This information is for Non Resident Indians who want to send money to somebody regularly, say monthly. There are many ways like Western Union, Bank transfer, Cash Xpress, etc. I came across this service while I was searching for a solution from transferring PayPal funds to Indian bank account, which was available until last month. PayPal has now put a restriction right now due to some un-confirmed reasons.

Now to the topic of this post, you can use ATMCASH service to transfer funds from your bank account or Credit card, but not PayPal account.

Sign up with ATMCASH, tell us who to send the money to and how much to send. You can use your credit card or checking account. ATMCASH sends your friend or relative a prepaid ATMCASH card via FedEx and sends you the secure PIN code via the mail. The recipient can then withdraw the money at any ATM in India that accepts MasterCard using their ATMCASH card once you reveal to them the PIN.

Our customers in India appreciate no more waiting in lines or expensive fees. You can withdraw as much cash as you need when you need it. There is no need to carry around all the cash at once. The card recipient can add additional funds whenever you want. To send money to India sign up with ATMCASH, or call us now at 1-888-ATM-CASH to send money.

Once you register, you can decide the money to be sent (Charges US 5 for sending US$ 1000.00). An ATM card will be couriered to the recipient via FedEx the first time and the next time as soon as you do the transfer, the amount sent will be credited to the card so the person holding the card can withdraw instantly.

Tree house in Wayanad

One of the views from the high range hair pin curves, Wayanad

Wayanad veterinary college compound entrance

One of the rivers, which is not having sufficient water, Wayanad

Aracanut plantation, Pookot, Wayanad

Mama monkey is feeding its baby

Pookot lake

One of the nurseries at Pookot

Coffee plant

Entrance to the Thirunelli temple, where no photography is permitted inside

One of the souvenir shop, where you get all the natural products

flowers at Wayanad

Hello Address is a real estate service owned by the Malayala Manorama Group. This is an attempt to help to buy and sell properties in Kerala. You can register at this site for free and post your requirements. You will also find details of the properties to be sold categorized district wise. You can also search for properties for sale using the search feature, where you can mention your interested location.

You will find lots of information on this portal like Featured Builders, New Properties, Rental Properties, etc.

Check out this service if you are looking for any property or want to sell your property.

Beauty is only skin deep so is the life of expatriates in Maldives. Are you really trying for a job in Maldives? In my opinion, you better not try for a job since Maldives is not a safe destination for expatriate workers right now. I am back to India after  2 weeks of my holidays in Maldives and i could smell that the glamour of the place is almost lost., the life in Male’ is not smooth anymore for expatriates.

Recruiting agencies are still recruiting personnel for different jobs by accepting a huge amount as the processing fee, but mostly this appointment is lasting normally for an year. If not, you will be forced to resign and come back. If you are lucky, you will get a good employer.

Why NOT?

• Recession hit Maldives the worst.
• Shortage of dollar, you wont be able to send your earning home unless you are paid in dollars. The present dollar rate is Rf. 12.85 but you will never get it for the same price. Now it is available for Rf. 14.50 outside. Banks ask for Dollars to send money home and lots of restrictions implemented.
• Accommodation will be a big problem. At the time of interview or in your appointment letter, it will be mentioned that you will provided with accommodation but for teachers it is provided on sharing basis only for 3 months. After that they are forced find an accommodation. The rent is beyond your imagination and will surely burn your pocket. You will be forced to share the room as well as the toilet with someone else (probably with 3 or 4 ) unless you are ready to spend lavishly on rent.
• High cost of living. The prices of the food stuffs are gone up beyond imagination now. You have to spend a good share of your income if you want to get a decent meal. Now the prices are either high or  empty shelves due to non-availability of items
• Discrimination towards Indians is very visible and you have to face a lot of discrimination from the management if it is headed by the locals.
• Reported robbery and burglary on the expatriates. I am one of the victims of burglary.
• Better future prospects will be difficult due to their new employment rules. If you want to terminate your contract with your employer, now you have to give 9 months notice as well as the Visa fees (MOH Contract).
• Sometimes you get delayed for your payment. Many labourers complain that they are not paid salary for months
• The Government is in the process of reducing the number of expatriate workers to encourage employment for locals by making the recruitment procedure more complicated.

I was working as a teacher for 10 years (1998 – 2008) and i had a tough time working there until i got established. Even though i have been fairly treated well by both the management and the students, but  many times i felt it was time to quit.

Don’t you think that it is high to  give a second thought SHOULD I WORK IN MALDIVES?

The Parliament of Maldives decided to conduct an underwater cabinet meeting to create an awareness on the threat of global warming. President Mohamed Nasheed will chair the meeting which will be held on the 17th October, 2009 and they will then ratify a pledge calling on other nations to slash greenhouse gas emissions ahead of the Copenhagen meeting in December.

The 14 member cabinet ministers are taking lessons on the scuba diving ahead of the meeting, where the President is a certified scuba diver.The cabinet will don wet suits and scuba equipment and dive to a depth of six metres (20 feet), where a special meeting of the cabinet will be convened.

Cabinet members will communicate with sign language using whiteboards and hand signals.

Irufushi Resort which was developed by Sun Hotels and Resorts is now taken over by Hilton and has been renamed as Hilton Maldives. Hilton has another resort in Maldives known as the Conrad Maldives. I had been to Irufushi Resort during the pre opening time and had a chance to stay there for 3 days. The resort is excellent, white sand and beautiful beaches. This is a very big island with an area of 52 acres of land and is expected to be a popular destination for Honeymooners.

The pre opening team, receiving the guests at the Jetty

Interiors of a bungalow at the Hilton Maldives (Old Irufushi Resort)

Luxury bed at Hilton Maldives

The water bungalows at Hilton Maldives

The dinning Hall at Hilton Maldives

All the pictures above were taken when I traveled to Irufushi during the pre-opening time. Now I think there could be some changes. The tourism in Maldives is seen to be declining due to the World Economic slowdown. The tourist inflow declined by 14% in February 2009 compared to the tourist inflow. Some resorts have even started taking measures for facing this slowdown.

The parliamentary elections in Maldives for the year 2009 will be held on the 9th of May 2009. The Parliament is also known as the Majlis which has a term of 5 years. In all there are 77 seats and the voting will start at 9.00 am and will go till 8:00pm on the 9th of May. The counting of the votes will start on the same day from 9:00  pm. According to the Election Commission of Maldives there will be  214,405 voters.

Just came to Huhule island hotel in Maldives. This is the only hotel near Male where alcohol is served. Of course you get alcohol in the resorts buy not in Male’
Here there is a pool where you can enjoy a swim.

You can see plants inside the bathroom

The bath tub

The Walls

Check this video of W Resort Trip