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Susan Portnoy

Susan Portnoy is a travel photographer and writer who covers destinations, cultures, nature and wildlife. Her work has appered in AARP, Fodor's, Travel + Leisure, Hemispheres, Newsweek and other publications.

A Lötschental Valley resident dressed as a Tschägättä strolls around the village of Wiler, in Valais, Switzerland moments before the annual Carnival Parade begins.

Discover the Beasts of Switzerland’s Lötschental Valley

During Carnival, villagers wearing wooden masks and dressing like fearsome “tschäggättä” terrorize the streets