Historical

Farm fields in South Hams, Devon, England A patchwork quilt of green pastureland blankets large portions of South Hams, England. And a short journey from here brings you to the wild landscape of Dartmoor National Park or an equally picturesque coastline. The weather is pleasant, too—especially for Great Britain—as South Hams is in the southernmost portion of Devon, one of the most southerly districts of England. The temperate climate keeps the crops happy, while visitors also seem to flourish throughout the region, especially at the sunny coast. It wasn’t always just boating and beachcombing here, though. In 1944, training exercises for the D-Day invasion of France were held in a few evacuated South Hams villages.

Waterfall in Labi, the Belait District, Brunei       Want to get a look at this waterfall in person? First, head toward Southeast Asia and then to the island of Borneo. Journey to Brunei, a small sovereign country on the north coast. Find your way to Labi, a small ‘mukim’ aka subdivision of the Belait district in the rainforest-heavy interior. Visit the four longhouses of the Iban people of Serak, and behind the last one, duck under a bamboo grove and begin your hours-long trek to a group of splendid waterfalls. This is around the part of the journey where sightseeing guides advise visitors to put on their best hiking shoes it’s slippery, slather on the mosquito repellent it’s buggy, and keep salt handy for, uh, the leeches. And of course, don’t forget your camera the area is extraordinarily scenic.  Not to be confused with Brunei or Barneo. Borneo   is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic ce...