D

ivided almost evenly down the middle by the equator, the archipelago was a place of dreams and fantasies come to life. Coral reefs illumined the turquoise waters of the South Pacific. Dugouts and flying fish soared above the sea of glass with the precision and grace of an orchestra of concert violinists. Emerald, mountainous terrain stretched up out of the warm waters like mighty hands reaching upward from the deep and grasping for the stars. Earth's ground was still hot and smoky with sulfur from the volcanic eruption just 10 months earlier. Indeed, it was a place of majesty, mystery and magnificence.

We will be happy to provide you access to this article and all articles in our archived issues. Please Subscribe for access to archived articles or Sign in if you are already a subscriber.