Small Island Lure-Neil Island

I am partial to small islands-particularly tiny ones. The smallest island I've visited was a miniscule flotsam a few hundred meters across in the Maldives.One could take a leisurely stroll around this island in under 15 minutes. The island's smallness was neither confining nor imprisoning- infact, the experience was deeply liberating afloat on that tiny land on an infinite blue green ocean-akin to experiencing earth's journey through space.

This trip to Maldives was extravagant in all respects -beauty, costs, lifestyle. It was therfore also unreal, artificial, superficial.

I have since found the island of my dreams in the Andamans-a "real" island, where communities live, work, sustain generations, cultures. I discovered Neil Island in search for food options outside of the fish and rice culture practiced over most of Andamans. A guide book described Neil island as the food-bowl for the northern Andamans-a place that was supported by agriculture economy and exported fruits and vegetables to other islands. Being vegetarians, it was with relish that we looked forward to visiting Neil Island.

Our approach by ferry from Port Blair showed white sandy beaches,tall timber trees of emerald, transparent turquoise to jade waters deepening to ink blue and a picture perfect jetty-with a quickening heart I realised that this was the one-the one I had dreamt about!

Neil island is still small by most standards-7km by a couple km across. I never managed to circumnavigate the whole island in my month's stay there. I was too busy swimming, loitering, eating. That summer, the trees were overladen with ripe mangoes, jackfruits-that we climbed, plucked, gorged on, coconuts waiting to be enjoyed, and gardens brimming with vegetables and greens that were cooked for us in bengali and tamil preparations in tiny home restraunts around the island.

The paradise was perfect with a small but well stocked library, an energetic government school, a grassy football field,and friendly families eager to make friends with those from the distant 'mainland'. We spent hours learning to make crafts from coconut shells-polished to a shiny marbled finish in coffee, burnt yellow, cream. Kids rowed on the open sea in tiny dingy, standing, perfectly poised-a sense of peace filled my heart-nothing left to ask for-nothing left to desire.