Truly one in a lakh (million) - Lakshadweep

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'Lakshadweep' - in most of the Indian languages means a lakh /million (laksha) islands (dweep) though it is a conglomerate of 36 islands to be precise. But I must say, it is definitely one in a lakh(million) islands when it comes to its breathtaking beauty.
Lakshadweep is one of the 8 Union Territories of India and is located in the Arabian Sea off the south-west coast of India. And the tiny little gorgeous Bangaram island is one of the 36 islands of Lakshadweep.

Travelling this time was different for two reasons - we were going on a vacation after 3 long years and this time there was an addition to the trip - our three year old son. This was his first time flying , so I was obviously nervous !

Since most of the resorts are managed by the Govt. of Lakshadweep , one may have to go through a Govt recognised agent to book resorts. We did the same for booking a cottage at the Bangaram resort.

We flew Bengaluru -> Kochi -> Agati . Agati is the only island in Lakshadweep that has an airport. The runway runs along the length of the narrow strip of land with the sea on both sides. It is a beautiful sight looking out of the window when the plane takes off or lands. Surrounded by the clear greenish blue sea , Agati is more of an administrative island with administrative offices, a hospital and a school. Malayalam is the official language of Lakshadweep with English and Hindi spoken as well.

At Agati, we were dropped off at the jetty boat point in a mini van from the airport at around 1:30 pm. The ride in the jetty boat was an amazing one. Thanks to the weather that day, a thunderstorm was forecast and hence the sun was nowhere to be seen. So at noon, we could sit on the open side of the boat in the front and enjoy the view of the vast but relatively calm Arabian Sea . As the boat rode on high waves with us enjoying the roller coaster ride ,we spotted some unexpected guests - a dolphin pod. A pod consisting of about 5-6 dolphins were diving around our boat. My first time watching Dolphins in their natural habitat!

We reached Bangaram island around 3 pm - an hour boat ride from Agati and were completely awestruck by its beauty, A tiny island with a calm shore, white sand beach and crystal clear greenish blue waters. Looking at the photos later, few of my friends also exclaimed that this island looked more prettier than Maldives !! Quickly grabbed lunch, then took our son for some shell hunting. Though the shells weren't as pretty as the ones we had collected in Andaman, they were still okay. My son was amazed when he spotted a crab playing hide and seek in its shell! Since the weather was getting bad with the black clouds having covered over, we retired in our cottage until dinner time. We were hoping that the weather would clear by the next day so its sunny and we could have fun in the water.

Next day , though the weather was clear and sun was shining bright, it definitely didn't go as planned. My son wasn't keeping well and we just spent some time sitting by the shore . But dinner was great ! The full moon and and dinner by the sea side was magical. Tables were setup by the sea side on the shore with a large buffet spread and it was just perfect! The moon's reflection in the water and smaller waves hitting against the shore was mystical.

On the third day, my son was feeling a little better and we decided to step out in the water. My husband and I decided to do some water activities taking turns while my son who still had a running nose, was kept away from the water.

Talking of water activities, there are a host of them that one can do. There is scuba diving , coral garden snorkeling, shore snorkeling, kayaking , boat ride to a nearby tiny island - Tinakara , turtle watch and many more.

My husband scuba divided in the morning while I did some shore snorkeling. I was looking for some company to do the coral garden snorkeling which involves going in a boat some 500 mts - 1 km into the sea where there is a good coral collection and snorkeling in those crystal clear waters. Luckily, a couple was interested in the same activity and off we went in the boat. Snorkeling amongst the corals is always a joy ! At about 10ft - 20ft depth, though the corals here were not as colourful as the ones in the Andaman islands, they were still beautiful. And the variety of colourful fishes .. Just out of the world ! We snorkelled for about 30 mins in the clear waters and then headed back. Had a scrumptious lunch, then lazed around in the afternoon sitting on those comfortable armchairs watching some of the fellow travellers kayak in the blue sea.

After tea, we headed to the sand bank side of the shore. Sand bank is a small patch of pristine sand in the sea some 100 mts from the shore . During low tides' time of the day (around 3pm), one can just walk to the sand bank with the water level up to the waist. We watched the sunset and headed back to our cottage. Thanks to the clear weather and the full moon, tables were set on the shore for dinner. It was again a memorable moonlit dinner with the music of the waves in the background! Magical , isn't it?

Next day, after watching the beautiful sunrise with many doing the suryanamaskar ( yoga) on the shore, we headed for turtle watch in the boat around 7:30am. The sun was shining through the crystal clear green waters. The water was shallow ( around 4ft depth) and there , we spotted a big turtle swimming lazily. As soon as the boat approached , it zipped away. Though we spotted many turtles they were fast enough to swim faster then the boat speed. Since the water was shallow, we jumped into the water and swam for a while. Who needs a pool when you can swim along with the turtles? 😉 . Our trip to Lakshadweep concluded with this beautiful memory !

Our jetty boat to Agati was leaving at 10am and we hurried back to the cottage, packed stuff , ate breakfast and boarded the jetty only to carry back with us some of the amazing memories of Bangaram island. On our way back to Agati, I couldn't help but wonder how our amazing planet is still beautiful and how little we are doing to save it . What will our future generations grow up to?

Anyways, we flew back from Agati to Kochi and then to Bengaluru with memories lasting a lifetime ! I think my son is now ready for a longer trip :D

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How to Reach? - Fly to Kochi and then take a flight to Agati . From Agati, a jetty boat to the islands. ( A permit is required to enter Lakshadweep islands . You can get it arranged through the Govt. recognised agent along with the resort booking).

Where to stay? - Bangaram island has only one resort - The Bangaram resort

What to do? - All types of water activities and visit nearby the nearby Tinakara island

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