LAND OF SEA & SKY
ISLAND-HOPPING OFFERS THE CHANCE TO GO WHEREVER THE WINDS TAKE YOU: EXPLORE SHIPWRECKS, SNORKEL CORAL REEFS, SIP A BOTTLE OF RUM ON A DESERT ISLAND.
The ship has seen better days. It's leaning for one thing, to the port side and the point of near-capsizing. The bridge, ordinarily the source of all life on board, is dark, emanating the kind of macabre magnetic energy that simultaneously fascinates and unnerves. There are gaping holes in the hull, which is corroded from many years of exposure to the elements, with a rusty bike chained above with a large, black eel sprawled languidly in its basket. A shoal of bright orange anthias clouds around the stern, a whirl of startling technicolour in a world of muted blues.
The Keyodhoo shipwreck has lain, half submerged and caked in coral, in the Felidhu Atoll for half a decade. Even its origin story is mysterious - some say it's an Indonesian vessel that drifted empty into the island constellation one day. My guide - 28-year-old Mohamed Hailam, or Hai to his friends - thinks it's a Maldivian supply boat that ran aground on the reef. He's freediving several feet below where I'm snorkelling, taking a closer look at the bridge where the controls lie calcified in the positions of their final voyage, his long, black fins pumping methodically. On each one is a map of the Maldives, the islands picked out in brilliant white. Hai was born in Laamu Atoll, many nautical miles to the south, and now lives like many locals do, shifting from island to island with the sands but always inevitably drawn back to Malé, the capital.
Esta historia es de la edición Indian Ocean 2023 de National Geographic Traveller (UK).
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Esta historia es de la edición Indian Ocean 2023 de National Geographic Traveller (UK).
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Dianne Whelan
THOUGH NOT A SEASONED HIKER TO BEGIN WITH, THE FILMMAKER BECAME THE FIRST PERSON TO COMPLETE THE WORLD'S LONGEST TRAIL NETWORK
NIGERIA
The country's many communities come together over hearty meals with plenty of heat
Katie Hale
A VOYAGE TO THE GREAT WHITE CONTINENT IS BOTH A DREAM COME TRUE AND A CALL TO ARMS, TO PROTECT OUR ICY POLES AND, IN TURN, OUR PLANET
WILTSHIRE
BEYOND THE MAIN ATTRACTION OF STONEHENGE, WILTSHIRE HAS EQUALLY IMPRESSIVE ANCIENT SITES, GIANT CHALK HORSES AND COSY PUBS IN HISTORIC VILLAGES
BATH
Thermal baths and Regency heritage have put this Somerset city firmly on the travel map - and this year the spotlight will be on former resident and literary great Jane Austen, in celebration of the 250th anniversary of her birth
GRANADA
In this Andalucian city, flamenco is an art form as well as a way of life not just for traditional dancers and singers but also for hip-hop stars, classical guitar legends and street artists
India's Golden Triangle
LINKING DELHI, THE TAJ MAHAL AND THE PINK CITY OF JAIPUR, WITH DETOURS FOR TEMPLES AND TIGERS, THIS IS THE PERFECT ROUTE FOR FIRST-TIMERS. WORDS: POOJA NAIK
FORGED BY FIRE
A SUBTROPICAL ISLAND IN THE ATLANTIC, MADEIRA HAS RUGGED VOLCANIC MOUNTAINS THAT RISE ABOVE THE CLOUDS, NATURAL SWIMMING POOLS DOWN AT SEA LEVEL AND MORE THAN 1,900 MILES OF HISTORIC AQUEDUCTS TRACING THE LANDSCAPES IN BETWEEN
ADRIFT IN THE ARCTIC CIRCLE
A KAYAKING EXPEDITION THROUGH NORWAY'S LOFOTEN ISLANDS OFFERS WHITE-SAND BEACHES, ROYAL ENCOUNTERS AND THE CHANCE TO CHANNEL YOUR INNER VIKING
the RETURN
ON A PRIVATE GAME RESERVE IN SOUTH AFRICA'S KWAZULU-NATAL PROVINCE, AN UNLIKELY CREATURE IS MAKING A TENTATIVE COMEBACK - AND VISITORS ARE OFFERED A GLIMPSE INTO THE CONSERVATION EFFORTS TO SAVE IT AND OTHER NATIVE WILDLIFE
