Unfamiliar traditions, local habits, and the stories behind them.
8 stories · Latest first
At Cooper’s Hill in Gloucestershire, an ordinary dairy product becomes a race prize. The steep slope explains why photographs show so many competitors off their feet.
Cooper’s Hill, Brockworth, Gloucestershire, England · 27 May 2013. Photo: Dave Farrance · CC BY-SA 3.0. Original image unchanged; displayed proportionally.
At Pernik’s masquerade festival, extraordinary costumes draw the eye. The local traditions behind them connect masks, sound and wishes for a new beginning.
Surva festival, Pernik, Bulgaria · 17 January 2026. Photo: Inna Dieieva · CC BY 4.0. Original image unchanged; displayed proportionally.
The racing boats are the loudest part of the festival. The food, family customs and regional stories explain why the day reaches far beyond the finish line.
Hong Kong, China · 2 June 2017. Photo: Ceeseven · CC BY-SA 4.0. Original image unchanged; displayed proportionally.
Silbo Gomero turns spoken Spanish into whistled communication. The surprising part is how much a trained listener can understand.
La Gomera, Spain · 2012-12-14. Photo: Diego Delso, delso.photo · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source photograph retained without further edits; displayed proportionally.
A photograph from Catalonia draws your eye upward. The crowd packed around the base reveals why a castell is a collective achievement.
Vilafranca del Penedès, Catalonia, Spain · 2014-11-02. Photo: Castellers de Barcelona · CC BY 3.0. Original photograph, unchanged; displayed proportionally.
Bohol’s asin tibuok takes shape inside a clay pot. Coconut husks, ash and repeated boiling help explain how seawater becomes this unusual seasoning.
Asin tibuok from Alburquerque, Bohol, Philippines; exact shooting spot unspecified · 2021-06-17. Photo: Lokalpedia · CC BY-SA 4.0. Supplied photograph reproduced without further editing.
On Japan’s Nagara River, a fishing master manages swimming cormorants by firelight. The leads in his hand explain part of the scene.
Nagara River, Japan · 2025-07-07. Photo: Ludger Heide · CC BY-SA 4.0. Supplied image version reproduced without further editing.
Rows of family rooms face one shared courtyard. Inside Fujian’s tulou, a household’s rooms could run up several floors—while the building brought an entire clan together.
Inside Yuchanglou, Fujian, October 2007. Photo: Gisling · CC BY-SA 3.0. Original image, unchanged.
