When describing Palau, paradise is a word that rolls off the tongue easily. The waters of Palau are impossibly clear, shifting from pale turquoise to deep cobalt, mirroring limestone cliffs that rise like ancient monuments from the sea. Palau kingfishers and swiftlets, two of 13 species endemic to Palau, fly unbothered above the trees, and the air is still and silent, the kind that hushes even your thoughts. As I slip through the surface of the warm water of the Ulong Channel, “paradise” suddenly feels too soft a word for what the ocean offers here. The moment I steady my gaze, I’m surrounded by schools of parrotfish, Moorish idols, and butterflyfish moving with busy purpose. Neon corals are heaving with the current, with tiny fish taking shelter in even tinier nooks, and giant clams whose deep indigo and teal rims, speckled with flecks of mint green and fuchsia, slam shut..
