São Tomé and Príncipe

On the taxi ride from my hotel in Angola to the airport, I met another traveler named Phil, who happened to be on my flight to São Tomé and was also on a mission to visit every country in the world. We spent our first day exploring together, sharing stories from our journeys. Phil traveled everywhere with a small Muppet named Beaker, which always seemed to make locals smile and spark conversations. It was a fun reminder that connecting with people often starts with the simplest things.

The following day, I explored the island on my own. Between the lush volcanic peaks, dense rainforest, waterfalls, tiny Portuguese-influenced villages, and roads with almost no other tourists, it often felt like I’d wandered onto the set of Jurassic Park. In my opinion, São Tomé was even more beautiful than the Caribbean islands I’d visited, yet it receives only a tiny fraction of the visitors. It reminded me that some of the world’s most extraordinary places are often the ones furthest off the beaten path.