Dear Steemit friends:

Today, i'm taking everyone on a sunshine filled adventure to the "Heart of The Earth".

Our destination is Saipan. The largest of the Northern Mariana Islands, Saipan is a commonwealth of the United States and is located deep in the Pacific Ocean. It has a unique geographical location as just 5km east of this island is the Pacific Mariana Trench - the deepest part of the worlds oceans.

Did you know that Saipan has it's own pearl? No, I'm not talking about a pearl from an oyster. I'm referring to the tiny island on the west side of Saipan named Warship Island. It is a tiny island just 1.5km in perimeter and surrounded by shallow Tiffany Blue waters. Further out, the waters are a darker blue shade which reveal the depths of the Mariana Trench. This little pearl island is so small, it actually has no inhabitants.

There is a funny story behind the name of this island. During the second world war, the island was mistook by the US Military as an enemy warship. They tried to bombard it to no avail. It did not sink! It was after all, a tiny island about the size of a warship.

This is a picture of the Warship Island that I took from a board a helicopter. Isn't it a cute little island? Up from the sky you can see most of the island is covered in forest trees and surrounded by white sandy beaches. Just off the shore, the shallow waters reveal reefs which spread around the island like green pearls. Managaha is what the locals have named this little island, which literally means warship in their local Chamorro language.

Warship island "emerged" as a result the movement of tectonic plates, thousands of years ago. Many people say that if you don't take a boat trip to this island and step foot on it, then you haven't really visited Saipan!

These boats used for water sports give the blue ocean a gaily-coloured character, bringing the whole area to life.

Here I am on board a boat to Warship Island. The sun, shining bright and beautiful, the wind and waves, subtle. At first, I thought the waters of Saipan were already very blue. That is, until I saw the waters around Managaha, which are even more blue!

The local boatmen wear swimming costumes all day. In their free time, they'll dive into the sea for a quick swim, then proceed to climb back on the boat after cooling off in the water. I'm so envious of them!

From this angle, the Warship island looks more like a green castle on the backdrop of a blue affluent ocean. The soft and fine white sand, hooking to it's sides. Incredibly beautiful!

The sea water here is crystal clear, and even sparkles under the brilliant sun. You can see the coral reefs below, and even shoals of fish swimming freely, their reflective scales glistening under the sun.

In the distance, you can see a lot of people bathing in the sun, playing in the water, all with huge smiles on their faces.

Embarking on the island, you are welcomed by a lovely stone sign with the name of the island - Managaha.

The waters here are really shallow and come up too my waist. If you put your head under water, you can see the coral reefs and elf like fish swimming around in groups. On the seabed, there are even sea cucumbers. I tread carefully to avoid stepping on them.

It only takes 10 minutes to circle around the whole island for a 360 view. What you'll see, is a flourishing island that some how remains very tranquil.

This is the island's resting lounge which also doubles up as buffet restaurant. If you get tired and need a rest, you can get a decent lunch here to recharge and go back out for some more fun!
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One of the best things about Managaha is that everyone can find their own little spot to relax and enjoy the sun and sea.

Something that really catches my eye on the island are the very big Banyan trees. There are some little ones with very peculiar curved trunks, as if inviting people to lie down on them for a rest.

I even had a brief interlude whilst relaxing by the beach. Someone came up to me and said I looked like the asian version of Ariana Grande. It turns out that we have quite similar costumes.

The beach also has a lot of these banana like boats.

This is a big artillery cannon, an artefact left from the second world war.

And that wraps up this post on the luscious island paradise that is Managaha.

I have plenty more stories and blog posts in the works of my adventures in Saipan, stay tuned for more !

Feel free to leave a comment, and don't forget to vote and resteem!

今天我想带大家去探索有着“地球之心”之称得塞班岛，它有着独特的地理位置，在塞班岛东侧5公里处，就是地球最深处——太平洋马里亚纳海沟，它也是马里亚纳群岛 面积最大人口最多的岛屿。但是你们知道，塞班岛有一颗明亮的珍珠，它位于塞班岛西侧，四周环绕着Tiffany Blue颜色的浅海，远处则是深蓝色的海洋，透露着马里亚海沟的深邃。没错，它的名字叫军舰岛。它是一个周长仅为1.5公里的一个无人小岛。

这个小岛名字背后还有个有趣的故事， 二次世界大战时期，这个小岛曾被美军误认为是一艘军舰，但是又久炸不沉，所以叫“军舰岛”。这是我在直升机上拍到的军舰岛，是不是好袖珍好可爱，晶莹剔透的。从空中可以看到，军舰岛上一片绿油油的树林被四周雪白的贝壳沙滩所包围，就好像绿色的珍珠，这也正是这个小岛在当地的名字——Managaha的意思。军舰岛是万年前地壳运动时浮出海面的珊瑚礁岛，大家常说，如果你来了塞班岛没有坐船上军舰岛，就等于没有正真到过军舰岛。水上运动船给蓝色海面留下鲜艳的色彩，让整个海面热闹起来。在船上的我，阳光明媚，风浪也不大。只是我一开始觉得塞班岛的水已经够蓝了，但是没想到军舰岛的水更蓝，让人看到就痴迷和醉了。当地的船家一整天都穿着泳裤，因为只要有空闲时间他们就会一头跳进海里玩耍一阵再爬回船上，我好羡慕这样的生活呀！这样的视角我觉得军舰岛更像盖在蓝色流利海面的绿色城堡，细柔的白沙勾边，真美呀！这里的海水在灿烂的阳光下晶莹剔透，都能看见海底的珊瑚礁和自由自在游荡的鱼群。深色的蓝是海草。远远的就可以看到海滩上有好多沐浴着阳光，戏水玩沙子的幸福人们。登岛了，石头上有着漂亮的当地语言军舰岛三个字。这里的海水和塞班岛上的一样浅，只有到成年人的腰部，只要低下头，就可以看见闪耀的珊瑚和小精灵一样活泼的热带鱼成群的游过你脚边，海底还遍布着懒洋洋的海参，所以我走在水里，都好小心，生怕踩到它们。军舰岛环岛只要十分钟，就可以360全面的欣赏这片繁华与宁静相结合的小岛。

这里是岛上的休息室和自助餐区，如果你玩累了可以在这里休息并吃个午餐。军舰岛最美好的地方，就是在这里每一个人都能找到属于自己的小角落，尽情的享受阳光沙滩海水。最吸引我注意的要数岛上的大榕树，还有各种弯弯的树干，好有个性，让人想躺在上面休息。其中还有个小插曲，正当我在海滩上尽情放松的时候，有人找到我说，我的形象有点像亚洲版的Ariana Grande。原来是衣服穿得有点像阿。希望你们喜欢我今天带你们探索的小岛军舰岛，之后还有更多有趣的故事在塞班岛等着我们去探索。