About caves, deserts, jungles, islands and the ice.
Scientists called Venezuela’s Salto Angel waterfall the eighth wonder of the world. The dreamlike, yet mystical Table Mountains inspired James Cameron for his film Avatar. And I finally fulfilled my long-cherished No. 1 travel dream on my fourth attempt: a trip to what I consider the most spectacular landscape in the world.
Volcanic eruption! One of the most fascinating spectacles in nature. For the first time we were to witness spewing lava live. The largest volcanic island in the world offered us even more: cold weather training, a glacier hike and an ice cave visit.
A labyrinth of magnificent sandstone formations stretches as far as the eye can see, the sun makes the steep, red craggy rock faces shine, the desert wind whispers stories of times gone by – in Wadi Rum, Jordan is “great cinema”.
Deep in the Amazon is a place where, surrounded by the wilderness and all its inhabitants, you can experience the rainforest in an extraordinary way. I went on a voyage of discovery here.
Aboard the research vessel ‘Resolute’, I lent a hand as a temporary scientist and helped collect data. The expedition took us through the Canadian Arctic to the breathtaking fjords of Greenland.
Exploring the wilderness on foot in the midst of lions, elephants and buffalo? You can learn to do that. In summer 2019, I will join a field guide course in South Africa.
To the center of the earth! The most spectacular trip I’ve ever done: the Son Doong cave expedition in Vietnam. First, it’s through leech-infested jungle. Then, abseiling down into the cave, over sharp rocks, through underground lakes, gigantic shafts. Absolutely breathtaking!
It’s off to a good start: sunburn, heat stroke, insect bites. Broken leg, dehydration, diarrhoea. Ida Vincent of Biosphere Expeditions initiates nearly a dozen dedicated conservationists from Germany, Austria, Italy, the US and Australia into the hazards of the Sumatran jungle.