is a San Francisco-based travel and entertainment journalist. His
work has appeared in
Travel+Leisure, the
New York Post,
FHM, and
Stuff, among others.
Illustration by Artman.
ENCOUNTERS OF THE INCREDIBLE
KIND
In a person's lifetime, there are a few experiences that one can
reflect on as being truly memorable. Here's a look at a dozen
unique adventures around the world that you won't soon
forget.
Once, due to circumstances I don't care to explain, I ended
up beneath a 50-foot yacht, scraping barnacles. Not an unusual
activity in any harbor, but most boat scrapers practice their craft
during the day. I, however, scraped at night. This being South
Florida, the water was warm and velvet black. The rhythmic sound of
my breathing, the taste of salty brine on my lips, the
phosphorescent fireworks from tiny creatures' sparking
bioluminescence - all of that, combined with the black water, only
electrified each sense.
That night, I learned an invaluable lesson. Too often we rely only
on sight. But outdoor experience done right sates every sense, and
when those senses combine and bubble to a boil in a goose-pimply
upwelling, well, there are few indoor experiences that can keep
pace. Hard to imagine? Then give these 12 sensory activities a try
and see if we aren't right.
1 Swim With The Jellies
Most visitors to the Micronesian paradise of Palau (recently made
famous as the playground for Survivor: Palau) make the pilgrimage
to Eil Malk Island and Jellyfish Lake, the famed marine lake of
millions of stingless jellyfish. The lake looks no different from
those of your childhood - but swim away from the dock and you will
be touched by the nearly inexplicable. The jellies appear first as
an innocuous scattering, like the initial drops of a thundershower,
and then thicken into a gelatinous mass. Imagine the glancing brush
of hundreds of jellyfish, each as delicate as the fingertip touch
of a loved one. 011-680-488-1062,
www.samstours.com