Hiyaviha.

Hiyaviha runs from 1 February – 13 February, the sixth of the nine nakaiy of Iruvai and the sixth of twenty-seven. The nakaiy are the traditional Maldivian almanac, about thirteen days each and named for the stars; fishermen still read the weather by them. Fishermen traditionally speak of glassy water in these weeks.

Iruvai is the dry season: mostly clear days, a north-east wind and calm lagoons, and December to March is the busiest stretch on the resort islands. Planning is about heat and wind rather than rain: shade and water for guests, florals kept cool until the last hour, anything tall weighted against the breeze. Seaplanes fly in daylight only, so arrivals and set-up are scheduled around the light. We still hold a covered venue, rarely used in Iruvai; how we plan for rain explains what we hold.

Mirror-still lagoons at dawn and quiet, warm evenings. Sunset falls around six and the half-hour before it is dependable. With so little wind, delicate florals and candles behave, though the midday heat means set-up is best done early or late in the day. At four degrees north the length of the day barely changes and the golden hour is short, 30 to 40 minutes rather than sixty. We time the ceremony to it, and Golden hour in the Maldives explains how.