The hint is in the nickname – the “Garden Island” beckons you to venture outdoors. Nomad Shaun Busuttil is more than happy to answer the call of Kauai.

It’s just after dawn, and I’m paddling up the Wailuā River en route to a “secret” waterfall. The water is a shimmering, orange-tinged mirror to the sky – so still, and so peaceful. It’s just me out here, for the moment anyway, amongst the birds and the trees and the silence.

My map says I’ll need to bank my kayak at a small island roughly 2.25mi (3.6km) upstream, passing an old Hawaiian village on the way, before commencing a 20-minute jungle trek to reach the 98ft (30m) Uluwehi Falls, which, to be honest, isn’t so much of a secret anymore – it's way too beautiful to be kept under wraps.

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The blister on my left toe is bigger than a five-cent coin. It raised its head last night after eight hours of walking, and today – because protests are better with company – even brought along a few friends.

I’m on the final morning of a three-day hike circumnavigating the island of Malta, walking around 25mi (40km) a day through languid fishing villages and scruffy farmland bordered by prickly pear trees, and along paths skirting precipitous cliffs and megalithic monuments that predate the Egyptian pyramids.

Our group of 13 started the trek from the historic capital of Valletta – a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the European Capital of Culture for 2018 – and we’re gradually making our way back there in a loop, 73mi (118km) later. We have no guide, only a map and a keen sense of adventure.

Why on earth am I subjecting my feet to this blistering ordeal? I crave new experiences, and I love the challenge of pushing my body and mind to its limits. But this walk around Malta is more personal.

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I’ve stumbled upon a religious street procession in Bologna, Italy, with all the usual accompaniments: thick incense in the air, a marching band, men shouldering gilded floats adorned with a cosmology of religious iconography. Only, this isn’t an Italian procession per se.

Italy isn’t exactly known for its multiculturalism, but every October, Peruvians in Bologna celebrate the Festa del Señor de los Milagros (Lord of Miracles): a solemn street procession in honour of a venerated painting of a crucified Jesus that miraculously survived a powerful earthquake in Lima in 1655. The earthquake reduced hundreds of churches and homes to rubble and left thousands dead and homeless. And yet, the painting remained intact. According to Catholics, the icon's survival was an act of divine intervention.

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