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HEMISPHERESMAGAZINE.COM
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SEPTEMBER 2012
33
DOUGLAS PEEBLES PHOTOGRAPHY/ALAMY (CLIMBER); MICHELE FALZONE/JON ARNOLD IMAGES/SUPERSTOCK (CHILD); DANITA DELIMONT/GETTY IMAGES
(HUT); WALTER MEAYERS EDWARDS/NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC/GETTY IMAGES (FISHING); JEFF HUNTER/GETTY IMAGES (DIVERS); HEATHER PERRY/NATIONAL
GEOGRAPHIC/GETTY IMAGES (SUNSET)
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IT’S THE SIZE OF ARGENTINA,
but its land area barely matches that
of Memphis, Tenn. Its waters are
littered with sunken battleships from
three generations ago, yet it’s still
younger than Keira Knightley. What
is it? The Federated States of Micro-
nesia, a remote, unspoiled archipelago
located between Hawaii and Indonesia
that attained independence in 1986.
Of the nation’s 600-odd islands,
the biggest is Pohnpei, which offers
world-class climbing, hiking and diving
amid lush rain forests and breath-
taking lagoons. Pohnpei is also home
to the ancient city of Nan Madol,
whose network of canals earned it the
moniker “Venice of the Pacific.”
Then there’s Chuuk, where you’ll
find one of the world’s great dive
sites: the Ghost Fleet of Truk Lagoon,
a World War II Japanese naval base
turned ship graveyard turned coral
reef. In addition, remnants of Japanese
military facilities, from lighthouses
to tunnel systems, are scattered
all over the island, making Chuuk
in particular—and the nation in
general—that rare place that appeals
to beach bum and history buff alike.
—DANIEL WROCLAWSKI
POHNPEI
CHUUK