Phi Ta Khon is a ghost festival held in Dan Sai, northeastern Thailand. Villagers parade in patchwork costumes and towering masks traditionally assembled from sticky-rice steamers and coconut husks. According to local tradition, the spirits first appeared during the joyful return of Prince Vessantara, emerging from the forest to join the celebration.
The Yaghnobis are a mountain people of Tajikistan who speak a descendant of Sogdian, once the common language of the Silk Road. In 1970, Soviet authorities emptied their valley and sent its inhabitants to grow cotton in the lowlands. Some eventually returned, bringing the language back with them.
Isola Bella was a barren rock in Lake Maggiore until the Borromeo family began converting it into a private baroque world in the seventeenth century. A palace occupies one end; behind it, ten garden terraces rise 37 metres above the water, giving the island the shape of an enormous stone ship. Its decks are crowded with grottoes, fountains, obelisks and statues, culminating in a giant unicorn—the Borromeo family emblem.
The Buton people are an Indigenous community from an Indonesian island southeast of Sulawesi. Some members have unusually vivid blue eyes associated with Waardenburg syndrome, a genetic condition that affects pigmentation and, in some cases, hearing. The trait can appear in both eyes or only one.
Zangbeto are traditional guardians of the night in Benin, Togo and Nigeria, appearing as towering cones of brightly colored raffia. During ceremonies, they spin and move without any visible person inside. According to tradition, the costumes are inhabited not by performers but by spirits.
The Cholita Climbers are a group of Indigenous Aymara women from Bolivia who ascend some of South America’s highest mountains wearing their traditional layered skirts. Many began as cooks and porters for climbing expeditions before deciding to make the journey themselves. In 2019, they reached the summit of Aconcagua, the highest peak outside Asia.
Hugo Bernatzik (1904–1953) was an Austrian ethnographer and photographer, renowned for his work documenting indigenous cultures in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Bernatzik studied anthropology and developed a keen interest in the lifestyles, rituals, and traditions of remote and often isolated communities. He is best known for his photographic work, which captured the everyday lives of indigenous peoples with an emphasis on their cultural practices, costumes, and environments. In the 1930s and 1940s, Bernatzik conducted extensive fieldwork in regions such as Papua New Guinea, New Guinea, and Borneo, where he collaborated with local communities and produced a substantial collection of photographs. His images provided valuable insights into the diversity and richness of these cultures, contributing to the academic understanding of anthropology and ethnography at the time.
The MV Lyubov Orlova was a Soviet-built cruise ship that gained notoriety not for its voyages, but for its strange and mysterious fate after being abandoned at sea. Constructed in 1976 in Yugoslavia and named after the famed Russian actress Lyubov Orlova, the ship initially served as a luxury liner for expeditions in polar regions, ferrying passengers to destinations like Antarctica. For decades, it operated as a charter vessel, but financial troubles caught up with the ship, and it was seized in 2010 in Canada due to unpaid debts. In 2013, after sitting docked for years, the Lyubov Orlova was sold for scrap in the Dominican Republic. During its tow from Canada, the ship broke free from its tug in rough seas near Newfoundland. Efforts to secure it failed, and the derelict vessel drifted into international waters. Declared a hazard to navigation, it was to be monitored, but over time, tracking ceased, and the ship effectively disappeared.
Roopkund is a high-altitude glacial lake located in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, nestled within the Himalayas. Situated at an elevation of approximately 5,029 meters (16,499 feet) above sea level, Roopkund is renowned for its stunning natural beauty and intriguing archaeological significance. One of the most distinctive features of Roopkund is the presence of human skeletal remains scattered along its shores and submerged within its icy waters. The origin of these skeletons has long been shrouded in mystery, sparking fascination and speculation among researchers and explorers. In 1942, a British forest guard made the initial discovery of the skeletons while on a patrol in the area. Subsequent investigations revealed the presence of hundreds of human remains, dating back to the 9th century CE. The skeletons were remarkably well-preserved due to the cold, oxygen-deprived environment of the lake.
Shirdan is an offal dish prepared by washing the abomasum (lower stomach) of a sheep and then stuffing it with chopped meat, onions, and paprika, then further seasoning it with black pepper, pimento and salt. Water is then added and the opened cavity is sewn with a needle and thread. Lastly, it is baked with animal fat in an earthen casserole. This frequently consumed dish in Adana, Turkey is considered a regional specialty.