On a moonlit sand spit somewhere in the South China Sea, I sit cross-legged by the edge of a gently lapping lagoon, eyes closed, listening to the soothing voice of our South African meditation coach, Philippa.
“Allow yourself to tune in to the island’s pure energy, and let it tune you … aaaah,” she intones between deep exhalations. “Invite her gentleness and beauty into your being … and remind yourself that beneath the chaos of a busy mind there is a place that is calm, cool, like this lagoon here at Bawah … aaaah.”
“Aaaah” is right. Situated in the outer reaches of Indonesia’s remote Anambas Archipelago, Bawah Reserve is as quietly seductive as it is unlikely, a cluster of six small, wildly forested islands that rise modestly above azure lagoons. Like all guests, I caught my first sight of them from the air, as the only access (at least for those of us without a yacht) is via private seaplane from Batam, an Indonesian island just off Singapore. From there, the flight
