In episode six of reality-television show Survivor Palau, the contestants endured a night of torrential rain. They huddled together in communal misery, shivering and complaining, and as the sun rose on their waterlogged camps, one competitor, Janu, chin aquiver, began to cry. She was cold, she was tired and she wanted to go home.
From the comfort of their air-conditioned living rooms, viewers scoffed. Surely Palau, a tropical paradise in the South Pacific, couldn't be that bad. But if truth be told, it can. When the sun shines, the sea is calm and the skies are clear, Palau is idyllic, fitting the desert-island stereotype to perfection. But when a storm is wreaking havoc, paradise is lost amid sheets of rain, a wind that howls around your hotel's walls and ocean conditions that can be most accurately described as sodden.
As passengers on one of the countless open-sided speedboats that constantly cross the republic's waterways, we thumped over the wind-whipped choppy sea, watching with alarm as the swell rose and fell, and wondering whether we would be swamped by one of the cresting waves. Spray was hurled horizontally into our faces as we shivered under sopping towels. We were cold, we were tired and we wanted to go, if not home, then back to the comfort of our hotel.
Before the unfavourable weather closed in, we had visited one of Palau's most popular sites: Long Beach. This 1km strip of white sand is visible only during an ebb tide. As high tide approaches, the turquoise waters inch up the beach from opposite sides, eventually creating the remarkable illusion that day-trippers strolling along its length are walking on water.
Until recently, Hong Kong travellers wanting to sample Long Beach and Palau's other sights had to fly via Manila, Guam or Taipei. With direct flights from the SAR having begun on August 30, the destination is now only a four-hour flight away. Located seemingly in the middle of nowhere, south-east of the Philippines and north of Papua New Guinea, Palau comprises more than 300 islands, only nine of which are inhabited; the 20,000-strong population is concentrated mainly on Koror, Babeldaob and Peleliu. The archipelago was occupied by Japan from 1914 until the end of the second world war, when it came under United States administration. It gained independence in 1994.
On dry land, Palau's attractions are limited. There are archaeological sites dating back to 1,000BC, fresh waterfalls and bai, or thatched A-frame meeting halls, decorated with brightly painted carvings. Having hosted its share of bloody battles during the second world war, Peleliu is popular with military history buffs and has a museum dedicated to its wartime past. Palau's capital, Koror, on the island of the same name, is a slow-paced town, its potholed main street dotted with tacky souvenir shops, karaoke bars and the odd massage parlour.