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SLEEPOVER
All business in Beijing At the Conrad Beijing, sky-high views and a killer hotel app make sealing the deal that much easier. PAGE 6
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Globe Travel EDITOR: DOMINI CLARK
THE ESCAPE
MAYBE THERE IS SOMETHING IN THE WATER Dominica is awash in rivers, waterfalls, thermal springs and one boiling lake. The crystal clear waters may also be why the Caribbean island is home to many of the world’s oldest citizens. What are you waiting for? Getting wet on your vacation has never been so much fun
SUSAN CAMPBELL ROSALIE BAY, DOMINICA .................................................................................
‘W
e’re going to snorkel into the elephant’s ass,” our guide announced as the boat nosed into the scenic bay. What did he just say? I wondered. And then I saw it: a sea cave carved into the cliff that really did resemble a pachyderm’s rear end. Once we swam inside, the smell was as bad as the name and we were greeted by the surprised shrieks of the resident bats. Scary, smelly (the guano reeked), but surprisingly cool. Dominica in the eastern Caribbean is awash in water-based attractions: 365 rivers (it claims), countless hot thermal springs, dozens of waterfalls, mountainfed streams, surrounding seawater so pristine that sperm whales make their home in it year-round (the only place in the Caribbean they do so), not to mention the world’s second largest boiling lake awaits discovery in the country’s interior. I was here to spend as much time as possible in Dominica’s warm, clear aqua waters, but I’d also heard that drinking it might be a good idea, too. According to the local Council on Aging there are more centenarians on Dominica per capita than anywhere else on the planet. The island was also home to the oldest living person recorded, Elizabeth “Pampo” Israel was 128 when she died in 2003. Today, there are 30-some seniors 100years-old and up, in relative good health. When asked what they owe their longevity to, drinking the country’s pristine water is high on the list. So I really didn’t have anything to lose. Dominica, Page 2
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INSIDE On
the Radar A New York eatery for eggheads PAGE 4
Above: Gliding silently along Indian River, an otherworldly wetland in Dominica. DISCOVER DOMINICA AUTHORITY
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