Christopher Columbus’ arrival in the New World: however radical the consequences, it is not necessarily an event which can be celebrated without slight unease at the devastating effect it had on the indigenous populations.

Now, in a city that no one really used to go to, Puerto Rico is, this spring, opening its blockbuster new tourist attraction: based around a gargantuan statue that no one else wanted. The bizarre tale of how the 110m Birth of the New World statue, depicting Christopher Columbus sailing towards the New World, does not stop at its preposterous dimensions. This controversial monument is set to utterly revolutionise a previously quiet corner of the island’s North Coast…

The full, fantastic story of the statue is told in my 11-page cover feature for this month’s issue of n by Norwegian: particularly fascinating, I think, because the photographer and myself went out of the way to get some really eye-opening perspectives. Indeed, it’s safe to say no one else has covered the rise of what has become the tallest monument in the Americas in such detail. So if you’re flying with the airline this month, do give it a nice in-flight read…

Brave New World (Scroll to page 34)

Categories: Articles, Caribbean Travel, Luxury TravelTags: Arecibo, Birth of the New World, Caribbean, Caribbean Travel, Christopher Columbus, cover stories, features, monuments, n by norwegian, Puerto Rico