06/12/2022
The boat carried the distinctive name ALADEEN, the first of its kind. As that boat was facilitated with one main cabin accommodating up to six foreign guests in bunk beds right below a center-elevated deck and in addition upgraded from using Latin sails to diesel powered Japanese-made Yanmar 2-T engine, such modernized version as unseen before eared itself the well deserved nickname Yacht Dhoni. The boat offered one common pump toilet, fresh water from island wells was stored in locally built cans and jerry cans carrying a maximum of 400 liters onboard with three unskilled crews operating the Yacht Dhoni. Provisions were limited to strictly Maldivian cuisine and re-provisioned while traveling from one island to another. All high-tech the boat owned those days was its diesel engine, there were no desalination plants, built-in soundproof generators, attached stylish bathrooms with hot water, no general electronics relating to the boat operation and nowadays guest comfort. The boat was steered by its traditional local Hunganu rudder and controlled by the captain’s mighty foot.
