Día de los Muertos, or “Day of the Dead,” is a multi-day celebration of all five senses. Contrary to the somber tone that its name implies, the holiday is treasured in Mexican culture as an opportunity to honor the dead while celebrating the joy of life.
For centuries, the Kulung people in eastern Nepal have harvested the honey from the Himalayan honey bees. Not a remarkable feat, except for the fact the harvesters must scale the sheer cliffs of the Himalayas – hundreds of feet or more – to reach the hives.
Just outside the small city of Šiauliai stands a small hill with a big history. Kryžių Kalnas, or “The Hill of Crosses,” rises proudly from the landscape as the national pilgrimage center of Lithuania and a beacon of the nation’s rich history and tradition.
Looking down on the confluence of the Minjiang, Dadu, and Qingyi rivers in the Sichuan Province of China, the “Leshan Giant Buddha” is the largest cliff rock carving Maitreya Buddha statue in the world. “Da Fo,” as this stone behemoth is also known, measures over 233 feet (71 meters) tall.
Chicago is not the first city to turn historic buildings into trendy apartments, but its dwellings may be among some of the most unique. The Cedar Street Companies’ FLATS® development line has been steadily transforming notable Chicago properties into modern apartment complexes while retaining the character of the historic buildings.
![Christ pectoral after a mosaic at Daphni [Monastery] - Pendant, 2019, Loukia Richards for The Sacred & The Profane Jewelry Show.](https://i1.wp.com/thevalemagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/the-sacred-and-the-profane-jewelry-show-loukia-richards.jpg?fit=640%2C847&ssl=1)
Curated by ZLR Betriebsimperium and supported by the City of Munich, “The Sacred & The Profane” group exhibition, running from March 14 through March 17, 2019, at Galerie Weltraum, Munich, will examine the ambiguity of objects and rituals.
In most Western cultures, death is considered a sad occasion and discussions on the topic are often avoided. However, Mexicans have a different view. Once a year, from October 31 to November 2, people throughout Mexico honor the memory of family members and friends who have died, during the “Day of the Dead” (Dia de Los Muertos) celebration.
While most visitors to China are eager to see sights such as the Great Wall, Tiananmen Square, the Xian Terracotta Army Site, and Shanghai’s skyline, those who venture further afield will be greatly rewarded. In China’s Hebei province, just an hour from Beijing, travelers will find the “Tianzi Hotel,” an unusual structure called the “Biggest Image Building” by the Guinness World Records.
Every year on the last full moon in the lunar month of Phalguna, between the end of February and the middle of March, villages across India become awash in color. During this time, men and women, rich and poor, old and young, and locals and visitors come together for the joyous Hindu celebration of “Holi.”
Travelers looking to make their way to Thailand would do well to stop by the Wat Samphran Dragon Temple. Sitting only 30 miles (48 km) outside of Bangkok, the 17-story cylindrical tower is a well-hidden Easter egg for visitors as it is rarely mentioned in guidebooks, tourist maps, and travel websites.
