evidence: Is it possible to feel all alone in the world? To find a place where no traces of humankind are to be found? To leave civilisation behind and immerse yourself in the heart of an untamed wild and natural landscape? This dream of exploration can come true true on the coast of the Horn of Africa, courtesy of the Scattered Islands. Scattered, because they are dotted around Madagascar. These five islands are spread out from the north-east to the south in the Mozambique, Channel and answer to the names of Europa (the most southerly), Bassas da India (its neighbour), Juan de Nova (more or less halfway between Madagascar and Mozambique), the Glorioso Islands (an archipelago to the north) and Tromelin to the north-east. [...] In this unspoilt corner of the world, humankind is but an observer. The mangroves which shelter Europa have been there since the time of the first civilisations. The coconut groves on Juan de Nova are among the oldest in the world. Gaze upon one of the islands’ beaches and let yourself be surrounded by a sense of the vastness of the universe. There’s no better place to appreciate the insignificance of humankind on this planet.