went to Colombo. Hasna having been to India once had her own passport already so no headaches there. After handing the wadge of paper over to the Korean embassy I made my way to the Colombo rowing club enjoyed a 2km scull in a fine boat (lovely and light after all the coastal boats) and then settled down to a sundowner with the club captain and ex captain and a chat about the craziness of this year’s Oxford Cambridge boat race. Further excitement was added by the Indonesian earthquake which we felt in Sri Lanka and the Maldives and the subsequent Tsunami warning that was issued just before I was due to fly. My taxi driver was convinced we would be swept to our deaths by a wall of water at 1620 while I was more certain that I would die imminently as a product of his and the other road users crazy driving. Luckily we were both wrong and survived the journey to the airport.  Winter clothes... So amazingly now we’re just waiting to go - we have got tickets, passports, visas, insurance and amazingly located two fleeces, one enormous trenchcoat and fur lined gloves from a friend of Sharu-u’s brother to keep us all warm. It was one degree last week and has warmed up to 10 degrees this week so not too bad! The go down at the National Olympic Committee was trawled yesterday for tracksuits that would fit – lots of XXXXXL’s and not alot of mediums left – towels, socks and pins. So next news will be from Korea where cold temperatures, different food (Hasna’s mum has loaded us down with Maldivian staples and forbidden her to eat frogs and insects!) and skinny racing boats await....... If you want to check out where we're going it's Chungju South Korea and the website address is: http://english.2013chungju.org It comes complete with funky music! X Tash Back to Addu 03/25/2012
Well I’m back in Addu arrived on Friday night. It has been lovely to see everyone again and catch up with all their news about new jobs, new bicycles and housing renovations! Other than expressing how nice it is to see me again the main comment is ‘ah you are so WHITE! How is that possible, you were only away for a month....? That would be the English winter for you. I’m staying with the family I was living with before I left and was greeted by squeals, screams and jumps at the door by 3 year old Mikael! I was given the tour of the house to see all the changes that have been made to convert part of it into a new restaurant. Looks great. The Education Unit had made a go beautiful little ‘welcome back’ card which was on my old desk and as it was Mary’s birthday, my first day back started with a slice of chocolate cake – yummy! So yes it’s all about the rowing again. However, something new has cropped up since I went away. FISA (International Rowing Federation) has invited the Maldives to attend the training camp taking place before the Asian 2012 pre Olympic Qualification Regatta in Chungju, South Korea. So I am meeting with the principals of the schools involved to discuss this on Tuesday and hopefully run selections to determine who the two rowers will be. We can take one girl and one boy along with a coach. What an opportunity and experience for everyone! Then it’s back to the original plan of holding an interschool competition in July.... I’ve gathered from a couple of people I bumped into yesterday that the rowers have been keeping themselves busy in the last month or so getting involved in other sporting activities from athletics competitions to swimming and doing very well. Going down to unearth my chariot of a bike from storage in a minute - somehow I think a service/oil and air is going to be required. Then tomorrow is the jolly task of reassembling the boats – always so much slower than taking them apart – to get everything back in order and ready for business! X Tash Changes 03/25/2012
Again I write a blog and fail to post it for about 3 weeks.... Sorry! The year started well. Again large numbers of students returned to rowing and others came for the first time and lots of desire for swimming lessons please. Sadly, I learnt the lesson I can’t do everything at the same time so swimming lessons were postponed to April and coaching effort put into the rowing until the first regatta in March. Addu High School were nominated to organise the two regattas one in March and the other in July – we’d even got round to forming a committee! Oh and I’d fitted in diving lessons and got my qualification (3rd time lucky...). Diving is a truly fabulous feeling - I think my ancestor got in the wrong queue when they were offering evolving as life on land or in the sea! Saw manta rays and sharks on my first dive off the house reef. Naturally the memory card was full so had to work out how to operate all the buttons and knobs on the camera housing to delete photos while having a minor over excitement fit - so only have a couple of photos! Now, I’m not blaming what happened next totally on Baz and Tony (friends from the UK) but I will definitely think carefully the next time they offer to come out and visit! They arrived the day before President Nasheed resigned. We spent the next ten days watching events unfold before it was decided that the project close down while things settled. So I flew out with Baz and Tony and am now back in the UK freezing cold, missing my friends and all the students enormously and putting together a proposal for the future of the project while keeping my fingers crossed that the future will be sooner rather than later. So hoping, hoping and hoping that it won’t be too long before I can return and continue where we left off. X Tash Hulhumale Swimstars 01/19/2012
Here are all the legendary swimmers of the Indian Ocean - just keep swimming!! Hello 2012! 01/17/2012
 I went to India, or more specifically Kerala, for a two and a bit week holiday over Christmas and New Year. Being a country with a multitude of religions, languages, traditions and their own unique style of doing things it was certainly set to be a very different festive period! I spent a brilliant time with both Hari and Jeeja’s family and Shiji and Babu’s family enjoying some excellent home cooking and a fully packed schedule. Then it was off to Kochi for the famous Kochi New Year Carnival, Munnar for the tea estates (mmmm) and Periyar Nature Reserve for, sadly no tigers, but elephants, mad drivers and bison. The need to see mountains was fully appeased by the time I left and returned to sea level and the Maldives! I actually landed in Male on a sunny day – usually it’s pouring with rain whenever I turn up. The colour of the sea is what you notice first and realise that not only had you forgotten how blue it really is but also before I left I’d gotten so used to it after four months it no longer surprised me. Nice to have the awe refreshed! So what does the New Year hold for rowing in Addu? Well the first bit of news is that a shelter was built by the council for the boats in the Power House compound. This has done an admirable job of keeping everything dry and dirt free. The coaching launch is going to need a very good scrubbing – its ability to grow a prolific and thick beard very rapidly would make most men extremely jealous - if it wasn’t green and intermingled with sizeable barnacles. Currently, I think the bottom must be more weed than boat! I returned to the Education Unit to be met with the fantastic news that (without any effort on my part) a rowing competition had been inserted into the year plan for the schools! So July the 14th is the date for all your calendars with hopefully a smaller one in March just to keep everyone’s competitive juices flowing! Swimming is also high on everyone’s agenda and I’m waiting for the schools to get back to me with how many students are interested in continuing rowing, starting rowing and learning to swim. This will hopefully enable me to put a schedule together that, with the help of the now dab hand rowing coaches and some soon to be recruited swimming coaches, should cater for all.......! Talking of coaches there are plans afoot between RAM, the Maldives National Olympic Committee, FISA and the IOC for an official to be sent to the Maldives as one of the Olympic Solidarity Coaching Courses the NOC hold each year. This is to train a load of rowing coaches and provide them with an internationally recognised qualification. This would certainly be a great boost to the establishment of the sport in the country and carry us further towards our goal of having clubs operated at the local level. Unbeknownst to the students as yet, all coaches are agreed that our first priority this year is fitness – so we are devising a ‘boot campesque’ style of training for the first few weeks involving running, swimming and if we can gather enough bikes together cycling. I’m hoping this will culminate in a mini team triathlon competition. So as you can see lots of ideas in the air for 2012, just going through the planning stage which for impatient people like me is soul destroying – I just want to get started..... Wishing you all the best for 2012! X Tash P.S. All swimmers passed their swim tests and are bugging to know when the next course starts... Happy New Year from the North 01/10/2012
 Hello and a happy new year to you, I hope that although 2012 is only a baby, it has been good so far. I am sorry that is has been so quiet on the blog front (I seem to always start off my blogs this way), however I have been having a brilliantly cold and grey time back in the UK. Yes that is snow you can see on the hills in the photo, sadly that is the closest we got whilst up in Scotland for a brilliant family Christmas.  Christmas Day and almost falling in the Loch! Lots of British countryside to make me feel like I am truly back home, having visited my parents on the south coast, my sister in North Yorks, friends in Henley and my brother in Manchester all before heading further north for Christmas in Scotland. Much eating, drinking and party games (including hilarious granny musical chairs and generations of Dad dancing in musical statues, all on video) made a Christmas nudging into the top 5 of all time!  Arriving back in the UK and seeing friends and family has made me so grateful for the things I missed whilst away and made me quite definite in my mind that I wanted to remain in the UK, however Christmas is never a good time to make proper decisions as my mind is fuddled by warm (mainly TV induced) memories, shouting children and possibly a bit of alcohol. I have come a full circle and am planning to return to the Maldives in the not too distant future to push on with the rowing project.  Following Christmas in Scotland I headed off to the Isle of Man (I did say I had been getting around a bit) to see my best friend of many, many years, Polly, for a bit of windswept walking action and yet more tip top eating. I have seen a lot of windy hills and cold looking sheep over the past few weeks. There is something about being brought up on a island that drags you back, I have ended up in the Maldives and Polly on the Isle of Man, different yet equally mad islands!  Not quite the Maldives anymore A relaxing and refreshing New Year and sadly I did not take my swimmers so I could not participate in the New Years Day swim on the beach (what a blow of misfortune), I did feel shown up by all the people who did take a dip. No photos as no one deserves to have a picture taken of them in a swimsuit in the freezing cold on Jan 1st, NOBODY looks good in those conditions. I did manage to see a solitary seal and not break anything playing Just Dance 3 in a tiny sitting room, so a successful trip all round. Anyhow onwards to the future, I have just found out that sadly that the Westminster School trip to Hulhumale will not being happening in February, so it will mean that I will have to get the boat house sorted out without a team of helpers, sad times! I am back in life planning mode and will get back to you when ll details (every single one) of life have been sorted out! Bye Rachel 
Mean and moody shot of Calf Sound on the Isle of Man
Swimming Lessons in Addu 12/17/2011
 Blogging I have discovered I suck at. Never seem to do it..... It’s going to have to be one of my New Year’s resolutions to improve! Since the schools broke up I’ve been running beginners swimming lessons in Hithadhoo and Maradhoo. We’re using the swimming track in Hithadhoo and rather a nice spot by the bridge onto Maradhoo. We get lots of cars stopping to check out what on earth is going on as they clock loads of people thrashing about in the water shrieking with laughter, banter and directions to their fellow swimmers/thrashers. One American guy working on a climate project here asked me if it was a big party. He was genuinely surprised when I said ‘uh no swimming lessons!’. Ages range from 3 to 12 for the younger 6 groups all of whom mastered the art of bribery much faster than the art of swimming. ‘Yes we will get in the water/kick our legs straight/jump off the swim track mummy if we can have biscuits/cake/lunch at a restaurant/a Barbie doll/toys’. One little girl, Imeely, is a master at it and has so far gone to a cafe for chocolate cake and got a new doll out of the three week course. I have a feeling all the mothers will be glad the lessons are coming to an end as for a free course they are proving quite expensive!! Imeely is now swimming around festooned in arm bands, goggles and swim hat rather than lying rigid in her mother’s arms screaming. I would like to take credit for this but sadly cannot. Meezan, our beamer of the group, impressed her so much one day by just stepping off the swim track into the water (he did not expect the drop or the total submersion that followed – as proved by his eyes filling the entirety of his goggles when he surfaced)! However, he beamed and paddled off and Imeely immediately paddled off after him and now follows him everywhere! The 3 adult groups range in age from 18 through to about 50 and are great fun. Only one or two were really scared of the water and the rest threw themselves into my requests with alacrity demanding to be taught to do forward somersaults and headstands. There was much shrieking and laughter when they were practising picking up objects from the bottom of the sea. Being salt water floating is really easy and sinking is not quite as easy as it is in a pool back home. Inevitably, there will be people wriggling about on the surface eyes glued to the plastic egg on the sea floor they are meant to be picking up until finally the need for air makes them lift their head to hoots of laughter from their friends. It’s great to see the enthusiasm and determination to master the rudiments of freestyle, backstroke, breast stroke and doggy paddle that everyone shows. Deep water is still terrifying to some - huge eyes behind a kick board and legs working like crazy as they swim towards me before turning round and making a dash for the shallow water. Most days it’s blue sky and baking standing in the sea but we have had our fair share of rain and I seem to have spent the last three weeks permanently damp. One of the best moments was standing up to my waist in the sea as the wind and waves whipped in, the rain poured down as it only does in the tropics, the sun set and we huddled in a water logged group eating barbequed fish and chunks of coconut that one of the ladies had bought along – don’t think she was expecting a deluge from above! On a more pleasant evening we also had a rapid bbq after the swimming ended at 6. We moved on up the link road to a spot where they had the fish, baked potatoes and chicken grilling away in tinfoil over some hot coals. Everything lathered in a very tasty ‘Maldivian curry paste’ and washed down with raspberry/blueberry juice – the jury was out as to which it was! Azum and I then cycled our very slow and replete way back to Hithadhoo..... Azum, is a guy who is totally passionate about any form of swimming. He took his swim instructors certificate earlier this year – transpires lots of people did but hardly any have then gone on to use it. Anyway Azum was down at the track a couple of mornings when i first started and asked if i wanted some help so now the two of us bike up and down coaching swimming and putting plans together for next year. I think I need to be about 5 different people to satisfy all the requests to do things I’m getting. Needless to say the rowing hasn’t stopped while all this has been going on – three afternoons a week we have rowing running on a ‘drop in as and when you can’ basis with council buses bringing the students up from the other islands. Armed with 4 doubles, Guin’s single, the coaching launch and a peddle boat we hit the sea either going out to the reef for a spot of snorkelling, over to the swim track for a spot of swimming and socialising with everyone out having a good time in the evenings or we see how far we can get down the coast towards Maradhoo. As it’s meant to be fun we don’t get very far before everyone mutinies and heads for the swim track! I have plans for gym fitness and long distances on the water come the New Year. x Tash | Fill in the form below to get email notifications of our blog updates - it's the easiest way to know when I post more waffle!
RachelI am one of the volunteer coaches about to head off for the Maldives and queen of this website! TashI am also one of the volunteer coaches and will be heading out in June 2011
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